Teen murder suspect gets to spend Christmas at home

Bill Gang

Friday, Dec. 26, 1997 | 10:30 a.m.

Although charged with murder in a North Las Vegas drive-by shooting, Western High School senior Joey Chadwick was given the gift of spending Christmas with his family.

In a Christmas Eve decision, District Judge Don Chairez released Chadwick without bail -- although with the requirement that he be closely watched by authorities -- until the murder case can be sorted out by a jury.

It was the second time Chadwick, 18, was released without bail in the convoluted case that is set for trial Feb. 17.

North Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Steve Dahl had seen contradictory evidence early in the case and decided on his own volition to release Chadwick without bail pending a preliminary hearing over the Oct. 1 slaying of 19-year-old Deandre Fountain.

The murder case had started out with two defendants and North Las Vegas police were sure Chadwick drove the car while Stevie Norwood wielded the gun that killed Fountain.

Witnesses said there was only a driver and a shooter in the car that stopped outside a house on Dutchess Avenue, near Carey Avenue and Commerce Street, where a group of people -- including Fountain -- were standing.

The victim, North Las Vegas police speculated, may have been targeted for retaliation because Chadwick's 11-year-old sister had been shot in a drive-by.

Chadwick's attorney John Lukens noted, however, that the prosecution's witnesses made it clear that the teenager wasn't the driver of the car from which, they alleged, Stevie Norwood jumped out and began shooting.

Deputy District Attorney Valerie Adair said that Chadwick and Norwood are brothers.

The witnesses, some of which knew Chadwick, described the driver as having light skin and long hair, while the defendant has very dark skin and short hair.

But the case never made it to Dahl's courtroom because the district attorney's office instead presented it to a Clark County grand jury, which indicted Chadwick, Norwood and Alexander Thrower.

Chadwick's attorney at the time Joe Houston said that Thrower, who has long hair and light skin, is now charged as the driver.

Houston states in court documents that a North Las Vegas Police detective filed a report "that Thrower actually admits to being the driver of the vehicle in which Norwood was located and ... the night of the murder."

The grand jury indictment charges Chadwick with aiding and abetting Norwood and Thrower by providing the guns used in the shooting. The charges include conspiracy to commit murder or battery with use of a deadly weapon, murder, five counts of attempted murder and two counts of discharging a weapon into a structure.

Adair said that Chadwick could have been the driver of a second car that she alleged went to the Dutchess Avenue home, although the original charges mention only one car.

Adair noted that two types of weapons were fired in the attack and the charges were clarified after "more complete statements" came in from witnesses and victims.

In arguing for the own recognizance release, Lukens said that if guns were supplied it was because Norwood had been threatened and needed to protect himself.

Lukens noted that Chadwick had been cooperative with detectives and gave statements when asked to.

"This truly is a marginal case," he told Chairez.

The lawyer pointed out that since surrendering on the Nov. 19 indictment, Chadwick has had his sister bring him his school work so he doesn't get behind in his studies.

"That's where his head is," Lukens said.

But Deputy District Attorney James Miller expressed concern that an OR release actually could result in additional violence from friends of the victims if Chadwick returns to school.

Chadwick had been held on $500,000 bail, but Lukens said the defendant couldn't post bail no matter how low and an OR release was the teenager's only avenue to freedom pending trial.