Coroner’s inquest sought in deaths of six teenagers

Kim Smith

Wednesday, April 26, 2000 | 10:52 a.m.

The defense attorney representing the young woman accused of driving into and killing six teenagers as they worked along Interstate 15 last month has asked a judge to schedule a coroner's inquest.

Jessica Williams' attorney, John Watkins, asked for the inquest to determine whether Clark County should be held criminally responsible for the March 19 accident that took the lives of six teenagers picking up trash as part of a juvenile probation program.

Watkins asked District Judge Mark Gibbons on Tuesday to order the inquest. Traditionally such hearings are held only if requested by a judge, district attorney or coroner.

Las Vegas attorney Robert Murdock, who represents the families of victims Jennifer Booth and Anthony Smith, filed a separate motion asking for permission to file a brief supporting an inquest. No civil lawsuits have been filed by the families yet.

Gibbons could rule on the motions as soon as Thursday, when Williams makes her next court appearance.

According to police, Williams was under the influence of marijuana and the drug Ecstasy when she fell asleep at the wheel of her father's minivan and drifted into the median of I-15 and struck the teen work crew.

Five of the teens died at the scene and a sixth died the next day.

According to Watkins' motion, the teens were within 3 feet of the busy interstate when they were struck by the vehicle.

The county has since stopped its trash pickup program, which began 11 years ago and allowed juvenile offenders to work off jail time or fines.

In other developments, a 300-plus page grand jury transcript from the Williams case was filed in Clark County District Court.

Twenty-nine people testified at the hearing, including teens who were there, passers-by, law enforcement officers, a coroner and a drug expert.

Also testifying was Tania Ozarek-Smith, a passenger in Williams' van.

Ozarek-Smith told the grand jurors that she and Williams worked at a topless club until 2 a.m. on the day of the accident, stayed up all night after taking Ecstasy and then drove to the Valley of Fire, where they talked and smoked a bowl of marijuana.

She said she remembers waking up in the van when it rolled onto the gravel.

"I looked over at Jessica, and she was sleeping," Ozarek-Smith said.

"And what did you do?" Chief Assistant District Attorney Booker asked her.

"I yelled her name," Ozarek-Smith said.

"And what happened then?"

"And she woke up and then it was too late," Ozarek-Smith said.

"It was too late. What happened?" Booker asked.

"Bodies slammed in the windshield ... two at a time."

Moments later, the van stopped facing in the opposite direction, Ozarek-Smith said.

"(Jessica) asked me if it was real and I told her it was, and I told her we should get out of the car," Ozarek-Smith said.

"Did she say anything else to you?" Booker asked.

"No. She was crying a lot," Ozarek-Smith said.

Each of the witnesses testified the teens were wearing orange reflective vests that day and stood 15 to 20 feet away from the road. Parked nearby were two county vans, their flashers going.

Those witnesses who saw Williams in the seconds before the crash were asked if Williams could have been swerving to avoid something in the road, if a tire was flat or if the sun could have blinded her. All of the witnesses said no.

Ozarek-Smith was also asked if Williams ever complained about there being any mechanical problems with the van, perhaps a steering problem. She said no.

Chief Medical Examiner Lary Simms testified about the injuries suffered by each of the teens, while several others testified about seeing them flying through the dust-filled air as Williams struck them. They also spoke about the ensuing chaos as they went from victim to victim, checking pulses and relaying the information over cell phones to 911 dispatchers.

Liliana Pascacio was with one of the victims, Alberto Puig, at the time of the accident.

"We were picking up trash. Alberto -- I don't know his last name. He was standing right beside me. We were talking. We didn't hear her come or anything. It came and took him. He was standing right there beside me, and it just hit my arm," Pascacio told the grand jurors.

Kim Smith covers courts for the Sun. She can be reached at (702) 259-2321 or by e-mail at kimberly@lasvegassun.com