Defendant may take stand in crash case

Kim Smith

Friday, March 8, 2002 | 9:41 a.m.

Mitchell Dettloff, a 36-year-old Las Vegas man accused of killing three people in a car accident last year, will "most probably" take the stand today, his attorney told District Judge Joseph Bonaventure Thursday.

After prosecutors rested their case Thursday afternoon defense attorney Richard Wright said Dettloff will likely be one of about a dozen defense witnesses he intends to call.

Dettloff faces four counts of leaving the scene of the accident and reckless driving and three counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with an April 22 accident on U.S. 95 near Ann Road.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Gary Booker alleges Dettloff was in a hurry to pick up his two young sons when he merged onto southbound U.S. 95 from Ann Road at a high rate of speed.

Seconds later Dettloff's black Lincoln allegedly clipped the right front end of a Ford pickup, which was carrying members of the Barton family. The pickup was forced across the dirt median and into the path of Brian Cooper, who was driving northbound, Booker said.

Holly Barton, 33, and Benjamin Barton, 8, were thrown from the vehicle and killed. Cooper, 30, also was killed. James Barton was critically injured but recovered.

A highly emotional Barton spent about five minutes on the stand as the state's final witness. In addition to describing his injuries, Barton was asked to identify his wife and child from photos of the accident.

A tearful Barton maintained his composure when asked to look at photos of his wife, but cried "Oh God!" and "That's my boy" when he saw photos of his son.

Barton said he recalls little of the accident.

Bonaventure is likely to decide this morning whether Wright will be permitted to question doctors about Dettloff's frame of mind after the accident. Wright has said Dettloff suffers from panic attacks, but Booker said Wright should be disallowed from exploring that subject because Nevada doesn't permit diminished capacity defenses.

"In Nevada it's very simple," Booker said. "You're sane or you're not sane."