Cause unclear in woman’s death

Jen Lawson

Thursday, Jan. 9, 2003 | 9:27 a.m.

Homicide detectives are investigating Wednesday morning's "curious" death of a 26-year-old woman who had been partying at a Strip nightclub and had a fight with a roommate in the final hours of her life.

Lt. Tom Monahan said detectives are treating the case as a homicide until the coroner determines a cause of death. A drug overdose is also a possibility, he said.

"It's simply unknown, but it's prudent and reasonable that we get involved at the onset," Monahan said. "If we find out it's not a homicide, we've lost nothing but time."

Police did not release the woman's identity Wednesday.

Monahan said she and her friends were at Studio 54, a nightclub at the MGM Grand, late Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning. While at the club, the woman complained that she wasn't feeling well and she was driven to her Summerlin home by a man.

The woman allegedly told the man that she was having problems with her boyfriend, Metro Officer Jose Montoya said. Before getting out of the car, the woman told the man, "Wait here for 10 minutes and if something seems wrong, call the police," Montoya said.

The woman, who shares a house in the Heather Glen subdivision near Sahara Avenue and Town Center Drive with three other people, got into a physical fight with a roommate, Monahan said.

The man who drove her home heard the fight and called 911. The call was received at 4:43 a.m.

During the altercation, the woman passed out, Monahan said. Another 911 call was made from inside the house.

Someone who was in the house put the woman in a limousine and drove her to Summerlin Hospital, where she was dead on arrival.

Monahan said it is not clear why they used a limo, but he pointed out that the man who drove her home from the club is not the same person who drove her to the hospital. Thinking the woman's death appeared suspicious, hospital personnel called police.

Monahan called the situation "curious." There were no obvious signs of trauma to the woman's body, and no weapon was found in the house.

Nightclub drug use might be a factor in the woman's death, he said. But the fact that she also physically fought with someone must also be taken into consideration, Monahan said.

If it is determined that the woman died because someone gave or sold her drugs, state law says that person could be charged in connection with the death.

In July 2000 a 21-year-old woman died at C2K, a nightclub at The Venetian, after ingesting the club drug Ecstasy, but no one was ever charged in connection with that death.

Studio 54, where the Summerlin resident had been Tuesday, holds an event every Tuesday night called "EDEN: Erotically Delicious Entertainers Night." Those in the Las Vegas entertainment industry are allowed into the club free on those nights. It was not clear late Wednesday if the woman was a local entertainer.

A spokesman for MGM Mirage said Studio 54 officials are cooperating with police.

"We are providing Metro with any information that might help in their investigation," said Alan Feldman, senior vice president of public affairs.