Uncle finds body of nephew in lake

Monday, Aug. 2, 2004 | 9:32 a.m.

Aspiring 22-year-old screenwriter Rickey Schlecht of Las Vegas had planned for a weekend of fun at Lake Mead after his uncle's boat had been repaired, family and friends said Sunday.

Schlecht and his red-nose pit bull, 3-year-old Holly, went to sleep on the boat, docked near shore, Friday night.

When his uncle, Randy Schlecht, a 44-year-old inspector for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, awoke early Saturday morning there was no sign of either man or dog on board.

The uncle searched the waters in a cove east of Callville Bay where the boat had been anchored overnight and found his nephew's body floating in six inches of water.

"He has to investigate these kind of accidents all the time, so you can imagine how hard it was to pull his (Rickey Schlecht's) body out of the water," Rickey's sister, Virginia Kells, 25, said Sunday afternoon.

Kells said her brother had suffered from seizures since he was 16.

"We are assuming he had a seizure and fell in the water and took water in his lungs," Kells said. "We just know there was no physical evidence, no bumps, no bruises, no contusions."

A coroner's autopsy had not been completed Sunday night.

The uncle and nearby campers tried to revive Rickey and called 911 for help, National Park Service spokeswoman Roxanne Dey said. About 7:45 a.m. Saturday, park service rangers and Mercy Air ambulance responded to the accident, Dey said.

This was the seventh drowning at Lake Mead National Recreation Area this year, Dey said.

After graduating from Mojave High School in 2000, Rickey went to work with Carpenters Union Local 1977 until his seizures worsened.

"Once the seizures started getting worse, he couldn't drive and he couldn't work," Kells said.

Of late, Rickey's seizures had been improving, hence the outing on the boat. The young man had been living with his parents, Rickey and Mary Dawn Schlecht of Las Vegas, until the time of his death.

The entire family was active and athletic, but Rickey's particularly enjoyed golf and bowling, his sister said.

In addition to Kells, Rickey also is survived by a twin sister, Renee, 22, and an older brother, Anthony, 28, all of Las Vegas.

David Neil Deklotz, 33, who plans to marry Renee, said that Schlecht was interested in film. He started writing screenplays, everything from comedy and action to horror scripts, some of which Deklotz said he had seen.

At the time of his death, Schlecht was writing a script titled, "Fraternal Differences," based on his relationship with his sister, Deklotz said.

Schlecht was also researching epilepsy for a possible documentary film, Deklotz said.

Local film critic Deklotz, who recently graduated from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas with a dual major in film studies and communications, said that Schlecht was preparing some of his scripts as entries in screenwriting contests.