House arrest of teen driver in fatal crash revoked

Erica D. Johnson

Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2004 | 8:20 a.m.

A Clark County prosecutor said he hopes the arrest Monday of a 16-year-old boy charged in the crash that killed three other teens will send a message to young people in the Las Vegas area who would consider drinking and driving.

Family Court Judge William Voy, during a status check hearing, ordered that the teen be arrested and remanded to custody, after Deputy District Attorney Jonathan VanBoskerck said the teen posed a danger to the community.

VanBoskerck urged Voy to set an example for other Las Vegas area teenagers by "holding (the teen) accountable for his actions."

"Our community needs to see what happens when children kill children as a result of drinking and driving," he said.

"If you look at the number of dead bodies piling up in this community, (teenagers) just don't get it."

Authorities say the teen's blood alcohol level was 0.19 -- more than nine times the legal limit for drivers under age 21 -- when he was driving recklessly and caused the Nov. 10 collision that killed 15-year-olds Travis Dunning, Josh Parry and Kyle Poff.

A fourth teen, Cody Fredericks, was seriously injured in the wreck and has since been released from University Medical Center. The driver also was injured and underwent surgery.

The teens had been close friends for years.

"This is a tragic accident that occurred," the teen's defense attorney, Andrew Leavitt, said. "He didn't intend to kill his best friends since kindergarten."

The driver, who was arrested late last week, had been released from custody and placed on house arrest during a hearing on Friday before Hearing Master Thomas Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald had ruled that the teen could continue to go to school and participate in sports activities.

But VanBoskerck said Monday he didn't believe the teen should have ever been released because of the serious nature of the offense.

VanBoskerck said the state had filed a petition for certification, in which they will argue that the teen's case be transferred the adult system. That hearing is scheduled for Feb. 13.

Voy said juveniles whose cases could potentially be transferred to the adult system are generally held at the Clark County Juvenile Detention Center until their certification hearing.

"Generally speaking they are detained," he said. "I see no reason why this shouldn't be followed in this case."

Authorities did not allege that the teen had violated the terms of his house arrest. The teen is not eligible for bail.

A court bailiff arrested the teen, who attended the hearing with his defense attorney, Andrew Leavitt, and his parents. The teen and his parents cried as they hugged goodbye before the youth was handcuffed by a court bailiff and led out of a back door of the courtroom.

Leavitt had argued that there was no reason for the teen to be taken into custody. His mother surrendered his driver's license after the incident and he has no plans to drive a vehicle, Leavitt said.

Leavitt said the teen was an excellent student who had never been in any trouble before the accident.

"The only reason someone would argue for remand is for punishment," he said.

VanBoskerck argued that the teen made a choice to drink alcohol and then get behind the wheel.

"What we have here are choices. He chose to drink and drive," he said.

Authorities say the teen was driving 85 miles per hour in a 25-mile-per-hour zone when he slammed the car into a cinder block wall on Silver Springs Parkway in Henderson.

He faces nine felony counts, which include involuntary manslaughter, driving under the influence and reckless driving.

If he is certified as an adult and is convicted, he could be sentenced to two to 20 years for each of the three felony drunken driving counts and one to four years for each of the involuntary manslaughter counts.

If the case remains in Juvenile Court, his punishment would be up to the judge's discretion. The teen would likely be sent to a juvenile detention facility for less than a year and then be released on parole, Voy said.

VanBoskerck said he would like to see a policy change in which the juvenile justice system would require tougher treatment for teens who drink and drive.

"We've seen too many autopsy photos, talked to too many grieving parents," the prosecutor said. "We have to take a stand."