NHP defends analysis of crash

By Matt Pordum (contact)

Thursday, April 21, 2005 | 10:58 a.m.

The Nevada Highway Patrol said Wednesday it stands by its determination that a man whose car caused a rock to fly through the windshield of a woman's car, killing her, was driving 97 mph and not the 69 to 71 mph a recent reconstruction of the incident suggested.

The more than 20 mph difference is critical because Chief Deputy District Attorney L.J. O'Neale cited the lower speed estimate as the main reason for entering a plea agreement with Robert Rink that allows for Rink to be sentenced to probation for the July 2003 incident that killed 31-year-old Michelle Rogers.

Rink entered a conditional guilty plea on April 12 to one count of involuntary manslaughter in connection with Rogers' death.

In exchange for the guilty plea to that charge, prosecutors dropped more serious charges. Rink originally faced two to 15 years in prison if convicted on a charge of leaving the scene of a traffic accident, one to six years on a charge of reckless driving as well as one to four years on the involuntary manslaughter charge. He also faced one count of destruction of evidence, which is a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison.

Rink said he was driving his car on the Las Vegas Beltway near Charleston Boulevard when his car kicked up the median rock that flew through the windshield of Rogers' Volkswagen Passat. When entering his guilty plea last week Rink said he was on his cell phone and not paying attention to the road at the time of the incident.

As part of the negotiation O'Neale will not oppose District Judge Michelle Leavitt sentencing Rink to probation on June 7 with an underlying suspended sentence of one to four years in prison.

O'Neale said the main reason the plea agreement was offered to Rink was because a recalculation of the scene reconstruction performed by former Metro Detective Steve Winne -- who was hired by Rink's attorneys -- put the speed Rink was driving at between 69 and 71 mph.

In a press release Wednesday, however, the Nevada Highway Patrol took issue with O'Neale's decision and Winne's findings.

"Our technical calculations and investigation analysis were compared to the report provided by Mr. Winne," the release states. "It is our conclusion that the Nevada Highway Patrol investigators did not (make an) error in their speed calculations in the analysis of this crash."

In the same release the state law enforcement agency notes that it was "not informed or consulted by the Clark County district attorney's office prior to or during the plea bargain negotiations."

Despite the agency's statements, O'Neale stood by the plea agreement.

"The Nevada Highway Patrol does a wonderful job of protecting the roadways and a wonderful job of investigating accidents when those unfortunate incidents occur, but this is case with unusual if not unique facts," he said.

"In hindsight it would have been better if we had called them as soon as we received Winne's report," O'Neale said. "But due to the press of time we were unable to."

O'Neale said although the minimum speed calculated by Winne is above the posted legal speed limit, it's the speed driven by the majority of the drivers found on that road at the same time of day that the incident occurred.

Rogers' father, Michael Ball Sr., said in a phone call from Washington, D.C. his entire family, some 40 people, is in the process of writing letters to Leavitt to urge her not to sentence Rink to probation.

Ball said he was happy to hear that state troopers are standing by their original conclusions.

"I don't think he (Rink) should get probation based on the speed he was going and the fact he left the scene of an accident," Ball said. "I have contaced my entire family, her mom, grandparents and friends and they will all be writing to Judge Leavitt to tell her probation doesn't equal justice."

Ball said some 2,000 people attended Rogers' funeral in Washington, D.C. and to all those who attended, and himself it's "extremely important" for Rink to serve prison time so he can finally find a sense of closure.

Ball said he and many other family members will make the trip from the East Coast to be present at Rink's sentencing.

While O'Neale said he understood that Rogers' family and friends might not understand the reasoning behind the plea agreement he's only following the law.

"It is understandable that when suffering the loss of a lover one they want retribution," O'Neale said. "But to have a government of law you have to follow the law and you can only do what the law permits you to do."

Although Rink's case was originally perceived as a freak accident it became more of a mystery as Rink left the scene and was seen transferring boxes out of his car with an unidentified accomplice a short time later.

The BMW was later found burned in a parking lot near the Las Vegas Beltway and Industrial Road, a plastic bottle containing gasoline was also found inside the car, authorities said.

That's why he was originally charged with destruction of evidence.