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Driver accused in sidewalk pedestrian death had prescription drugs
Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009 | 9:56 a.m.
The man allegedly behind the wheel when a pedestrian was struck and killed last week on a sidewalk along Desert Inn Road told police that before the collision happened he couldn’t see anything, “just black,” and that he had prescription medication in his system, according to an arrest report.
Mahmod Alseidahmad, 25, is facing two felony counts of reckless driving, with one count resulting in death and the second resulting in substantial bodily injury in connection with the Dec. 9 collision that left Dennis Dietrich, 56, of Celebration, Fla., dead and Willard Hilborn, 60, of Rancho Mirage, Calif., seriously injured.
After the collision, police impounded Alseidahmad’s vehicle and found an empty pill bottle “in the name of Mahmod Ahmad for Hydrocodone, 120 count and a fill date of 11/11/09,” according to an arrest report released Monday.
The report indicates that Alseidahmad’s vehicle, a black 1995 Honda Accord, was seen driving west at about 5:22 p.m. on Desert Inn after making a turn from Paradise Road. Witnesses told police the Honda was traveling about 70 mph and was weaving in-and-out of traffic, the report says.
Tire marks and other evidence at the scene indicated the Honda was traveling westbound, east of Channel 8 Drive, in the center travel lane, police said. As the Honda changed lanes, the driver began to lose control and the vehicle started to rotate clockwise, drifting to the north side of the roadway, the report said.
The vehicle then went off the roadway and into the north sidewalk in the westbound lanes, the report said. The rear of the vehicle struck the pedestrians, who were walking westbound on the sidewalk along Desert Inn.
The men were struck and the vehicle continued onto the sidewalk, where it eventually came to a rest after striking a light pole, the police report said. Deitrich’s body was found about 10 feet away from the vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Dietrich was initially identified by a badge he was wearing that indicated he was in Las Vegas for a trade show, according to the report.
Alseidahmad was taken to University Medical Center’s trauma unit, where detectives interviewed him about 40 minutes after the accident. At the time of the interview, Alseidahmad was shivering and appeared to be in shock, the investigating officer said in the report.
Alseidahmad told the officer he didn’t know what happened. During the interview, Alseidahmad told police he had just left his dentist’s office near Desert Inn and Boulder Highway and was driving to his home. The officer said in his report that throughout the interview, Alseidahmad was speaking softly and had to be asked several times to repeat himself. He was quiet and seemed “very confused,” the report said.
Alseidahmad was unable to tell the officer the address of the dentist or of his apartment, according to the report. He told police that he was traveling west on Desert Inn when the front of his vehicle started swerving. After that, he couldn’t see anything, “just black,” he told the investigating officer, according to the report.
When asked if he took any medications, Alseidahmad told police he has prescriptions for Xanax, Lortab and Soma.
He said a doctor had prescribed the medications for back pain that resulted from an injury he received at the gym three months earlier, according to the report. He told the officer he had taken half a Xanax at about 10 p.m. the previous night and hadn’t taken Lortab or Soma for about three days, the report says.
Alseidahmad is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday morning. He is being held without bond in the Clark County Detention Center, according to jail records.
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This is again a terrible tragedy, but in this day and age, doctors are so willing to give out many prescriptions to anyone that walks into their offices. I bet that 7-8 out of 10 drivers are on some prescription medicine. Many say do not operate heavy machinery or operate motor vehicles. If such was the case, we would need more buses or taxis!
What exactly IS his name?
This is just so sad. The driver knew better. And these types of things will continue to happen -- health care reform or not. Doctors just love writing up little notes for their patients so they can move onto the next person in the waiting room and do it all over again. :(
Prescription or no prescription, the warning on the side of the container always say's do not DRIVE or operate heavy machinery while taking this medication...The dude is guilty!
what a dumb @$
Xanax, Lortab and Soma? What happened at the gym for him to be given all three, did the roof collapse on him? 120 Lortab/hydrocodone? And the injury occurred 3 months ago? I'd be curious to know who the doctor is that prescribed the medication, what type of injury he sustained at the gym. Think about it....120 lortab. In a month that is 4 pills a day of just the lortab. Those crack/meth dealers don't have squat on these doctors!!! Is there anyone out there who is not taking prescription pills these days?
Just give the driver a fair trial,
THEN HANG HIM!
Chris Dietrich (aka Dennis) and his partner Bill are friends of mine. They were leaving the convention center walking back to their hotel. Bill was on his cellphone describing a successful day on the convention floor to his office when the car hit them from behind. Bill had no idea what happened until paramedics told him; he was hospitalized for five days, and is still recovering with metal rods in him. Sadly, Chris didn't make it. Medicine or not, the driver may have a history of going too fast and swerving thru traffic, which is probably what caused him to lose control. And the medicines probably only made it worse. May we all learn from this to take the few extra minutes to get where we are going, stop driving foolishly, and as Bill told me Christmas Eve, take time to tell those you love that you love them. We never know when they'll be taken from us.