Man charged in DUI death of Rebel Girl not leaving country

By Dave Toplikar

Monday, Aug. 23, 2010 | 1:15 p.m.

A man accused in the 2009 DUI-related death of a UNLV Rebel Girl has decided against traveling to the Ukraine to visit his sick mother, the man's attorney said today.

Last week, Clark County Judge David Wall had granted permission for Vladimir Lagerev to return to his home country. Wall had also delayed Lagerev's trial for the DUI-related death of Lindsay Bennett until next February.

However, early this afternoon, Lagerev's attorney, Stephen Stein, said he would soon file a memo to the court that Lagerev has decided not to visit his mother, for fear it could make her condition worse.

Stein said Lagerev received information from his mother's doctor by telephone, who indicated a visit could deteriorate her condition.

"He decided against it and decided not to do anything that would cause his mother harm," Stein said.

Lagerev is accused of driving drunk traveling on the wrong way of an interstate exit ramp and causing a head-on collision that led to the death of Bennett, who was an 18-year-old member of the UNLV Rebel Girls' dance team and a 2008 Coronado High School graduate.

Bennett died two days after the crash, which occurred about 9:30 p.m. April 15 on the Windmill off-ramp of Interstate 215. Police said her 2006 Honda was hit head-on by Lagerev's Acura.

Prosecutors say Lagerev had a blood-alcohol level of 0.20, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08.

Last Wednesday, despite protests from prosecutors, Wall had granted a motion to allow Lagerev to travel to the city of Zaporozhic, Ukraine. Lagerev, who was 45 years old at the time of the accident, has been free on $100,000 bond since June 2009.

Wall delayed Lagerev's trial until 9 a.m. Feb. 16.

According to Stein's motion, "the defendant has recently learned that his mother is terminal with cancer and her death is imminent."

The motion contains a hand-written faxed message from his mother's doctor in Ukraine, along with an attached translation and a request for his passport to be returned so he can travel.

The translation said:

"It is given out to Ventina Lagereva

"The Diagnosis: Condition of the patient the case is hopeless

"The decision of the doctor: On a state of health is required constant strict leaving

"The inquiry is given out the son Vladimir Lagerev in a workplace."

Bruce Nelson, deputy district attorney, had argued against letting Lagerev travel, saying there was nothing guaranteeing he would return.

In opposing the trip, Nelson had written "The letter attached to Lagerev's motion is almost incomprehensible, but apparently purports to say that Lagerev's mother is ill. While that is unfortunate, allowing Lagerev to leave the United States would be even more unfortunate.

"Once Lagerev has left the United States, this court's ability to ensure that he appears for trial evaporates.

"Lagerev obviously has family ties or members in the Ukraine. Once he arrives in the Ukraine, there would be nothing to prevent him from refusing to return for his trial.

"The State of Nevada has no means of extraditing Lagerev from the Ukraine. Simply put, the rise of Lagerev fleeing justice is too great to allow him to travel to the Ukraine."