In wake of deaths, police remind pedestrians and drivers to stay alert

Las Vegas police Sgt. Richard Strader responds to fatal vehicle crashes for a living.

While discussing the recent spate of deaths involving vehicles and pedestrians Wednesday, Strader posed a question: "What can happen in 66 feet?"

Strader, sounding more like a physics professor than an officer of the law, said the average speed limit on a Las Vegas Valley road is 45 mph. A vehicle moving at that speed travels 66 feet per second.

When you factor in an average human response time of two seconds, a lot can happen when drivers or pedestrians fail to pay attention on roadways.

"It is my belief that 99.9 percent of the accidents we respond to are avoidable," said Strader, from the department's Traffic Bureau on East St. Louis Avenue near Eastern Avenue. "If you're not at fault, you might be able to avoid it if you're paying attention."

Las Vegas police have responded on consecutive nights this week to two crashes that killed pedestrians.

The first occurred about 8: 20 p.m. Monday at Sandstone Bluffs Drive and Wesley Lake Place in Summerlin.

In that crash, 12-year-old Faith Love, who was trick-or-treating, died after she was struck by a car driven by Justin Caramanica, 41. Caramanica was arrested on a felony DUI charge.

On Tuesday night, a 55-year-old woman was crossing Cheyenne Avenue from north to south outside a marked crosswalk near Las Vegas Boulevard.

Police said a 69-year-old woman driving a Ford Taurus east on Cheyenne struck the woman about 7:13 p.m. The pedestrian was not identified by the Clark County coroner's office Wednesday. She died at the scene, police said.

Overall, traffic fatalities within the jurisdiction of Las Vegas police are down in 2011 compared with the past two years.

Still, Strader said pedestrians and drivers alike need to be more attentive. Drivers need to slow down and be more courteous, and pedestrians need to use crosswalks.

He is also troubled that the number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities has reached 12 this year. The department had seven alcohol-related fatalities in 2010.

"That's not a good sign, especially rolling into the holiday season," Strader said.

There also have been recent deadly car crashes involving pedestrians in other jurisdictions.

On Sunday, 15-year-old Lucas Ruiz-Brenes was crossing Center Street near Dogwood Street in Henderson about 10 p.m.

Henderson police said Ruiz-Brenes was not in a marked crosswalk when he was struck and killed by a Mercedes-Benz SUV driven by Imre Dayka, 77.

Dayka was booked on a charge of felony DUI with substantial bodily harm or death.

On Oct. 21, three girls were injured, and one of them later died, when they were struck by a vehicle in a crosswalk at Camino Eldorado and Bent Arrow Drive in North Las Vegas.

The collision occurred about 6:45 p.m.

Amelia "Mia" Decker, 6, died from injuries suffered in the crash.

Six-year-old Rain Mowery was treated for a fractured skull and released from the hospital. Her sister, 5-year-old Alyssa Mowery, remains hospitalized.

The 78-year-old driver who struck the girls did not brake and carried one child almost 150 feet, North Las Vegas police said.

North Las Vegas police Sgt. Tim Bedwell said the crash is still under investigation. Police have not released the name of the driver.

Contact reporter Antonio Planas at aplanas@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638.