Bail set for Las Vegas man accused in hit-and-run that injured boy, 12

Bail was set at $250,000 Saturday for a Las Vegas man facing charges after a suspected DUI hit-and-run crash the day before left a 12-year-old boy with life-threatening injuries.

OH’Ryan Brooks, 27, made an initial appearance Saturday afternoon before Clark County District Judge Daniel Westmeyer at the Regional Justice Center.

Brooks was arrested Friday on three felony charges, including DUI and failure to stop at the scene of an accident, following the Friday morning crash.

The Metropolitan Police Department said the boy was on foot Friday and in a crosswalk near 21st Street and Owens Avenue, on his way to Smith Middle School, when he was struck by the 2019 Mitsubishi SUV that Brooks was driving just before 8 a.m. A Metro public information officer confirmed Friday that the boy is a student at the school.

Clark County prosecutor Christopher Laurent said Saturday that Brooks admitted to “vaping prior to and after” the crash. Though Brooks left the scene Friday morning, police said they were able to track him to a nearby apartment complex, where he was arrested.

Westmeyer set Brooks’ bail at $250,000, despite an argument from Brooks’ public defender, Josie Bayudan, that Brooks, who is employed as a security guard, isn’t a flight risk.

Laurent said Brooks should be considered a flight risk.

“He is a danger to this community,” Laurent said. “He is a flight risk — he fled from the scene.”

As of Saturday afternoon, Brooks remained listed as an inmate at the Clark County Detention Center, according to an online jail roster.

Along with the DUI and failure to stop at the scene charges, Brooks was also charged with reckless driving.

The intersection where the boy was hit, located at the northeast corner of the Rancho High School campus, features crosswalks but lacks other pedestrian safety controls.

During a news conference Friday, Metro Deputy Chief Jose Hernandez said that the boy had started crossing Owens Avenue and was just a few steps from the sidewalk when he was hit by the vehicle and thrown into a fence.

At Friday’s news conference, Hernandez said drivers who are speeding, not paying attention or running red lights “will be stopped and cited.”

“If you flee from the scene of an accident, we will find you and we will hold you accountable,” Hernandez said.

Brooks’ next court appearance, a status check, is set for Tuesday, according to online court records.

Contact Bryan Horwath at bhorwath@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BryanHorwath on X.