Case of man accused of murder in 12-vehicle crash can proceed to trial court, judge rules

Assaf Cohen was driving home a few weeks ago when a car passed him, seeming to drive as fast as it could go and approaching a Las Vegas intersection where other cars waited at a traffic light.

“I was thinking to myself: ‘Why are you driving so fast? Can’t you see the red light and the cars? Now, you got to hit the brake full power,’ ” he said. “And my eyes are looking to see the brake lights. I don’t see the brake lights coming up. So I realized I’m going to see tragedy in a second.”

The 12-vehicle crash that resulted claimed three lives and led to Jose Gutierrez, 19, being charged with murder.

A judge ruled on Tuesday that the case against Gutierrez can proceed to the trial-level court after hearing testimony from Cohen and other witnesses.

Cohen, who is from Israel and said he was in two wars, said what he saw on Nov. 18 reminded him of the way a terrorist suicide bomber drives onto a military base.

“This guy did it on purpose, if you ask me,” he added.

At that comment, Gutierrez’s attorney Thomas Moskal objected on the grounds that Cohen was speculating.

“I have two eyes,” Cohen replied. “There’s no speculation.”

‘Kept picking up speed’

Gutierrez’s pregnant girlfriend, Adilene Duran Rincon, 20, and a driver from another vehicle, Edward Garcia, 38, died at the scene on West Cheyenne Avenue near North Jones Boulevard, according to Gutierrez’s arrest report.

Vanessa Lainez Vasquez, 25, had been in a medically induced coma after the crash and succumbed to her injuries Thursday, authorities have said.

Moskal has suggested the crash could have been triggered by his client suffering a seizure while driving.

But prosecutors have said they believe his actions were intentional.

Authorities allege Gutierrez plowed into a group of vehicles stopped at a red light, accelerating as he approached and eventually reaching a speed of 110 mph before colliding with the other vehicles.

“We have potentially the idea of a seizure,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Giancarlo Pesci previously said. “We also have the idea that he was intending to end the relationship that he had, and that’s in fact what happened, because she’s now dead.”

Pro Tem Justice of the Peace Lisa Luzaich said evidence showed Gutierrez hit other vehicles intentionally.

“When you say murder-suicide, that’s what it looked like it was supposed to be when watching (video of the crash), that he just intended everybody in his path to die,” Luzaich said. “It was clear that the vehicle kept picking up speed.”

She found there was at least slight or marginal evidence to show Gutierrez committed the crimes with which he has been charged: murder with a deadly weapon, reckless driving, attempted murder, and battery with a deadly weapon.

Moskal argued that prosecutors did not prove Gutierrez wanted to kill his girlfriend.

“I know the standard’s low here,” Moskal said. “I know it’s probable cause. I know sometimes we call it a scintilla of evidence here. But what you have here is a case where they are not meeting even that standard when it comes to showing that he had an intent to kill his passenger in this case.”

Assistant District Attorney Pamela Weckerly suggested Gutierrez made an intentional decision to hit other cars.

“No one sees any attempt to slow down, no one sees any brake lights, no one sees anything other than him plowing into those other cars,” she said.

Metropolitan Police Department Detective Mario Fernandez said in court that there was evidence of a lack of braking: “No signs of braking friction marks prior to the collision.”

In the silver Infiniti that police said Gutierrez drove, the detective said the driver’s seat belt was locked in the extended or used position and the passenger’s belt appeared unused.

Witness accounts

Vasquez’s husband Jose Pena-Dominguez testified that at the time of the crash, he was driving with his wife in the passenger seat.

They were heading to a La Bonita supermarket and getting ready to make a left turn from Cheyenne to Jones.

“The last thing I remember, I was stopping slowly,” Pena-Dominguez said. He woke up hours later in the hospital, with injuries to his teeth, right side and leg as well as bruising to his kidney, he said.

Vasquez suffered extensive injuries and underwent brain surgery, according to Pena-Dominguez. He said he stayed with her every day after he was released from the hospital.

Other witnesses provided testimony similar to what Cohen said.

Travis Herdt described seeing a vehicle coming toward him on Cheyenne “at a very high rate of speed.”

The car was loud and Herdt said he noticed it “was still accelerating all the way to the point of impact.” He said he did not recall seeing its brake lights as it collided with other vehicles waiting at the light.

Amazon delivery driver Christopher Heaton said he was making a delivery near the location of the crash when it occurred.

Heaton said he heard a sound that “was almost like slamming on the brakes,” but was not sure which car the sound came from.

He said that after seeing the car slam into another car, he dropped his packages and ran to the scene to see if anyone needed help. Heaton saw a woman on the ground, he testified.

“I knew in my heart that she had passed away,” he said.

Cohen testified that he heard the impact, saw a ball of fire, called 911, parked and ran to the site of the collision to help.

He saw a dead young woman, whom he initially believed to be the driver, lying on the passenger side of the silver car.

Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.