Judge orders up to 20 years in prison for drunken driver who killed father on bike

Parents do not expect to outlive their children, but 86-year-old Barbara Leach went to court Tuesday to face the drunken driver who killed her son and ask a judge to give him the maximum sentence.

After hearing from Leach, Senior District Judge Michael Villani ordered Jesus Robles to spend six- to 20-years in prison.

Robles, 49, pleaded guilty in April to a count of driving under the influence resulting in death. He faced a term of at least two years and not more than 20 years in prison, according to his plea deal, and prosecutors agreed not to make a recommendation at sentencing.

Authorities said Robles was driving an unregistered Chevrolet Tahoe north on Jones Boulevard near Elkhorn Road in February when he hit James McCoy Jr., 63, who was riding his e-bike to pick up his 6- and 8-year-old daughters from school.

Las Vegas Municipal Court records indicate Robles, who was born in California, also has a pending DUI case in that court.

“This person murdered my son,” McCoy’s 86-year-old mother, Barbara Leach, told Villani. “If a person chooses to shoot another person, it is murder. A gun is a lethal weapon. So is a motor vehicle, as we see on our streets every day. He chose to commit the crime and must be made to pay to the fullest extent of the law.”

Robles, who wept as she spoke, was apologetic.

“I hope the family can find it in their heart to forgive me,” he said.

Leach said after court that she does not think that will happen. “There is no forgiveness,” she told reporters.

Villani said the fact the crash occurred while Robles had another DUI pending was “particularly troubling.” There is no excuse for someone to drive drunk when they can get a ride from Uber, a taxi or friends, he said.

Public defender Max Berkley said Robles’ blood alcohol level was .087, close to the legal limit of .08. He stayed on the scene after the collision and was cooperative with police, according to his attorney.

“Jim was 63-years-old and we expected he would live another 20 years,” said McCoy’s sister, Patricia Darby. “You robbed our family of that time.”

Darby misses her brother and dreams about him.

“You broke my mother’s heart,” she said to Robles. “I see her crying when she thinks no one is looking. I hear my niece cry out during the middle of the night because she misses her daddy.”

Leach and her daughter now have custody of the girls, Leach said.

She said her son was a devoted father and spent 10 years teaching in China, where the mother of his daughters still lives. His older daughter, Lili, has asked a couple of times about when the man who killed her father would go to jail, she said.

“She is aware but she doesn’t talk about it,” Leach said.

McCoy’s younger daughter, Yoyo, “says things no 6-year-old should say,” like that “she wishes she were dead so she could be with her daddy in heaven,” according to Leach.

Leach added: “She feels the loss terribly.”

“I pray, judge, that you see our grief and understand the devastation that drunk drivers on the road put on innocent people every day,” she told Villani. “This has got to stop and examples have to be shown.”

Berkley said Robles, who was an ironworker, is also close to his family and had custody of his child before the crash. The attorney said his client had a prior criminal history, mostly for drug use.

“I think he feels a great deal of guilt for what occurred,” the defense attorney said.

Leach said she was pleased with the sentence Robles received.

“I will live the next 20 years and make sure he stays behind bars,” she said.

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