Nowsch says he was high when he confessed to Tammy Meyers killing

Erich Nowsch, accused of gunning down 44-year-old mother Tammy Meyers outside her northwest valley home, testified Friday that he was high on marijuana when he confessed to the killing.

Nowsch's lawyers wanted his hours-long interview with Las Vegas police to be thrown out of court, arguing he was too intoxicated to understand what was happening.

District Judge Michael Villani ruled, however, that a jury should be allowed to hear Nowsch's statement to detectives.

Nowsch told the judge he was "foggy-minded" and "nervous" and "had some nausea" when police questioned him.

As authorities surrounded Nowsch's home in the 7900 block of Cherry River Drive on the afternoon of Feb. 19, he told one officer via cell phone that he wanted to smoke pot to calm his nerves. The officer advised against it, but Nowsch said he got high anyway before he surrendered.

"I was sick, ready to pass out," Nowsch said in court. "I wasn't stable."

Augustus Claus, Nowsch's attorney, said the defendant was "absolutely baked" during the interview and had more than six times the legal driving limit of marijuana in his system 30 hours after his confession.

But Clifford Mogg, a Metro detective with more than 30 years on the force and more than 12 years experience as a homicide investigator, said Nowsch did not show any signs of being high when he was taken to an interrogation room. Nowsch only mentioned that he felt sick when he started talking about the shooting.

Prosecutor David Stanton said Nowsch was coherent enough to deny his role in the killing for at least an hour into his interview with Mogg.

Throughout Friday's hearing, Nowsch's mother sat in the back row of the gallery, scribbling in a notebook. Meyers' widow, Robert Meyers, watched the proceeding from the opposite side of the courtroom, his arms folded across his chest.

"He already confessed," Robert Meyers said afterward. "He's guilty. Why we continue on, I have no clue."

Trial for Nowsch, 20, and Derrick Andrews, 27, is set for October.

The two have pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder and a gun charge in Meyers' Feb. 14 death. Both men are being held at the Clark County Detention Center without bail.

Prosecutors said Andrews was behind the wheel of a silver 2000 Audi A6 from which Nowsch fired 24 shots, striking Meyers in the head Feb. 12 while she stood in the cul-de-sac in front of her northwest valley home. She died two days later.

The shootout was initially attributed to "€œroad rage," but a prosecutor said the deadly chain of events started when Meyers saw Andrews'€™ car and mistakenly thought it was one that had earlier bumped hers.

Nowsch told police he was in a park across the street from Johnson Junior High School when he noticed a green car that seemed to be following him. He said he thought the car was carrying people who had threatened him and his family.

Nowsch called friends for help, according to police, then climbed into the Audi.

Meyers was in a green Buick Park Avenue with her son, Brandon Meyers. She approached from behind and followed as Andrews drove away, said Stanton, the prosecutor.

Police said Nowsch, then 19, was in the passenger seat of Andrews'€™ car with a Ruger .45-caliber handgun. He fired at least five shots at the Buick before Meyers drove away, authorities said, and Andrews and Nowsch then gave chase.

Meyers ultimately stopped her car outside her home, where she was caught in a hail of gunfire. Brandon Meyers returned fire with his own pistol but hit no one.

In a separate incident that happened three days after the shooting, Nowsch faces charges of battery with use of a deadly weapon and child abuse or neglect with use of a deadly weapon.

Prosecutors said Nowsch held a knife to the neck of a 13-year-old boy on Feb. 15 near Alta Drive and Anatolia Lane.

Contact reporter David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Find him on Twitter: @randompoker