‘This needs to stop’: Driver sentenced in fatal Las Vegas crash had prior DUI

Felix Mendoza Jr. was driving at least 50 miles per hour over the speed limit last May when he hit a car, causing it to flip, according to a prosecutor and court records.

The woman in the car was injured. Her husband was killed.

That crash followed a previous one where Mendoza was driving under the influence when he ran a stop sign, hit a vehicle and seriously injured two children, one of whom suffered brain trauma, said Deputy District Attorney John Taylor.

Mendoza, now 26, was sentenced to two to five years in prison in 2020 for DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm, court records show. He also had other DUI arrests before and after that prior case, according to Taylor.

A judge sentenced Mendoza to 4 to 10 years in prison Wednesday in connection with the crash last year, the maximum term allowed under his plea deal.

“I’m not sure, at this point, what else can happen in order for you to understand that your actions have consequences,” said District Judge Danielle Pieper.

Mendoza pleaded guilty in June to a felony count of duty to stop at the scene of a crash involving death or personal injury.

“He literally killed somebody in this case after nearly killing a kid just a few years ago,” said Taylor, who added that although Mendoza fled the scene and could not be tested, he was likely driving under the influence.

The victim’s wife, Dawn Steinhauser, said her husband, Michael Steinhauser, was the man of her dreams.

He spent 23 years in the Coast Guard and was a “cowboy poet,” she said. He loved life and made friends easily. Though he was on dialysis, she had hoped they would be able to spend a few more years together.

“He always had a joke to tell to make people laugh,” she said after court. She came to court wearing his Coast Guard chief’s pin and a pink jacket, because pink was his favorite color.

Michael Steinhauser died months after the crash, according to his wife.

The couple was driving through Las Vegas while traveling from their winter house in Surprise, Arizona to their home in Montana, she said. Seconds before the crash, which happened on Interstate 15 near mile marker 58, near Apex, she said he had removed his seat belt to shift his position.

Besides the loss of her husband, the crash left Steinhauser with other lasting consequences.

She has a torn rotator cuff and awaits surgery on her spine, she told the court. And, she said, her husband’s medical bills came to more than $5 million, so much that she could lose her house and be forced to file for bankruptcy.

“Choosing to drive after drinking puts everyone else on the road at risk,” Taylor said to the judge. “He knows that. He’s had experience with it. He just didn’t care. And unfortunately in this case, your honor, it’s the victims who ended up paying for it.”

Defense lawyer Christopher Blakesley acknowledged his client had an alcohol problem, but said it wasn’t true he didn’t care.

“He decided to turn himself in because he does care,” said Blakesley. “He’s very remorseful.”

Mendoza apologized to the victim’s family. “There’s not a single day that goes by that I don’t think about the decisions I made and how I could (have) done things differently to make things better and make smarter choices,” he said.

He appeared to wipe tears from his eyes as Steinhauser spoke.

Steinhauser said she believed Mendoza was remorseful and hoped he would receive help, but she also believed he needed to be punished.

“This needs to stop,” said Steinhauser. “People need to start taking responsibility.”

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