Husband: Alleged killers of Tammy Meyers may accept plea deal

A possible plea deal is in the works for two men accused in the fatal shooting of 44-year-old mother Tammy Meyers.

Court records indicate Erich Nowsch and Derrick Andrews are scheduled to appear in court today for “entry of plea,” less than a month before their case is set for trial.

Prosecutor David Stanton said in September that he had extended an offer to both Nowsch, accused of being the gunman, and Andrews, who drove a getaway vehicle, but they had rejected the deal.

“It was an offer that both had to accept,” Stanton said at the time.

Neither Stanton nor attorneys for Nowsch or Andrews would comment on today’s hearing.

In September, Nowsch’s lawyer, Conrad Claus, said the deal was not in his client’s best interest.

Attorneys Josh Tomsheck and Roy Nelson, who represent Andrews, have said he could not accept a deal “without the culpable party taking it as well.”

Meyers’ husband, Bob Meyers, said Stanton and Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson walked him through the latest agreement, and “I’m 100 percent behind the DA on it.”

The terms include Nowsch pleading guilty to second-degree murder, which carries a possible sentence of 10 years to life in prison, and Andrews pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter, which carries a possible sentence of one to 10 years in prison, according to Meyers.

“I’m hoping the judge gives the maximum sentence he can,” Meyers said.

A plea deal “gives my family a chance to heal without the spectacle of a trial,” he added.

Nowsch, 20, testified late last year that he was high on marijuana when he confessed to last year’s killing. His lawyers wanted his hourslong 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 should the case go to trial, a jury would be allowed to hear Nowsch’s statement to detectives.

In the proposed agreement with prosecutors, Nowsch “admits in the deal that he took the wrong person, that he took a good person,” Meyers said. “That means more to me than anything because my wife was a good woman.”

Nowsch and Andrews have pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder and a gun charge in Meyers’ 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 on Feb. 12, 2015, 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 “road 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, prosecutor David Stanton said.

Police said Nowsch 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 stopped her car outside her home, where she was caught in a hail of gunfire. Brandon Meyers fired back with his own pistol but hit no one.

Bob Meyers said he is unable to attend today’s hearing, but he plans to be in court when Nowsch and Andrews are sentenced.

“After the sentencing, my family will have closure,” he said. “It will give a sense of relief that other people know the truth. There’s no drama behind it. After the sentencing, we can bury my wife and move on. My kids can live a normal life. They’ll do it without their mother, but they’ll have her in spirit.”

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

Prosecutors said Nowsch held a knife to the neck of a 13-year-old boy on Feb. 15, 2015. It’s unclear whether that case is part of the plea agreement.

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