Driver in wrong-way DUI crash that killed 2 at Las Vegas bus stop was going 20 over speed limit: police
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A driver told officers she was “convinced” she U-turned before police said she drove the wrong way and hit five people at a bus stop, killing two of them, while under the influence, according to documents obtained by 8 News Now.
On April 17, at approximately 7:40 p.m., the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department received several 911 calls reporting that a vehicle driving the wrong way had hit several pedestrians at a bus stop on Boulder Highway, according to an arrest report.
Arriving officers found a white sedan on the sidewalk where the bus stop was located with “extensive damage” on its front end. The vehicle was registered to Cynthia Phelps, 64, who was in the driver’s seat when officers arrived.
One officer noted that her eyes appeared to be watery and Phelps told police she believed she had a seizure, the report stated.
Police said Phelps had a “strong odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage” on her breath. She admitted to consuming something that was redacted from the arrest report.
Medical personnel took Phelps to a local hospital for minor injuries before she was taken to the Clark County Detention Center.
Evidence at the scene showed that Phelps was driving north on the southbound side of Boulder Highway when, for unknown reasons, she ran off the road onto the sidewalk, hitting five people who were standing at the RTC bus stop, the report stated.
Medical personnel pronounced two of the victims, a 42-year-old man and a 14-year-old boy, dead at the scene. Police identified the man as Robert Higgins, but had not released the identity of the teenager as of Friday morning.
The other three victims, a 41-year-old woman, an 8-year-old boy, and an 11-year-old girl, were taken to a local hospital. The woman was admitted with critical injuries, including face and skull fractures as well as a brain bleed. The children were admitted with serious injuries.
According to a report from the sedan, Phelps was driving 65 miles per hour at the time of the collision. The posted speed limit on Boulder Highway is 45 mph. The report said the break was not pushed before the collision.
Phelps told police she was driving home from Boulder Station Casino and believed she missed her turn. She was convinced she had made a U-turn and was driving south when the collision occurred, according to the report.
She told police she could not remember the collision, but remembers waking up to damage to her vehicle and hearing screaming, the report stated.
Phelps also said she drank before going to the casino but denied drinking while there.
Phelps is being held at the Clark County Detention Center on a $500,000 bail. She faces two counts of DUI resulting in death, three counts of DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm, and one count of failure to drive on the right half of the roadway.
Her next court appearance is scheduled for April 23.
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