LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — An 18-year-old driver is accused of reckless driving and DUI after a fatal crash in northwest Las Vegas on Tuesday, according to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Police say the driver, since identified as Jerry Madera, was traveling westbound on Washington Avenue "at a high rate of speed" on Tuesday afternoon. Madera's 2007 Toyota Rav 4 "failed to stop for the steady red traffic signal" at the intersection with Torrey Pines Drive, investigators said in their report on the crash.
At the same time, the driver of a 2016 Mazda CX-5 was turning left from Torrey Pines onto Washington "on a green signal," police said.
The front of the Toyota hit the left side of the Mazda, then the left side of a 2008 Smart Fortwo which was stopped at a red light. The rear of the 2007 Toyota hit the front of a 2017 Toyota Rav 4 that was stopped behind the Smart Fortwo. The force of that collision caused the 2017 Toyota to hit the front of a 2017 Buick Lacrosse that was stopped directly behind it.
"The 2007 Toyota came to rest between the 2008 Smart Fortwo and the 2017 Toyota and caught fire," police stated.
Both Madera and the driver of the Mazda, a 33-year-old female, were transported to University Medical Center's trauma center to be treated for their injuries.
"Despite medical intervention, the driver of the Mazda succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced deceased by medical personnel at UMC Trauma," police said.
Madera was booked into the Clark County Detention Center in absentia while at the hospital "for applicable reckless driving and DUI-related charges," police said.
Of the vehicles involved in the crash, the driver of the 2017 Toyota Rav 4 had minor injuries. No other injuries were reported.
Police said the crash marks the 81st traffic-related fatality in the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's jurisdiction so far in 2022.
