This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/dec/21/las-vegas-strip-intentional-car-crash-three-people-critical-condition

The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Victim identified in 'intentional' car crash that injured 36 on Las Vegas strip Police identify driver in 'intentional' car crash that injured 36 on Las Vegas strip
(about 3 hours later)
Three people who were injured in a crash on the Las Vegas strip on Sunday night that killed one and injured 36 are in critical condition, a hospital official has said. Police said on Monday it was too early to determine the motive of the woman who drove into pedestrians on the Las Vegas strip on Sunday night, killing one and injuring 35.
University Medical Center spokeswoman Danita Cohen said on Monday that their life-threatening injuries are being closely monitored at the Las Vegas hospital. Two others at the hospital are in serious condition, she said, while the rest brought in for treatment have been released, including an 11-year-old.
One person was killed when a car mounted the sidewalk at two or three separate locations, first mowing down pedestrians near the Planet Hollywood casino and hotel on Sunday night, before returning to the road and driving back on to a footpath in front of the Paris hotel.
The victim has been identified as 32-year-old Jessica Valenzuela of Buckeye, Arizona. Clark County coroner John Fudenberg said Valenzuela was visiting Las Vegas with her husband.
Related: Las Vegas police say car crash that left one dead and 36 injured intentionalRelated: Las Vegas police say car crash that left one dead and 36 injured intentional
The driver, a woman in her 20s who has not been identified, is in custody after reportedly attempting to leave the scene of the crash on Sunday. She was being interviewed and tested for alcohol and controlled substances. A three-year-old child who was in the car with her was unharmed, authorities said. Clark county sheriff Joe Lombardo identified the driver as Lakeisha Holloway, 24, and confirmed that police believe the act was intentional.
Officials said the woman was driving a 1996 Oldsmobile four-door vehicle with Oregon licence plates. She is expected to be charged within the next few hours. “We haven’t determined to the exact fact what the motive was,” Lombardo said.
Lombardo said that based on Holloway’s statements, police believed she had been living in her car for a week. Blood tests showed she was not drunk, but a drug recognition expert believes she was under the influence of a stimulant.
University Medical Center spokeswoman Danita Cohen said on Monday that three people were in critical condition and were being closely monitored. Two others at the hospital were in serious condition, she said, while the rest brought in for treatment had been released, including an 11-year-old child.
One person was killed when the car mounted the sidewalk at two or three locations, first mowing down pedestrians near the Planet Hollywood casino and hotel, before returning to the road and driving back on to a footpath in front of the Paris hotel.
The person killed was identified as 32-year-old Jessica Valenzuela of Buckeye, Arizona. Clark County coroner John Fudenberg said Valenzuela was visiting Las Vegas with her husband.
Police have not been able to confirm if any of the injured are from Nevada. They have, however, identified victims from Quebec, Oregon, Colorado, Florida, Washington, California and Mexico.
Holloway is in custody after reportedly attempting to leave the scene of the crash on Sunday.
Lombardo said police were “not 100% ruling out the possibility of terrorism”, but said he himself was confident that it was not such an act.
He said Holloway may have been en route to Dallas, Texas to see the father of her three-year-old daughter, who was in the car. The child was “OK” and was in protective custody, Lombardo said.
Officials said Holloway was driving a 1996 Oldsmobile four-door vehicle with Oregon licence plates. Police were executing a search warrant and had not yet found any weapons in the vehicle.
Lombardo said the vehicle was not registered to Holloway, though investigators believed she was living in Oregon before visiting Las Vegas.
Clark County district attorney Steven Wolfson said his office intended to file charges immediately, including one count for murder with use of a deadly weapon. Wolfson said “a multitude” of counts were being considered, including attempted murder with use of a deadly weapon, child abuse and neglect charges and a felony count of leaving the scene of an accident.
He said it was too early to discuss whether the office would pursue the death penalty.
Wolfson said his office would “do everything in our power to ensure she remains in custody under the law”. Holloway was being held without bail and could be in court as early as Tuesday morning.
The Las Vegas strip reopened at 6am PT after being closed for nearly 12 hours, as emergency vehicles attended the scene on South Las Vegas Boulevard.The Las Vegas strip reopened at 6am PT after being closed for nearly 12 hours, as emergency vehicles attended the scene on South Las Vegas Boulevard.
The crash occurred on a busy stretch of the Las Vegas strip across from the dancing water fountains of the Bellagio hotel and casino, where visitors crowd sidewalks as they walk from one casino to another. The Miss Universe pageant was being held at the Planet Hollywood at the time of the crash. The crash occurred on a busy stretch of the strip, across from the dancing water fountains of the Bellagio hotel and casino, where visitors crowd sidewalks as they walk from one casino to another. The Miss Universe pageant was being held at the Planet Hollywood at the time of the crash.
“We know this was not an act of terrorism,” Las Vegas police captain Brett Zimmerman told reporters at a news conference late Sunday night. Police lieutenant Peter Boffelli said the vehicle was in the northbound lanes of Las Vegas Boulevard near Bellagio Way when it drove on to the sidewalk, striking dozens of pedestrians.
“We have determined that this is an intentional act.”
Police lieutenant Peter Boffelli said the vehicle was in the northbound lanes of Las Vegas Boulevard near Bellagio Way when it drove up on to the sidewalk, striking dozens of pedestrians.
“This is a huge tragedy that has happened on our strip,” Boffelli said.“This is a huge tragedy that has happened on our strip,” Boffelli said.
Clark county fire chief Greg Cassell said the call for help came in at 6.38pm and 70 emergency crew workers were sent to the scene.Clark county fire chief Greg Cassell said the call for help came in at 6.38pm and 70 emergency crew workers were sent to the scene.
Cohen, the spokeswoman for UMC, said the victims’ injuries had included head injuries, cuts and broken bones. Other patients were taken to Spring Valley and Sunrise hospitals. Cohen, the spokeswoman for UMC, said the victims’ injuries included head injuries, cuts and broken bones. Other patients were taken to Spring Valley and Sunrise hospitals.
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.