Plea bargain expected in DUI death

A Texas man has agreed to plead guilty to drunken driving and leaving the scene of an accident in a high-speed police chase that left a Las Vegas man dead and a police officer injured.

Deputy District Attorney James Hartsell said Tuesday that Timothy Fonseca is scheduled to formalize the plea bargain Monday in District Judge Jeff Sobel's courtroom.

Fonseca, who is being held on $1.25 million bail as a result of the June 1 collision at Pecos Road and Cheyenne Avenue, will face a maximum sentence of 14 to 35 years and probation will not be possible.

As part of the deal, the remaining 11 charges against Fonseca will be dismissed.

Those charges include involuntary manslaughter, reckless driving, battery on a police officer and having an open container of alcohol in his vehicle.

Hartsell said the incident began when a Metro Police officer tried to stop the driver of a speeding truck with Oregon license plates. The driver chose instead to flee at speeds up to 80 mph.

The truck ran through one red light and was in the process of running another when it hit a Saturn driven by Dale Smithers.

The impact knocked the compact vehicle 290 feet and left Smithers dead at the scene, but Fonseca was not seriously injured and tried to flee on foot.

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