The Latest: Vegas police say woman denied alcohol, drug use

Associated Press

Published Monday, Dec. 21, 2015 | 7:37 a.m.

Updated Monday, Dec. 21, 2015 | 6:58 p.m.

The latest on a deadly crash on the Las Vegas Strip (all times local):

3:05 p.m.

A 24-year-old woman arrested after a sidewalk crash killed one pedestrian and injured dozens of others on the Las Vegas Strip told police she was homeless and tired, and denied using drugs or alcohol.

A single-page arrest report made public Monday by the Clark County district attorney's office says Lakeisha Nicole Holloway wouldn't explain the alleged actions on Sunday.

Police say she had her 3-year-old daughter with her. The girl is now in county custody.

Holloway told police she had been unable to rest or sleep because security officers kept running her and her daughter and her 1996 Oldsmobile off casino properties.

Holloway says she and the girl had been living in the vehicle.

2:30 p.m.

Three people, including two Canadians, remain in critical condition at a Las Vegas hospital after a driver plowed into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip.

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said Monday they suffered head injuries in the Sunday crash.

University Medical Center spokeswoman Danita Cohen said two other people were in serious condition, and the families and loved ones of all five people at the hospital had been reached.

None of the 14 people treated and released from the hospital, including an 11-year-old child, were from Nevada. An Arizona woman died.

Victims and family members have declined to speak to the media about the crash.

Prosecutors say 24-year-old Lakeisha N. Holloway was driving with her toddler Sunday and will face murder charges.

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2 p.m.

A suburban Philadelphia college says five wrestlers and their coach are among the dozens of people injured when a driver plowed into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip.

Delaware Valley University in Doylestown says the group plans to return to campus Tuesday after receiving medical treatment. School officials say the team was walking to a movie Sunday night when the car drove onto a sidewalk.

The group includes wrestling coach and athletic director Steve Cantrell, who says the team pulled out of the Desert Duals tournament given the ordeal.

Authorities say a group of college wrestlers from Oregon also was injured in the crash that killed an Arizona woman.

A 24-year-old woman driving with her toddler is facing murder charges.

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1:20 p.m.

The woman suspected of plowing a car into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip is on suicide watch, and a defense attorney says that raises questions about her mental state.

Deputy Clark County Public Defender Scott Coffee says 24-year-old Lakeisha N. Holloway is under round-the-clock watch at the Clark County jail in Las Vegas. She is being held pending arraignment on murder and other charges.

Las Vegas police Officer Michael Rodriguez calls Holloway's custody "medically restricted housing."

Coffee says he and Joseph Abood represent Holloway. Coffee says they haven't seen police reports yet, so it's too early to say if she'll pursue an insanity defense.

But Coffee says the fact that Holloway is on suicide watch shows jail officials also have concerns about her mental state.

Holloway is expected to make an initial court appearance Wednesday.

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12:50 p.m.

Authorities say there's no connection between planned New Year's Eve celebrations in Las Vegas and the sidewalk crash on the Strip that killed one person and injured dozens of others.

Sheriff Joe Lombardo said Monday that agencies are doing everything they can to ensure revelers' safety, which is a yearlong process that's been ramped up in light of attacks around the world.

He says there's no talk of canceling the event on the Las Vegas Strip, which involves shutting down most of the 4-mile-long street to traffic and turning it into a pedestrian mall, with fireworks launched from the rooftops of several hotel-casinos.

The sheriff says he's confident they can protect the event and partygoers. The event draws a few hundred thousand people.

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12:15 p.m.

Authorities say the woman suspected of plowing a car into pedestrians along the Las Vegas Strip was living in the vehicle with her 3-year-old daughter.

Sheriff Joe Lombardo says 24-year-old Lakeisha N. Holloway reported staying in the car while it was parked in different structures across Las Vegas, including at the Planet Hollywood hotel-casino, before the crash that killed an Arizona woman.

Lombardo says Holloway and the girl's father were no longer together but she had run out of money and may have been on her way to him in Dallas, Texas.

Lombardo says he doesn't know what led Holloway to allegedly drive onto a sidewalk several times Sunday night, injuring dozens of people.

The FBI is involved in the investigation.

11:40 a.m.

The 3-year-old daughter of a woman suspected of plowing a car into a crowd of pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip is being cared for by child protective services.

A Clark County spokesman, Erik Pappa, cited confidentiality policy and said Monday that he couldn't discuss the case. Pappa says the agency typically tries to place children back with family members.

Police say the girl was riding in a 1996 Oldsmobile sedan that her mother repeatedly drove onto a sidewalk near the Paris Las Vegas hotel-casino. Neither the mother nor child was hurt.

An Arizona woman was killed and dozens of people were injured.

Prosecutors say 24-year-old Lakeisha N. Holloway faces a charge of murder with a deadly weapon and is being held without bail.

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11:30 a.m.

Court records show that the woman suspected of crashing into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip changed her name less than two months ago.

Lakeisha Nicole Holloway petitioned to change her name to Paris Paradise Morton on Oct. 8, and a Portland, Oregon, judge granted permission on Oct. 30. According to her application, Holloway was living across the Columbia River in Vancouver, Washington, at the time.

The judge who granted the name change hasn't returned a phone call about Holloway's request.

Court records show she was charged in Oregon in 2011 with operating a vehicle without driving privileges and driving uninsured. She was convicted in March 2012.

Nevada authorities say Holloway last lived in Oregon and had been in Las Vegas for about a week, where she was believed to be homeless.

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11:20 a.m.

Authorities say the woman suspected of crashing into pedestrians on a Las Vegas Strip sidewalk was stoic when she was arrested.

Sheriff Joe Lombardo told reporters Monday that 24-year-old Lakeisha N. Holloway didn't appear to be distressed when she was arrested. He says she told a valet at a hotel to call 911 after she ran down people on Las Vegas Boulevard.

Prosecutors say she faces a charge of murder with a deadly weapon and is being held without bail. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson says he's also considering several other charges.

The sheriff says at least 35 people injured in the crash were taken to hospitals, including victims from Oregon, Florida, Colorado, California, Washington, Mexico and Quebec, Canada.

Lombardo says three people in critical condition have suffered head injuries.

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10:40 a.m.

Authorities say people jumped on a car and banged on its windows as it plowed through pedestrians on a sidewalk on the Las Vegas Strip.

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo told reporters Monday that 24-year-old Lakeisha N. Holloway wouldn't stop and it appeared from video that it was an intentional act. Her 3-year-old daughter was in the car but wasn't injured.

He says that after striking more than two dozen people, Holloway drove to a hotel and told a valet to call 911 after explaining what she had done.

Lombardo says police believe she had a falling out with the father of her child before the crash.

A drug recognition expert on the scene determined Holloway was under the influence of a "stimulant," but blood test results are pending.

He says Holloway was believed to be from Oregon and had been in Las Vegas for about a week. He says investigators believe she was homeless and living in the car.

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9:55 a.m.

A government official said five Canadians were injured by a car that crashed into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip.

Canada's Global Affairs department spokesman John Babcock said he couldn't immediately provide information on the condition of the Canadian citizens. He says Canada is working with local authorities to provide support and assistance.

University Medical Center in Las Vegas said it treated people from Montreal who needed a French translator.

Authorities say a woman drove a car on and off the sidewalk into crowds Sunday night, injuring dozens. She is in custody. She had a 3-year-old in the car with her, but the child wasn't injured.

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9:15 a.m.

Prosecutors say they expect to file murder charges and other counts against the driver who crashed into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip, killing an Arizona woman and injuring dozens of others.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said Monday that the vehicle could be considered a deadly weapon.

He said, "When a person drives a 2,000-pound-plus motor vehicle intentionally onto a sidewalk, killing and injuring scores of people, that's murder."

Wolfson didn't identify the woman in custody, but police have said that she's in her 20s and recently came to Vegas.

A 10 a.m. press conference with the sheriff is scheduled to offer updates on the Sunday night crash.

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8:15 a.m.

Officials say a woman from Arizona was killed when a car plowed into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip.

Clark County Coroner John Fudenberg (FYOU'-den-berg) said Monday that 32-year-old Jessica Valenzuela of Buckeye, Arizona, died in the crash Sunday night.

The coroner said the suburban Phoenix woman was visiting Las Vegas with her husband. A cause of death is pending, with an autopsy scheduled Monday.

Authorities say dozens of others were injured when a woman behind the wheel of a 1996 Oldsmobile sedan intentionally drove on and off the sidewalk into crowds Sunday night. The driver is in custody.

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7:50 a.m.

Las Vegas police say that video of a car crashing into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip "looks like it's very intentional."

Capt. Brett Zimmerman said Monday that the car was fully on the sidewalk twice, including once when it traveled for 200 feet. He says the car went onto the sidewalk first near a restaurant at the Planet Hollywood hotel-casino and then again at the driveway entrance to the Paris Las Vegas hotel-casino.

Authorities say the 1996 Oldsmobile sedan intentionally drove on and off the sidewalk into crowds Sunday night, killing one person and injuring dozens of others. The driver is in custody.

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7:20 a.m.

Four college students from Oregon were among those hurt when a vehicle plowed into pedestrians on a sidewalk outside a Las Vegas Strip casino.

Pacific University spokesman Joe Lang says the students are members of the wrestling team and were in Las Vegas to compete in a tournament. He says 19 athletes and coaches were walking together Sunday night when the woman swerved onto the sidewalk.

The crash killed one person and injured dozens of others.

Lang says three of the four injured students were taken to a hospital. Two students were later released, and the other was kept overnight for observation.

He says the team won't compete in Monday's tournament.

Pacific University is based in Forest Grove, about 30 miles west of Portland.

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7:10 a.m.

A hospital official says three people who were injured in a crash on the Las Vegas Strip are in critical condition.

University Medical Center spokeswoman Danita Cohen said Monday that their life-threatening injuries are being closely monitored at the Las Vegas hospital.

Authorities say a car intentionally drove on and off the sidewalk into crowds near the Planet Hollywood casino-hotel Sunday night, mowing down dozens of pedestrians. The driver is in custody.

Cohen says two others at the hospital are in serious condition. One person died there, and the rest brought in for treatment have been released, including an 11-year-old.

By 6 a.m., the Las Vegas Strip had reopened after being closed for nearly 12 hours.