Las Vegas Sun

March 19, 2024

Not ‘your typical DUI case’: Why D.A. is seeking a murder conviction against this driver

Not only did a sports car speed down a residential neighborhood this month going over 125 mph, but the driver, later determined to be high on marijuana, did not try to stop before smashing into a car in the southwest valley, fatally injuring a man, according to authorities.

Initially, Metro Police officers in an arrest report had estimated that Ronald Leavell, 48, was going about 80 mph in his Chevrolet Camaro, but a more thorough investigation apparently determined that he’d zoomed past triple digits.

Leavell “clearly has acted in complete and willful disregard of the rights and safety of anyone and everyone in his proximity,” said Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson in a news release announcing that the crash will be prosecuted as a second-degree murder case.

That type of malicious conduct makes this case different and elevates it to murder, Wolfson said. “This tragedy rises to a level far greater than your typical DUI case.”

Wolfson is referring to the May 9 death of Gerardo Villicana, 26.

According to police, Villicana was in a Ford Fiesta crossing at the intersection of Tee Pee Lane and Tompkins Avenue, near Tropicana Avenue and Fort Apache Road, about 9 a.m., when Leavell blew past a stop sign, causing the fatal collision.

The speed limit there is set at 25 mph, police said.

When officers encountered Leavell, he showed impairment signs, including slurred speech and droopy eyes, police wrote in his arrest report. Leavell told the officers that he takes medication for post-traumatic-stress disorder and smokes pot about four times a day to "relax," according to his arrest report.

Leavell admitted to not having a prescription for the drug and said he'd last smoked the previous night, police said.

He also told officers that his Camaro had bad rotors and brakes and that he wasn't sure how the crash happened.

He was hospitalized and later booked without bail at the Clark County Detention Center on one count each of second-degree murder and DUI, jail logs show. He's next scheduled to appear in court June 8.

“The total disregard for human life cannot, and will not, be tolerated," Wolfson said. "Leavell's actions cry out for severe consequences."