Jason Patchett, right, talks about his son Rex during an interview at the Patchett home in Henderson Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022. Rex’s friend Brayden Radomski and his mother Christy listen at left. Rex Patchett, 13, was killed by a motorist who lost control of his car on March 7, 2022. Jose Marmolejo, 21, pled guilty to a reckless driving charge and is expected to be sentenced on Jan. 25, 2023.
Monday, May 1, 2023 | 2 a.m.
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Kudos to the Nevada Senate for unanimously passing Senate Bill 322, otherwise known as Rex’s Law, to increase penalties for reckless driving and create meaningful accountability for reckless drivers. Now that the house of origin deadline has passed, we expect the state Assembly to follow suit and send the bill to Gov. Joe Lombardo’s desk as quickly as possible.
The bill was inspired by the tragic death of Rex Patchett, an active eighth-grader with a love for the outdoors. He was struck and killed by a car traveling 90 mph down a residential street last year. Patchett was simply walking home from his friend’s house when the driver of the car, 21-year-old Jose Marmolejo, lost control while trying to get airtime from a commonly known jump called “Mannion’s hump.” He was a joyrider knowingly and consciously putting others at risk so he could chase a thrill.
Marmolejo was not drunk or otherwise impaired at the time of the collision. That’s important because under current Nevada law, the maximum penalty for felony DUI resulting in death is 20 years in prison, while the maximum penalty for sober drivers who kill someone while making a conscious choice to drive recklessly is only six years. Marmolejo received the maximum sentence of six years with the possibility of parole after two years.
But Rex’s father, Jason, believes that taking his son’s life should have come with stiffer penalties. He has become a tireless advocate for changes to Nevada’s law that might have made Marmolejo think twice before engaging in his deadly stunt.
SB 322 is an answer to Jason’s request and to the deadly epidemic of traffic violence plaguing Southern Nevada. It provides for significant increases in penalties for the most egregious reckless driving cases.
For reckless drivers who cause death or substantial bodily harm while traveling 50 mph or more above the posted speed limit, the new penalty would be a prison term of eight to 20 years. Reckless driving in a school zone or pedestrian safety zone would also be subject to increased penalties.
While the current version of the bill is worthy of universal support and passed unanimously through the state Senate, the prospects for the original draft were less certain. It contained controversial language that limited judicial discretion regarding parole and extenuating circumstances.
State Sen. Jeff Stone, R-Henderson, and the bill’s other sponsors deserve credit for listening and responding effectively to the concerns of criminal justice advocates and reformers. Stone offered amendments at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the bill that removed the controversial language while maintaining the integrity and purpose of the bill in increasing penalties for the most egregious offenders.
As a result, the bill is not only an example of government being responsive to shortcomings in existing law but is also an example of lawmakers being responsive to shortcomings in their own legislative proposals.
In a bitterly divided world of partisan politics, SB 322 offers hope that compromise can and does still occur. Even so, it should not require the death of a child or the relentless advocacy of his father to bring our elected officials to the table.
More than 300 Nevadans die each year due to traffic violence. Nearly a quarter of the victims are pedestrians. Legislative action is required, and SB 322 is a great first step.
The Assembly should pass Rex’s Law as soon as possible. Simultaneously, the Legislature and Lombardo should continue to find bipartisan compromise to address traffic violence. Nevadans deserve to know that they can ride a bike, walk down the sidewalk or cross a street safely, and Rex Patchett’s family members deserve to know that their son’s tragic and unnecessary death created change in the state he called home.
