Lakeisha Holloway, Driver Accused in Deadly Vegas Crash, Makes 1st Court Appearance

Holloway was charged with murder with the use of a deadly weapon.

ByABC News
December 23, 2015, 11:17 AM

— -- A 24-year-old woman accused of driving a car onto a sidewalk and through a crowd on the Las Vegas Strip, killing one and injuring many others, made a brief first appearance in court this morning.

Lakeisha Holloway, believed to be from the Oregon area, has been charged in a criminal complaint with murder with the use of a deadly weapon in connection to Sunday's crash, which killed a 32-year-old woman and sent over 30 people to the hospital.

Holloway, who appeared in court for less than two minutes, is being represented by public defenders.

Holloway's lawyers asked to delay the case for 30 days, as additional charges may be filed against her. Her lawyers also want to perform their own investigation and have requested video of the accident.

Her next appearance is set for Jan. 20 at 8 a.m. PT.

Holloway was also charged with child abuse, neglect or endangerment and leaving the scene of an accident. Her 3-year-old daughter was in the car at the time of the crash, and she drove off after the incident, officials said. The child was not injured, officials said.

PHOTO: Lakeisha Holloway, 24, believed to be from the Oregon area, was identified by authorities Dec. 21, 2015 as the suspect who drove through a crowd in Las Vegas.
Lakeisha Holloway, 24, believed to be from the Oregon area, was identified by authorities Dec. 21, 2015 as the suspect who drove through a crowd in Las Vegas.

According to the police report, in an interview with police, Holloway would not tell police why she drove onto the sidewalk, but she did say she remembered a body bouncing off her windshield and breaking it.

Holloway said she was trying to sleep inside the car with her daughter before the crash but "kept getting run off by security of the properties she stopped at," according to the report. Holloway had been in Las Vegas for about one week before the crash and was living in a car, officials said Monday. Holloway said it was her car, but the car was registered to another person in Oregon, officials said.

While officials have said that they have ruled out terrorism as a possible motive, they do believe the incident was "an intentional act" based upon the car's movements. The suspect went up on the sidewalk "two, maybe three times," according to police.

"The video [of the incident] obviously shows intention," the sheriff said.

The sheriff said Holloway was very stoic and did not appear to be "distressed" from her actions.

PHOTO:Police and emergency crews respond to the scene of an incident along Las Vegas Boulevard, Dec. 20, 2015, in Las Vegas.
Police and emergency crews respond to the scene of an incident along Las Vegas Boulevard, Dec. 20, 2015, in Las Vegas.

A former resident of Portland, Oregon, Holloway worked for the Forest Service through a program designed to help at-risk youth. Holloway was touted as a case study in resilience, even receiving a role model award in 2012.

Speaking in a video about her experience, she said she "beat the odds" by becoming the first person in her immediate family to graduate high school.

Portland Opportunities Industrialization Center said in a statement, "It's hard to believe that Lakeisha did this, she was such a great kid while she was a part of our program."

Holloway's cousin Lashay Hardaway said Holloway would never do something like this on purpose.

"None of it made any sense. It just didn't add up to who she is," Hardaway said. "She loved her family, she loved her daughter, she loved God, this was just traumatic for everybody."

Holloway told officers she was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the crash. Her blood was drawn after she was taken into custody.