How the Las Vegas Strip Responded to its Own Vehicle-Ramming Attack

How the Las Vegas Strip Responded to its Own Vehicle-Ramming Attack.

Costfoto / NurPhoto / Getty Images

Key Takeaways

A day after the deadliest vehicle-ramming attack in the US occurred in New Orleans, it’s worth revisiting how Las Vegas responded to its own vehicle-ramming attack nine years ago.

Cement bollards, installed in response to a December 2015 vehicle-ramming attack near Planet Hollywood, can be seen lining both sides of the Las Vegas Strip in this photograph. (Image: kimley-horn.com)

On Dec. 20, 2015, a woman drove her 1996 Oldsmobile sedan onto the sidewalk near Paris Las Vegas, killing 32-year-old Arizona tourist Jessica Valenzuela and injuring 37 others.

In response, Clark County installed cement bollards along the length of the Las Vegas Strip, from the Welcome to Las Vegas Sign north to Sahara Avenue.

The 5,600 crash-rated bollards, in addition to 640 linear feet of crash-rated post and cable protection and 1,635 linear feet of concrete crash wall, were installed between 2017 and 2019, at a cost to taxpayers of more than $22 million.

According to Kimley-Horn, the North Carolina engineering consulting firm that designed the bollards, they provide “over eight total miles of pedestrian protection on this corridor.”

The bollards were strategically placed to protect the Strip’s busiest intersections. However, they do not eliminate every conceivable point where a vehicle might access the sidewalk especially in areas where driveways or other access points exist.

The SuspectLakeisha Holloway appears in her 2015 mug shot. (Image: Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department)

The alleged driver was Lakeisha Holloway, a 24-year-old Portland, Ore. resident who had been living out of her car in Las Vegas for about a week before the incident.

She told police at the time that she was “hurting and wanted others to feel pain.” Holloway’s 3-year-old daughter was in the car during the incident but was not injured.

Prosecutors have described Holloway as above Nevada s legal limit for marijuana at the time (2 nanograms per milliliter of blood for THC or 5 nanograms per milliliter of THC metabolite).

She was charged with 71 counts, including murder with use of a deadly weapon, child abuse, attempted murder, and leaving the scene of an accident. However, her case was complicated by mental health issues that kept her confined to a state psychiatric hospital.

In March 2021, she was deemed competent to stand trial. In May 2023, Holloway, representing herself and requesting a different public defender, rejected a plea bargain that would have avoided trial.

Her trial is currently scheduled to begin in March, nearly 10 years after her alleged crime.

 

 

Article Sources
American Bettors’ Voice Appoints Harry Crane to Board editorial policy.
  1. It’s Curtains for ‘Jersey Boys’ in Vegas

Compare Accounts
×
Patriots QB Tom Brady Spotted Hanging With Las Vegas Raiders Owner Mark Davis
Provider
Name
Description
Michael Jordan Check Made Out to Former Trump Casino Comes to Auction at Just the Right Time  Embattled New Hampshire Casino Owner Arrested for Alleged Theft  NFL Teams Punt DraftKings and FanDuel Partnerships, as Legalized Sports Betting Gains Support  Sen. Bernie Sanders Hospitalized in Las Vegas, Campaign Suspended, Political Odds Adjust  AGS Confirms Receipt of Takeover Offer, Ongoing Talks  Louisiana Mobile Sports Betting Expected to Launch Friday, Insiders Say  Richmond Casino Developer Needs More Time, Now Projects 2024 Opening  Minnesota Sports Betting Efforts Hampered by Complicated Gaming Environment  Disbarred Lawyer Funded Gambling with $2.4M Philadelphia Eagles Season Ticket Scam  UK Triggers Article 50, Offers Reassurance to Nervy Gibraltar