BY MAIRE O’NEILL
maire@losalamosreporter.com
First Judicial District Attorney’s Office said this week that there was “insufficient evidence to support a felony charge of vehicular homicide by reckless driving” against Nadia Lopez, 22, the driver involved in the September 9, 2024 crash that resulted in the death of Charles McMillan. The Los Alamos Reporter published details earlier this week of the three petty misdemeanor charges filed by Los Alamos Police Department June 9 against Lopez.
LAPD Sgt. Eric Wilhoit who leads the Department’s Crash Team, completed a 293-page report on the crash and Lopez was charged with Lopez is charged with speeding (over by 11-15 mph), careless driving (full time and attention) and failure to maintain traffic lane. She has pleaded not guilty to all three charges.
The Reporter reached out to LAPD PIO Cmdr. Chris Ross asking why Lopez was not charged with vehicular manslaughter and which law is used in fatal crash situations.
“Following the conclusion of the investigation and in consultation with our legal representation, we filed charges that could be supported by probable cause”, Ross said.
Community members have told the Reporter that they are disappointed that the DA’s office did not move forward with the felony charge. It should be noted that there have been multiple fatal crashes in the County over the last few years but no vehicular manslaughter charges have been filed.
The Reporter reached out to Catherine Lynch, the public information officer for the District Attorney’s Office to ask who made the decision not to pursue more serious charges in this case, what definition of vehicular manslaughter was used to determine whether or not a vehicular should apply in this case and when the DA’s office made the decision on the charges.
Lynch responded that it is the responsibility of the investigating agency, LAPD, to determine whether there is sufficient probable cause to charge a particular crime.
“LAPD did not submit a case with a finding of probable cause, yet the FJDA reviewed the case file to determine whether the evidence supported a felony offense for vehicular homicide (reckless driving) pursuant to § 66-8-101 and 66-8-113,” Lynch said. “It is the position of the FJDA there is insufficient evidence to support a felony charge of vehicular homicide by reckless driving as defined by applicable law.”
The laws mentioned above are:
https://codes.findlaw.com/nm/chapter-66-motor-vehicles/nm-st-sect-66-8-101/
https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/chapter-66/article-8/part-2/section-66-8-113/
Lopez is slated to appear in Los Alamos Magistrate Court Aug. 5 before Judge Delilah Montano Baca. Cmdr. Ross told the Reporter Thursday, that Sgt. Wilhoit is currently handling the case and that if that changes, the Assistant District Attorney, Elizabeth Counce, will file paperwork. Judge Catherine Taylor has been excused in the case. Lopez is represented by Los Alamos attorney Bill Snowden.