Attorney wanted part of murder charge dismissed in Las Vegas cyclist’s killing
An attorney for one of two teens accused of killing a retired police chief in a hit-and-run unsuccessfully attempted to get the elder abuse component of the murder charge against his client thrown out in a Tuesday hearing.
Jesus Ayala, 18, and Jzamir Keys, 17, were indicted in October on charges of murder, attempted murder, failing to stop at the scene of a crash, battery, residential burglary, grand larceny of a vehicle and possession of a stolen vehicle.
Ayala has been accused of using a stolen vehicle to strike Andreas Probst, 66, as he rode his bicycle on Tenaya Way, near Centennial Parkway, in August. Keys filmed a video of the two teenagers laughing and planning to hit Probst, who was a retired police chief from Bell, California, police have said.
Chief Deputy Public Defender David Westbrook, who represents Ayala, argued that prosecutors were improperly trying to apply an elder abuse statute to make it easier to convict his client of first-degree murder. He said legislative history of the statute prosecutors wanted to use to charge Ayala supported the idea that the state was trying to stop violence and exploitation of elderly people by caretakers.
Prosecutors need to prove a person was targeted because of their age or infirmity, he said.
“They’re extending and reaching past their statutory authority in order to put themselves in a better position in the case and in order to create a situation where they don’t have to prove the elements of first-degree murder, because that’s harder,” he said of the prosecution.
To make a point that people who are 60-years-old and older don’t automatically need special protections, Westbrook approached the bench where District Judge Jacqueline Bluth sat and showed her a shirtless photo of muscular boxer Evander Holyfield, who is 61.
People in the courtroom laughed. “Looking good,” said Bluth, who seemed amused. But she said she disagreed with Westbrook’s arguments.
“In reading the statute, I do not believe that the state has to prove that the person who committed elder abuse knew that the person was an elder,” she said.
Her interpretation was similar to what Chief Deputy District Attorney John Giordani argued: that the statute was focused on a vulnerable class, not intent.
Westbrook asked for the case to be paused while he appeals Bluth’s ruling. She said she would not grant a stay unless the state Nevada Supreme Court ordered one.
Keys’ attorney, Daniel Hill, joined Westbrook on the motion to dismiss that led to the hearing.
Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.
