California woman faces drunken driving charges after fatal crash in Las Vegas' southwest valley

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – One woman is dead and another woman is facing drunken driving charges after a crash Wednesday evening in southwest Las Vegas.

The crash was reported at 5:45 p.m. on South Hualapai Way, north of West Flamingo Road, and involved two vehicles. According to Las Vegas police, a 51-year-old woman in a Toyota Prius left a private driveway on Hualapai and traveled north before making a U-turn to reach southbound Hualapai, where her vehicle was struck by a woman driving in was driving a Buick Encore. , causing the Buick to overturn.

Police said both women were transported to the UMC Trauma Unit, but the 51-year-old woman was pronounced dead shortly after arrival. The other driver, identified by police as 29-year-old Michelle Cardenas, of Huntington Park, California, showed signs of impairment and was arrested at UMC.

Clark County Detention Center records show Cardenas is charged with driving under the influence and reckless driving causing death. She will make her first court appearance on Thursday, November 7.

The identity of the deceased woman will be released by the Clark County Coroner’s office. Metro said she was the 134th traffic-related fatality in its jurisdiction for 2024.

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