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UPDATE: Bail denied for suspected DUI driver in fatal crash

A 16-year-old driver was killed in a crash early Thursday morning in northwest Las Vegas.
Posted at 7:06 AM, Feb 09, 2017
and last updated 2017-02-13 21:33:08-05

UPDATE FEB. 13: A judge denied bail Monday for 47-year-old David Fensch.

UPDATE AT 12 AM FEB. 11: Friends and family, classmates and teachers gathered for a sad memorial for Jaelan Fajardo.

Several hundred people crowded the practice field at Shadow Ridge High School. They lit candles and bowed their heads in a tribute, later chanting "Jaelan! Jaelan! Jaelan!" and "we love you Jaelan!"
 
Jaelan was straight-A student on the National Honor Roll. He recently transferred to Arbor View High School and had played on the soccer team at Shadow Ridge.
 
Jaelan died when a suspected drunk driver rear-ended his car. David Fensch is now charged.
 
Tyler Modee, a teammate, knew Jaelan since the sixth grade.
 
"I'm very sad. He was a really good guy. He was really smart and he was going to go far in life," he says.
 
For Modee, losing his friend at such a young age is tough.
 
"It's just devastating," Modee says.
 
Coach Brian Lavoie lost his own daughter in a crash seven years ago.
 
"It hits very close to home," Lavoie says.
 
The tragic irony: he's talked to his players about driving responsibly.
 
"Jaelan had sat through that talk many, many times and unfortunately, he had no control over this," Lavoie says.
 
Students and parents from three different schools sent balloons into the sky as they said goodbye to a friend cut down far too young.
 
"We're all just really appreciative of each other and each other's company and we're cherishing the moment together," Modee says.
 

UPDATE FEB. 10: A memorial was held at Shadow Ridge High School Friday night to remember Jaelan Fajardo, who recently went to the school.

UPDATE AT 11:45 PM FEB. 9: 16-year-old Jaelan Fajardo’s friends are struggling to accept the news.    

“I feel in denial like this can’t be real,” says Michele Mullaj, a friend who has known Jaelan since elementary school. “I’m in shock. I’m like this isn’t real and I’ll see him in school tomorrow."
 
Michele and another friend, Brooklyn Decker, were in class when she found out the awful truth.
 
“I didn’t know if it was real or not,” Brooklyn says.
 
Jaelan was a sophomore at Arbor View High School, who just transferred from Shadow Ridge.
  
Brooklyn and Michele say Jaelan was a great friend and one of the most intelligent students they knew.
 
“He’s never left my side. He’s always been there for me," Brooklyn says.
 
“He was always really positive about everything and he was really smart,” Michele says.
 
The two teens are trying to understand why anyone would hurt their dear friend before he’s even old enough to go to his prom.
 
“He had such a bright future ahead of him,” Brooklyn says.
 
“I’m just really angry he could do that,” Michele says about David Fensch, who is charged with vehicular homicide, drunk driving and driving without a valid license. Vehicular homicide is a charge reserved for drivers suspected of being under the influence and with at least three prior DUI convictions.
 
A GoFundMe has been set up for Jaelan's funeral expenses.
 
UPDATE AT 3:45 PM: Nevada Highway Patrol says David Fensch was arrested in connection to Thursday's fatal crash.

Fensch has been arrested on charges of felony vehicular homicide, no valid driver's license and failure to decrease speed and use of due care.

NHP reported that the Honda the teen was driving was stopped at a red light when the Chevrolet Trail Blazer failed to stop and rear-ended the Honda.

Investigators believe both speed and impairment were factors in the crash.

Las Vegas police reported that Fensch was arrested for felony DUI in their jurisdiction in 2011.

UPDATE AT 3:30 PM: The Clark County coroner has identified the teenage driver as 16-year-old Jaelan Jonson Fajardo.

UPDATE AT 10:30 AM: NHP says that the juvenile who was killed was 16 years old. He was driving the car that was rear-ended.

UPDATE AT 7:45 AM: Nevada Highway Patrol says that the crash was fatal. At least one person is dead and one person is in the hospital.

NHP says that a green Honda was rear-ended by a silver SUV that was traveling at a high rate of speed. NHP believes that alcohol may have played a factor.

The Clark County coroner will release the name of the deceased after relatives have been notified. At this time, it is believed that the deceased is a juvenile.

The SUV was being driven by a 47-year-old man.

The intersection is expected to be closed for several hours.

 

ORIGINAL STORY

A bad crash has closed down the intersection of Durango Drive and Farm Road in northwest Las Vegas.

It appears that the crash involved at least two vehicles. At least one person has been rushed to a local hospital.

The crash happened shortly before 6:30 a.m.

Motorists are advised to avoid the intersection for some time.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
 

 

 

 

 

 

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