Las Vegas Strip ‘murderer’ was HIGH on marijuana when she ‘plowed into pedestrians killing one and injuring three dozen others’

A woman accused of ramming a car into a crowd of pedestrians in Las Vegas earlier this month had marijuana in her system at the time of the deadly incident, it was revealed today.

According to the Clark County District Attorney’s Office, the toxicology examination of Lakeisha Holloway determined that at the time of her arrest on December 20, the 24-year-old woman had 3.5 nanograms per milliliter of marijuana in her blood, which is above the 2-nanogram limit in Nevada.

The 23.6 nanograms per milliliter of marijuana by-products in her system were above the 5-nanogram state limit. District Attorney Steve Wolfson and prosecutor Marc DiGiacomo said the test results do not change the initial charges of murder, child endangerment and felony hit-and-run against Holloway.

‘The amount of marijuana and marijuana metabolite does not appear to be enough to affect her mental state at the time of the crime,’ DiGiacomo said. ‘She intentionally drove into the crowd.’

Holloway’s court-appointed defense attorneys, Joseph Abood and Scott Coffee, said the amounts of pot don’t prove that her driving was affected.

‘If those levels are true, they are extremely low and they don’t indicate that she was impaired in any way,’ Abood said.

Coffee noted that the results undercut the findings of a police drug-recognition expert who examined Holloway after her arrest and reported that she appeared to be under the influence of a stimulant.

‘It’s good to see the concerns about … some kind of stimulant weren’t borne out,’ Coffee said.

While the level of marijuana by-products in Holloway’s blood was above state limits, it was below a limit of 50 nanograms per milliliter set by the federal Department of Transportation for pilots, overland truckers and other interstate drivers, Coffee said.

Daily Mail Online has learned she is set to face a custody battle over the child who she took along with her when she allegedly mowed down more than 35 people, killing one and critically injuring three others.

Holloway, 24, appeared at the Regional Justice Center in Las Vegas last Wednesday, charged with one count of murder through use of a deadly weapon in the death of a Jessica Valenzuela, a 32-year-old Arizona mother-of-three, who was among the pedestrians struck by her sedan.

A coroner in Nevada ruled Valenzuela’s death a homicide, determining that she died from multiple blunt-force injuries.

Holloway has also been charged with child abuse or neglect, and with leaving the scene of a collision.

She is currently jailed on suicide watch pending a January 20 court date. Prosecutors say they expect to file additional charges as police continue to interview witnesses, possibly including attempted murder.

Source: Daily Mail