The driver who killed two people, including Hollister resident
Gordon Kusayanagi, and injured 12 others when he plowed a stolen
car into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip might face the death
penalty
– but his son said he would rather see the man get a life
sentence.
Las Vegas – The driver who killed two people, including Hollister resident Gordon Kusayanagi, and injured 12 others when he plowed a stolen car into pedestrians on the Las Vegas Strip might face the death penalty – but his son said he would rather see the man get a life sentence.
Clark County, Nev. District Attorney David Roger said a determination about seeking the death penalty would be made once Stephen M. Ressa’s case moves to state court. Ressa, 27, of Rialto, currently faces life in prison without the possibility of parole on charges including murder and attempted murder in the Wednesday crash.
But Kusayanagi’s family said they believe Ressa should not be executed.
“At first, I was very angry, and I would concur with that,” Kusayanagi’s son Scott said. “But having had a few days to think about it and calm down, I’m not sure my dad would have wanted that. My dad was not a vengeful person. He didn’t have a mean bone in his body. My family would rather he got a life sentence without parole than see him die.”
Kusayanagi was born and raised in Gilroy and had lived in Hollister for about six years. He and his wife own the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in Monterey. He played guitar and keyboards for the rock cover band Ten ’til Two.
Ressa appeared Monday by closed-circuit video from jail, and said nothing during the brief Las Vegas Justice Court proceeding. He was not asked to enter a plea. Justice of the Peace Karen Bennett-Haron set his next court date for Oct. 26, after Ressa’s lawyer, public defender Timothy O’Brien, sought time for Ressa to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
The state has filed an amended complaint charging Ressa with two counts of murder and 12 counts of attempted murder, plus 12 counts of battery with a deadly weapon and possession of a stolen car in the Sept. 21 crash in front of the Paris Las Vegas and Bally’s hotel-casinos.
Prosecutors allege Ressa stole a car from his 54-year-old mother after she was beaten and choked into unconsciousness Sept. 19 at her home in Rialto. Ressa had been sought for questioning but has not been charged in the assault.
Investigators in Las Vegas hope to have results of Ressa’ blood tests by Oct. 26. Authorities believe the tests will show Ressa had methamphetamine in his system when he crashed into the crowd.
Ressa is accused of intentionally steering into a crowd and accelerating along the busy sidewalk in what one witness told police looked like “humans being mowed down like a lawnmower.”
Ressa told police he became angry at people he believed were “staring at him like they were ‘demons'” and concealing guns in their pockets, according to a police report.
Gordon Kusayanagi, 52, was vacationing in Las Vegas with his wife Stephanie and his two best friends, his son Scott Kusayanagi said. The group was on its way to see a show when Ressa intentionally drove the car he’d stolen from his mother into a crowd of people.
“I got the call about 5:20pm from my uncle, my dad’s best friend, who is also my godfather. I heard my mom screaming and I heard other people screaming,” Scott Kusayanagi said last week. “He said there’s been an accident and you need to get here right now.”
Mark Modaressi, 26, of Irvine, was also killed in the crash.
Six people remained at Las Vegas hospitals on Monday. Two were in fair condition and four were listed in good condition.
A funeral service will be held for Kusayanagi on Thursday at the South Valley Community Church in Gilroy at 4pm. The service will be open, and Scott Kusayanagi encourages anyone who knew his father or might have seen his band play to attend, with just one restriction.
“No formal wear,” he said. “My dad was a jeans and T-shirt guy, and we’ll honor him that way.”
