If she could have her way, Stephanie Kusayanagi would like to
see only foot traffic on the lanes of Las Vegas Boulevard
South.
If she could have her way, Stephanie Kusayanagi would like to see only foot traffic on the lanes of Las Vegas Boulevard South.
It’s where her husband, Gordon Kusayanagi, was killed in September 2005, when 29-year-old Stephen Ressa used his mother’s car to plow into a crowded Las Vegas Strip sidewalk.
On Friday, Ressa was sentenced to life in prison without parole for Gordon Kusayanagi’s death; 11 counts of attempted murder; and the deaths of Mark Modaressi, 26, of Irvine, and Richard Bradford, 60, of Renton, Wash. He pleaded guilty but mentally ill to those charges in October to avoid the death penalty, his attorney said.
Kusayanagi’s family members, who had an opportunity Friday to address the court and remember the man who brought them love and music, expressed relief that it is over. But knowing Ressa will spend the rest of his days in prison hasn’t necessarily brought them closure.
“I don’t know if anyone who goes through what we did is ever going to have any closure,” Stephanie Kusayanagi said.
Their 31-year-old son, Scott Kusayanagi, said no punishment will bring back his father.
In the immediate aftermath of his father’s death, Scott Kusayanagi wanted the death penalty for Ressa.
But after speaking with his mother, Scott Kusayanagi realized that wasn’t the justice his father would want.
“My dad definitely wasn’t that way as a person,” Kusayanagi said.
For now, Stephanie Kusayanagi plans to recover over the holidays after more than two years of waiting.
In those two years, she has worked to make something positive out of a tragedy. The family started the Gordon Rocks Foundation, which provides Morgan Hill and Gilroy area high school students with scholarships.
Eventually, she will decide how to channel her energy further.
As much as she would like to see it, making The Strip a pedestrian thoroughfare may not be realistic, she admits. Instead, Kusayanagi wants to address the root of her husband’s death.
Ressa, of Rialto, Calif., assaulted his mother, stole her car and drove to Las Vegas, authorities said. He told police shortly after the crash that he drove into the crowd because pedestrians were staring at him “like demons” and concealing weapons.
Clark County District Court Judge Michelle Leavitt ruled Friday that Ressa was mentally ill and assured he will receive mental health treatment in prison, said his attorney, Joseph Abood.
Kusayanagi said she would like California to adopt a version of Kendra’s Law – passed in New York to help parents of the mentally ill adult children get them emergency help.
“Even if it helps one family not have to go through what we went through, it would be worth it,” she said.
Scott Kusayanagi has his own way of honoring his father.
They started a cover band, “10 til 2,” about a decade ago. It strengthened the father and son bond – and they became best friends.
“I didn’t really realize it until after he died,” he said.
When he received word his father had been injured, he wondered how long the band would have to take off. When he had found out his father died, members knew they had to keep the band going. Because that’s what Gordon would have wanted.
“It was never a question of ‘Should we hang this up?'” Scott Kusayanagi said. “We needed to play.”
The band has come a long way in the past decade.
On Saturday, “10 til 2” played the main stage at Shoreline Amphitheater, and Kusayanagi played Gordon’s guitar, as he does on special occasions.
He believes his father was watching.
“He’s been at every show since he died,” Kusayanagi said. “I guarantee it.”
Gordon Kusayanagi is survived by his two parents; his wife; his two children, Scott Kusayanagi and Sarah Mosunic; and three grandchildren.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
