Case dropped against woman in crash that killed 9-year-old niece
Prosecutors have dropped a case against a woman previously accused of driving under the influence in a crash that killed her 9-year-old niece.
Christina Sorensen, 63, was arrested after a two-vehicle wreck in August at the intersection of Simmons Street and West Ann Road in North Las Vegas. She initially faced charges of driving under the influence resulting in death, reckless driving resulting in death and child abuse or neglect, according to court records.
Court records indicate the charges were denied by prosecutors on Tuesday.
“The DA’s office did the right thing, which we are thankful for, because we knew it wasn’t a DUI to begin with,” said Ryan Helmick, Sorensen’s attorney.
It’s not clear what led to the decision not to pursue the case; the district attorney’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Helmick said his understanding is that blood testing showed “there was nothing in the blood.”
Sorensen consented to a blood draw after the crash. She blew a .000 on a breath test, according to police, but failed several field sobriety tests. Her arrest report said officers had “probable cause to suspect Sorensen was driving under the influence of narcotics.”
She was released without bail conditions in August after prosecutors did not file formal charges. At the time, prosecutors said in a statement that law enforcement had not received the final toxicological analysis of Sorensen’s blood and did not expect to get results for several months. The district attorney’s office said it could not ethically file charges while the case was still under investigation.
The Clark County coroner’s office identified the victim as Sophia Sandoval of Porterville, California, and said she died of multiple blunt force injuries.
Sandoval was a passenger in Sorensen’s car. Police said a Jeep crashed into the Corvette that Sorensen was driving when she tried to turn left against a red light.
Helmick called the crash a “tragic accident.” Sorensen is grieving, he said.
Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.
