Las Vegas motorcyclist killed in crash remembered as devoted dad, loyal friend

Las Vegas resident Shane DeMille, who died in a crash in late September, loved the feeling of hopping on his Suzuki motorcycle for a ride.

“He just seemed happy when he was riding,” longtime friend and roommate Cliff Robotham said. “Whenever he got down, he jumped on that bike and it would invigorate him.”

His mother, Melanie Taylor, said her son, who at age 38 was the oldest of 10 children, was physically gifted from a young age.

When DeMille was 2, he tried to ride his bike over a makeshift ramp he built out of bricks and wood. Taylor managed to stop him from going over the ramp.

DeMille loved to challenge himself to physical feats, such as tricks on his bikes and backflips off of things, his mother said.

Robotham, 43, said DeMille liked bikes, skateboarding, cars and “dominating” at airsoft, a sport similar to paintball where players shoot each other with small plastic bb’s, in his free time.

Robotham accompanied DeMille when he bought his first motorcycle and his second. That first one was stolen out of his driveway, Robotham said, and DeMille saved up to buy his second.

Taylor said she tried to talk DeMille out of buying a motorcycle to no avail.

“He loved his bike,” Taylor said, noting he told her he felt “accelerated” when riding.

Taylor and Robotham stressed that DeMille was much more than an avid motorcyclist and skateboard enthusiast.

He was a great friend to many, his mom said. DeMille was “like a chameleon” with an ability to forge friendships with people of many different interests.

Taylor said she and her family were surprised by how many of DeMille’s friends filled the ICU waiting room at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center where he was taken after his Suzuki bike crashed.

DeMille was reportedly driving down Horizon Drive when he lost control and crashed into the side of a Honda CRV on Sept. 23. Henderson police said that speed and reckless driving were factors in the crash, but impairment was not.

Devoted father, good friend

DeMille also was a devoted father who was very proud of and close to his son, Shane DeMille II, 19, Taylor and Robotham said. He loved spending time with his son, and they both enjoyed playing video games together, Robotham said.

DeMille, who was friends with Robotham for more than two decades, lived with Robotham and his wife, Patricia, for the last five years. DeMille worked as a shift lead for Papa Johns pizza.

Both Robotham and his wife called DeMille a great roommate and an even better friend. “He was my Jiminy Cricket, but also he was the guy who was like, ‘Hold my beer,’” Robotham said.

Always the life of the party, DeMille frequently brought new friends into the fold, they said.

“Everybody gravitated toward him. He was always bringing more people to the party,” Robotham said.

DeMille was also protective of friends and family, said Robotham, who described him as “a shield for his friends.”

“If you give him a call and say, ‘I don’t feel safe,’ he would be there as quick as possible,” Robotham said.

Contact Mark Credico at mcredico@reviewjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @MarkCredicoII.