A Las Vegas man accused of killing a 12-year-old boy in a suspected DUI hit-and-run told a justice court Tuesday he will accept a plea agreement, potentially shifting a long-simmering case into its next phase. Oh’Ryan Brooks, 27, appeared in court as his lawyers said the case will be bound over to Clark County District Court, and that Brooks will pay roughly $6,900 in restitution to the boy’s mother. The move comes months after loud public calls for safer crossings near J.D. Smith Middle School and has reignited anger in the neighborhood.
Prosecutors have charged Brooks with reckless driving causing bodily harm or death, driving under the influence and a duty-to-stop charge, according to comments made in court. His attorneys told the judge the plea would resolve the justice court matter and set the case up for district court, where a follow-up hearing is scheduled for Feb. 23. As reported by FOX5, defense lawyers also said Brooks will pay about $6,900 in restitution to the victim’s family.
The crash that killed 12-year-old Cristofer Suarez happened on Oct. 3, 2025, when police say he was struck while walking toward Owens Avenue and 21st Street to get to an early music rehearsal. Suarez was taken to University Medical Center and spent the weekend on life support before dying, local reporting shows. The Las Vegas Review-Journal noted that Metro arrested 27-year-old Brooks at an apartment complex and that a justice court appearance followed.
What the charges could mean
Nevada law treats a failure to stop after an accident that causes injury or death as a Category B felony, and a DUI that results in death or substantial bodily harm is charged under state DUI statutes as a serious felony with prison exposure. The statutory framework is laid out in NRS Chapter 484E on duties at crash scenes and NRS Chapter 484C on DUI penalties, which prescribe multi-year terms and fines that shape plea negotiations in district court. Those provisions mean any negotiated agreement will be reviewed in the context of mandatory sentencing guidelines and prosecutorial restrictions.
Short-term fixes, long-term pressure
Documents and emails obtained by local reporters show the Clark County School District’s Safe Routes to School team flagged the Owens and 21st intersection as dangerous weeks before Suarez was struck, and city crews later refreshed crosswalk markings and extended school flasher hours while a full traffic signal is designed. North Las Vegas also assigned crossing guards, and officials say the signal design is moving toward construction in 2026. That timeline and the district’s notes were outlined in reporting by FOX5.
Suarez’s mother, Martina Suarez, told reporters she is frustrated by repeated court delays and by what she described as a slow official response after safety concerns were raised. Parents, students and advocates have held rallies at the corner and pressed elected officials for expedited engineering changes and tougher enforcement, as Channel 13 reported. Hoodline earlier collected the public records and coverage in a package on scrutiny after the crash.
Brooks’ move toward a plea will shift much of the fight over accountability into district court, where prosecutors and defense attorneys will hammer out the exact terms of any agreement and the likely sentence. For many in the neighborhood, though, the criminal case is only one piece of a larger push to make the walk to school safer for the next child.
