Driver who ran over victim in fatal confrontation sentenced

Danny Lopez

‘ I can confidently say that I don’t think the vast majority of the people in the crowd are very happy with the result here. I guess there really aren’t any winners in any of these circumstances.

’

Jory Scarborough Prosecutor

Dae Lyskoski shared a passion for cars with his father, but going to his job as a mechanic or looking at spare parts in his garage now just bring painful memories.

“I’m never going to hear him say, ‘I’m proud of you, son,’ ” he said Friday during a sentencing hearing for the man who ran over his father, Ethan Lyskoski, in northwest Las Vegas in December 2019.

Danny Lopez, 43, pleaded guilty in September to voluntary manslaughter. Lopez, who initially faced a murder charge, entered an Alford plea, which means he admitted only that prosecutors had enough evidence to prove his guilt.

On Friday, District Judge Cristina Silva sentenced him to two years, 10 months, to 10 years in prison.

Lopez and Lyskoski were dating the same woman, according to Lopez’s arrest report.

His defense attorney, Amy Coffee, said that the two men were friends and that Lopez did not intend to hurt the 48-year-old.

Prosecutor Jory Scarborough said that there was evidence Lyskoski was intoxicated and “the aggressor” during the altercation, but that Lopez should have drove away.

“I think the evidence shows that he purposefully hit him, and I think he purposefully took someone’s life under the heat of the moment,” Scarborough said.

On Dec. 14, 2019, Lopez dropped off his girlfriend near Lyskoski’s home near Cheyenne Avenue and Jones Boulevard, the woman told police.

Lyskoski confronted Lopez and used brass knuckles to smash Lyskoski’s car window, according to the arrest report.

Lopez then struck Lyskoski with his car before running him over and trapping him underneath the vehicle.

Coffee said Lopez didn’t realize the other man was on the ground when he turned the car back and ran him over.

She said that after Lyskoski was pinned under the car, Lopez called 911 and “immediately tried to get a jack, tried to move the car.”

“Nothing indicates that he went out to hurt anyone that day, that he intentionally did this,” Coffee said.

Lyskoski’s mother, Sandra Tessier, said her son was a loving man who would always offer to help when he saw someone stranded with car trouble on the side of the road.

“I also pray for what this has done to all of our families, since we are hurting together,” she said during the sentencing hearing.

Silva’s voice was thick with emotion when she addressed Lyskoski’s family members and thanked them for speaking on Friday.

But she said she had to consider Lopez’s lack of criminal history and the facts of the case when issuing a sentence.

At the start of Friday’s hearing, Scarborough acknowledged that the family was disappointed with Lopez’s negotiations to voluntary manslaughter.

“I can confidently say that I don’t think the vast majority of the people in the crowd are very happy with the result here,” he said. “I guess there really aren’t any winners in any of these circumstances.”

Following the hearing, Dae Lyskoski and his mother, Jennifer Lyskoski, said they were upset at Lopez’s sentence.

“The justice system needs an overhaul,” Jennifer Lyskoski said.