Bail lowered for driver in fatal wreck

East Fork Justice of the Peace Jim EnEarl reduced bail to $2,500 cash for Michael Cordero Perez, 32, facing two felony charges in the traffic death of a 46-year-old Gardnerville woman.

EnEarl told Perez on Wednesday that if he bailed out of Douglas County Jail, he would be placed on house arrest under the supervision of the Department of Alternative Sentencing and would not be allowed to leave his residence.

Perez will be ordered to wear electronic monitoring and is subject to several conditions including abstention from alcohol and controlled substances, no firearms and random search and seizure for drugs or alcohol.

"I haven't heard the evidence yet, but it's possible you are directly responsible for someone's death," EnEarl said.

"Do not violate this in any shape or form. Don't open the front door. Don't go to the store. You can't leave the house," he said.

Perez's lawyer, Tod Young, requested the bail reduction. His client has been in jail on $100,000 bail since the accident Dec. 20 that killed Robin Moroney.

Perez was charged with driving under the influence causing death or substantial bodily harm and driving under the influence of alcohol and controlled substance causing death or substantial bodily harm.

Young said Wednesday preliminary tests indicated Perez's blood-alcohol content was .081, barely over the legal limit of .08 for driving in Nevada.

According to court documents, Perez admitted drinking two beers an hour before the accident. He also told investigators he had a permit from California to use medical marijuana and had ingested the controlled substance Dec. 18.

Young said tests to indicate the level of controlled substance in his client's system wouldn't be available for a month. He also said the accident report wasn't ready.

Perez has no prior criminal history, according to Young.

Prosecutor Kris Brown objected to the bail reduction.

"The blood test shows that on the face of it, he was over the legal limit," Brown said. "The state is ready to go forward with the preliminary hearing on Friday."

Perez was set for a preliminary hearing Friday to determine whether there was enough evidence for the charges to stand.

Young asked for a delay until the test results for the controlled substances are ready.

EnEarl set the hearing for Feb. 15.

According to the Nevada Highway Patrol, Perez was southbound on Jacks Valley Road near Bavarian Drive when a witness said he crossed the double-yellow line, overcorrected, and collided with Moroney's vehicle about 5:25 p.m. Dec. 20.

The 42-year-old woman had to be extricated from her vehicle and was taken by CareFlight to Washoe Medical Center where she died of her injuries.

Perez was treated for moderate injuries.