Life changes may be on the way for a man accused of killing two women in a hit-an-run collision in January on Vancouver Mall Drive.
An attorney for Brandon C. Smith of Vancouver said on Tuesday that his 28-year-old client is scheduled to plead guilty Dec. 12 in Clark County Superior Court to charges related to the women’s deaths. He also apparently wants to marry the mother of his child before possibly heading off to prison.
Raisa Mosh, 45, and Irina Gardinant, 28, were killed at about 8 p.m. Jan. 19 when Smith’s white 2007 Toyota Tacoma pickup struck them in a crosswalk at Northeast 72nd Avenue and Vancouver Mall Drive, according to court records. He allegedly drove away without calling 911 or stopping to help the victims. Mosh’s 12-year-old son also was injured.
Judge David Gregerson on Tuesday granted Smith permission to marry pursuant to Clark County Jail policy.
The policy gives administrators discretion on whether to allow marriages inside the jail. Administrators typically consider the inmate’s disciplinary history in the jail, overall criminal history of the bride and groom, and whether the wedding would pose a safety and security risk inside the jail, said sheriff’s Sgt. Jack Huff.
“If there is no serious criminal history of the bride and groom, we usually allow it,” Huff said.
Smith is engaged to Kalista Andino, 21, with whom he was living at the time of the deadly collision. Smith and Andino have a 1-year-old daughter together. Andino initially was charged with tampering with a witness, but the charge was later dismissed.
Smith’s attorney, Jon McMullen, has been negotiating with Senior Deputy Prosecutor Kasey Vu on a plea agreement for Smith. McMullen said Tuesday that the deal has not yet been finalized, but a Dec. 12 plea change hearing has been scheduled.
Smith is charged with two counts of vehicular homicide and one count each of vehicular assault, felony hit and run, and tampering with physical evidence. Those charges could be amended in a plea agreement.
Witness-tampering charges against Smith’s mother, Linda Diane Smith, are still pending. (Linda Smith is not the former 3rd District congresswoman of the same name.) She is accused of contacting at least two witnesses and telling them not to talk to police. Her trial is scheduled for Feb. 9.
At first, police had few clues to go on when trying to find the driver who hit the three pedestrians.
A break in the case came when detectives located and seized Brandon Smith’s white pickup with front-end damage from the Larkspur Place Apartments on Vancouver Mall Drive, where Smith lived with Andino and their baby.
Child Protective Services briefly took custody of the baby when Andino was arrested in January on the witness-tampering charge. Andino was later released after posting $30,000 bail and regained custody of the child.
Mosh and Gardinant had met at a church in their native country of Moldova and continued their friendship in the United States, according to their friends.
Mosh was a mother of four, and Gardinant was a Sunday school teacher and mother of a 2-year-old daughter.
They were returning from a baby shower on the night they were killed.
