A 22-year-old Las Vegas man who died in a suspected DUI crash Saturday was set to graduate from a nursing program later this year, according to his mother.
Grat Dalton Walker died after the Jeep Wrangler that he was a passenger in crashed into an unoccupied car on the shoulder on Summerlin Parkway early Saturday, the Nevada Highway Patrol said.
Following the crash, Fredrick Tuiletufuga, 25, was arrested on a felony DUI charge.
In an email to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Walker’s mother, Lisa Walker, said her son was “incredible” and a person who was “full of joy.”
She said Walker — who most called by his middle name, Dalton — was scheduled to graduate from an Arizona College of Nursing program in December.
“He was one of the brightest, happiest, most amazing souls ever put on this earth,” Lisa Walker said in the email. “He brought smiles and laughter everywhere he went. The outpouring of love, memories and stories from so many he loved has been just incredible.”
On Walker’s Instagram page, messages of condolences popped up this week. One post referred to how Walker “always knew” how to make people smile.
Another read “u were such a light in everyone’s life.”
Lisa Walker said her son’s plan was to eventually work as a neonatal intensive care unit nurse and to later become a nurse practitioner.
“His care, empathy and attention to others made him such a perfect future nurse,” Walker said.
Walker graduated from high school in Connecticut before moving to Las Vegas. He planned to travel to Greece with friends this summer, his mother said.
“Our lives will never be the same,” Walker said in the email. “Our baby boy is gone. We are completely heartbroken. No parent or brother should have to ever experience this level of pain.”
Following his arrest, Tuiletufuga was released on bail. He’s scheduled for a preliminary hearing May 8 before Las Vegas Justice Court Judge Joe Bonaventure.
According to the Highway Patrol, Tuiletufuga “showed signs of impairment” at the scene of the crash. He and two of the passengers in the Jeep were transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
At the hospital, after toxicology samples were collected, Tuiletufuga was found to have a blood alcohol concentration of 0.16 percent less than two hours after the crash. Nevada’s legal limit is 0.08 percent.
Troopers also found marijuana inside the Jeep, according to a news release.
Contact Bryan Horwath at bhorwath@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BryanHorwath on X.