Carson judge OK after car crash

A Carson City judge is OK after being knocked unconscious Thursday morning in an accident on Edmonds Drive, his wife said.

Justice of the Peace Robey Willis, 61, was northbound between the National Guard Armory and the Nevada State Prison when a southbound car driven by Sal Ochoa-Ruiz, 32, of Menlo Drive in Carson City, crossed the center line and struck Willis' SUV about 7:30 a.m., said Carson City Sheriff's Deputy Jarrod Adams.

Willis' vehicle rolled into the shoulder and landed upside down. By the time rescue crews arrived, the judge was out of the vehicle, Adams said.

Ochoa-Ruiz was taken to Washoe Medical Center where he was treated and released. He was issued a citation for failure to use due care and is to appear in court Jan. 12.

Willis was taken to Carson-Tahoe Hospital by his wife, and doctors there suggested he go to Washoe Medical Center for further testing because he lost consciousness during the accident, Barbara Willis said.

He was released about 3:30 p.m.

"He's going to be OK," Barbara Willis said. "They ran CAT scans and he appears to be all right as far as we know. Just lots of cuts and bruises."

She said she hasn't had the chance to talk to him at length about the accident, but, "He can remember the guy sliding into him."

Willis was on his way home from his morning workout to prepare to take the bench in Carson City Justice Court Department I when the accident happened, she said.

A self-proclaimed "militant moderate," Willis took the bench for the first time in 1983 as a juvenile special magistrate. Before then he was a Stewart School history and civics teacher and boxing and football coach.

Barbara Willis said she doesn't expect the accident to keep her husband down for long.

"He'll be back to work by Monday," she said.

Contact F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.