SoCal tennis star’s death ‘haunts’ mom, who vows DUI reform as suspect faces murder charge

The mother of a local tennis star joined Los Angeles County prosecutors on Monday in calling for stricter DUI penalties in California after they say her son was killed by a two-time drunk driver.

Braun Levi, an 18-year-old South Bay tennis standout, was struck and killed by a car in the early-morning hours of May 4 in Manhattan Beach.

According to Los Angeles County prosecutors, 33-year-old Jenia Resha Belt was behind the wheel, speeding while driving on a suspended license and with a blood alcohol level almost twice the legal limit. Belt, prosecutors say, has a previous conviction for driving drunk.

“California’s current DUI laws are broken and weak and fail to protect families like ours, and it’s devastating,” Levi’s mother, Jennifer, said at a news conference Monday. “His death haunts my every breath, every day.”

Although Levi’s parents were proud of his athletic and academic achievements, they were most proud of how he treated other people, his mother said. “He had a smile for everybody. He had a heart for everybody,” she said. “I miss him so much.”

In light of her son’s death, she said she would work with state Sen. Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera), whose granddaughter died after being hit by a drunk driver last year, to write and pass a bill that will restructure the state’s DUI penalty laws and requirements, she said.

“The feeling, the sight, the smell of identifying our son’s body will never leave my mind, body or soul, so I will not be silent,” she said.

The SoCal athlete, who died a month before his high school graduation after entering the top national ranks in boys tennis, is part of a larger trend of DUI-related deaths over the last 15 years, according to a CalMatters investigative series that L.A. County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman referenced.

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Roadway deaths have been steadily rising since 2010, partially due to repeat drunk drivers and people driving over the speed limit, CalMatters reported. Alcohol-related deaths have increased by 50% over the last decade, according to the investigation.

“Braun should be home right now from his first semester at UVA, spending the holidays with his family, their first as a family still displaced by the Palisades fire,” said Councilmember Traci Park, whose district includes Pacific Palisades.

“He should be planning his future, not being remembered for the way his life was taken from him.”

California’s DUI laws, although considered to be groundbreaking in the 1980s, have fallen behind the curve, Hochman said.

Hochman warned drivers, especially ahead of the New Year’s holiday, that his office would continue to charge those driving under the influence — and potentially those who overserve alcohol at bars or parties — with serious crimes.

“We are here to prevent crimes and send crystal clear messages to would-be drunk and drug drivers, to people who want to engage in excessive speed on our roads: We will come after you,” Hochman said, calling the issue a “fight for people’s lives.”

Belt is charged with second-degree murder, felony gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and a misdemeanor count of driving with a suspended license after a DUI. She is being held on $2-million bail and faces life in prison if convicted.

Belt’s arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 13.