A 33-year-old Los Angeles woman who allegedly drove drunk and hit an 18-year-old man as he crossed Sepulveda Boulevard in Manhattan Beach in May was arrested this week and charged with murder, authorities said.
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\nJenia Resha Belt was taken into custody shortly after the early morning crash on May 4 and was held on a probation violation, but had not been charged in relation with the crash until Tuesday, Dec. 23, following an extensive investigation by the Los Angeles County District Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n
She was also charged with one felony count of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and one misdemeanor count of driving when privilege suspended or revoked for driving with a specified blood alcohol level, said Pamela Johnson, spokeswoman for the DA\u2019s office.
\nBelt was scheduled to appear in Torrance Superior Court Wednesday, where she may enter a plea to the charges.<\/p>\n
Killed in the crash was Braun Levi, a nationally ranked tennis player at Loyola High School who had moved to Hermosa Beach with his family after they had lost their home in the Palisades fire. Levi was set to graduate and had planned to attend the University of Virginia.
\nHe and a playing partner had won four consecutive league championships in doubles tennis.
\nLevi and a small group of friends were attempting to cross Sepulveda heading westbound south of Second Street when Levi was hit by an SUV being driven by Belt headed northbound around 12:45 a.m., police said.<\/p>\n
Loyola High School athlete Braun Levi, 18, who was killed early Sunday, May 4, 2025, by a suspected DUI driver. (Courtesy of Loyola High School IG)\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
A wrecked car is seen on Sunday May 4, 2025, in Manhattan Beach following a crash that killed 18-year-old Braun Levi. (Photo by OnScene.TV)\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
A woman is taken into custody on Sunday May 4, 2025, in Manhattan Beach following a crash that killed 18-year-old Braun Levi. (Photo by OnScene.TV)\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Show Caption<\/p>\n
1<\/span> of 3<\/span><\/p>\n Loyola High School athlete Braun Levi, 18, who was killed early Sunday, May 4, 2025, by a suspected DUI driver. (Courtesy of Loyola High School IG)\n<\/p>\n Expand<\/span> She told police she tapped the brakes to avoid one pedestrian, then continued before seeing a second pedestrian and hitting that person unintentionally. She was driving on a suspended license after entering a plea deal for a hit-and-run in 2023, court records show. A drunk-driving charge was dropped as a result of that plea deal. Belt, who was arrested Tuesday, was being held in jail on $2 million bail, inmate records show.<\/p>\n The case of Jenia Resha Belt and the tragic death of Braun Levi serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of drunk driving and the importance of responsible behavior on the road. The charges filed against Belt reflect the severity of the incident and the need for accountability. As the case proceeds, it is essential for the community to come together in support of the Levi family and to advocate for stricter measures against drunk driving.<\/p>\n Woman Accused of Drunk Driving and Killing High School Tennis Star Charged Introduction to the Case A 33-year-old Los Angeles woman who allegedly drove drunk and hit an 18-year-old man as he crossed Sepulveda Boulevard in Manhattan Beach in May was arrested this week and charged with murder, authorities said. Jenia Resha Belt was taken […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":26226,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-26224","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-crime-reports"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/www.dailynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/TDB-L-DUIARREST-0505-1.jpg?w=1400px&strip=all&w=1400&resize=1400,933&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26224"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26224"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26227,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26224\/revisions\/26227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26226"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/los-angeles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nBelt stopped the SUV and four others got out and ran northbound from the scene, Manhattan Beach police officers wrote in a search warrant requesting to gather data from Belt\u2019s phone.
\nBelt stayed at the scene and was talking with Hermosa Beach officers in the parking lot of the Hi View Inn & Suites when Manhattan Beach officers arrived.
\nLevi was found in the roadway with his face bloodied and large abrasions on his chest, police wrote in the document. He died at a hospital.
\nBelt told police at the scene she had one Moscow mule at a bar in Hermosa Beach before getting into the SUV to drive, but she failed field sobriety tests at the scene and was taken into custody, the document says. Her blood-alcohol content measured at 0.19%, more than twice the legal limit, police said.<\/p>\nPrevious Record and Lawsuit<\/h2>\n
\nLevi\u2019s parents, in November, filed a lawsuit against Belt seeking $200 million, which they said they planned to put toward the Live Like Braun Foundation, created to honor Braun while raising awareness against the dangers of impaired driving.<\/p>\nCurrent Status<\/h2>\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n
FAQs<\/h2>\n
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\nA: Belt was charged with murder, one felony count of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and one misdemeanor count of driving when privilege suspended or revoked for driving with a specified blood alcohol level.<\/li>\n
\nA: The victim was Braun Levi, an 18-year-old nationally ranked tennis player at Loyola High School.<\/li>\n
\nA: Belt\u2019s blood-alcohol content measured at 0.19%, more than twice the legal limit.<\/li>\n
\nA: Belt was being held in jail on $2 million bail.<\/li>\n
\nA: Levi\u2019s parents filed a lawsuit against Belt seeking $200 million to put toward the Live Like Braun Foundation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"