A driver arrested in a crash that killed a longtime special education teacher in Clark County was speeding and may have been racing another driver at the time, according to police.
Zachary M. Zwick, 28, was arrested on suspicion of reckless driving in the May 22 crash that killed teacher Jeff Buchbaum, 55, of Las Vegas, on Boulder Highway near Russell Road. Buchbaum taught at multiple schools in Southern Nevada in a career spanning more than two decades.
The Metropolitan Police Department said in an arrest report that Zwick was driving a 2025 Hyundai north on Boulder Highway when his car slammed into Buchbaum’s 2024 Chrysler Pacifica. Buchbaum was attempting to turn left onto southbound Boulder Highway at the time of the 11:33 a.m. crash.
Buchbaum was taken to Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center where he died. His wife, Jennifer Boske, was a passenger in the van and was seriously injured.
Zwick was also treated for injuries at Sunrise. He told police he had left his job at a local auto parts store prior to the crash and he did not remember what happened. Zwick did not show signs of impairment, police said.
One witness told police he was driving in the area of Boulder Highway and Galleria Drive shortly before the crash when he saw a truck speed past him. The witness also saw the Hyundai fly by at approximately 80 mph, police said. The witness told police he saw both vehicles near Boulder and Russell just before the crash.
Another witness told police he saw the Hyundai and the truck traveling down Boulder Highway next to one another.
“Both vehicles were traveling quickly, passing him,” police said of the witness account. “He saw the Hyundai strike the Chrysler and never saw the vehicle slow down or apply its brakes.”
Police said the witness accounts, video and physical evidence at the crash scene led them to believe Zwick was speeding and was “possibly engaged in a speed contest with another vehicle.”
Zwick, police said, received a citation for following too closely in 2019. In January 2022 he received a citation for “exhibition of power/speed” and having an open container in his vehicle, police said. Later in 2022, he was also cited for speeding 11 to 20 mph over the speed limit, police said.
Zwick has not been formally charged. He has been released from custody after posting a $10,000 surety bond. Las Vegas Justice Court records do not list an attorney for him. His next court date is scheduled for June 23 for a status check on the filing of a criminal complaint.
Contact Glenn Puit at gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
