Man convicted in hit-and-run killing of downtown Dallas pedestrian sentenced to 10 years

A Dallas County man who pled guilty to a felony hit-and-run that killed a pedestrian in downtown Dallas last year has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Kundin Nadew, 66, was charged with a state jail felony after he struck Adolphus Hotel employee Lisa Jordan last August and failed to stop. Jordan was in the crosswalk at Commerce and Akard streets when she was struck, run over and briefly dragged by Nadew’s Ford Explorer. Jordan died from her injuries shortly after the collision.
Ten years is the maximum possible sentence and was handed down by Judge Stephanie Huff in the 291st District of Dallas County. Nadew was also fined $10,000 during his sentencing hearing August 13, according to assistant district attorney and vehicular crimes unit chief Andrew James.
Nadew has a history of traffic violations that Huff considered when passing down his sentence. He was convicted of driving under the influence in Atlanta in 1992, James said, and his Portland taxi license was suspended in 2012 following a drunk driving arrest, according to the Portland Mercury. He has received citations for running a red light, using a cell phone while driving, driving the wrong way down a one-way street, speeding in a school zone and impeding traffic, public records show.
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Nadew was fined more than $25,000 for taking illegal cab fares in Portland, according to the Mercury.
Surveillance footage that captured the crash showed Nadew dropping off a passenger at the Adolphus Hotel just before striking Jordan. Nadew told Dallas officers that he was driving for a taxi company, though court records do not specify which company.
“The video is just just horrible because it’s something that clearly shouldn’t have happened,” James said.
Jordan’s death prompted locals to petition the city to create a pedestrian mall — a car-free zone restricted to pedestrians — on Akard between Elm and Commerce. In pedestrian malls, cars have access only for essential activities like emergencies and trash services.
Hexel Colorado, a Dallas resident and pedestrian advocate who launched the petition in February, said he wishes a higher sentence for Nadew could have been possible.
“This is a person with a long sordid history of drunk, reckless and illegal driving,” Colorado said. “Clearly, this man in particular is a serial risk to public safety everywhere.
“I would have at least hoped for 20 years.”
Nadew was convicted under a stop-and-yield law that took effect in 2021 following a pedestrian crash that killed 37-year-old Lisa Torry Smith and injured her 6-year-old son, Logan. Because Nadew’s car was used as a deadly weapon, he will be required to serve at least five years before he’s eligible for release, James said.
Nadew argued that he hit Jordan because his brakes failed, but a pretrial investigation showed the brakes were working as expected. James said he believes Nadew was distracted by his cell phone during the crash.
“For somebody who drives for a living he has done some dangerous things, and that is why I asked the judge to give him a 10-year sentence,” James said.
In exchange for pleading guilty, an additional second-degree felony charge of fleeing the scene was dismissed, James said.
Jordan is survived by her husband, Steven, and 20-year-old daughter, Savannah. Steven said previously he supports efforts to address pedestrian safety downtown.
“She [Jordan] did everything she was supposed to do, and it still happened,” he said in March.
Steven, along with Lisa’s mother, testified at Nadew’s sentencing hearing, James said. Steven did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Nadew’s sentencing.
Nadew has appealed the conviction to the Fifth Circuit. His court-appointed attorney in the appeal, April Smith, could not be reached Friday afternoon.
Colorado and fellow advocate Courtney Hunter remain in discussions with the City of Dallas about how to improve pedestrian safety, Colorado said.