EXCLUSIVE: Dad of Leslie Preisser, woman killed in fatal LeClaire crash, speaks out

In an exclusive interview, Our Quad Cities News has learned more about the woman killed in a bar parking lot in LeClaire on Saturday night: She was a daughter, a mother, and a friend.

Leslie Preisser, 44, was killed after being hit by an SUV at Riverview Roadhouse in LeClaire. Police say 36-year-old Molly Ann Vance drove into her, and Preisser was pinned between the SUV and the patio railing.

Police also say Vance was drunk at the time. She’s charged with vehicular homicide and OWI.

Our Quad Cities News spoke with the father of Leslie Preisser exclusively days after the death of his daughter.

“It was one of the worst nights of my life. It will remain so,” said Joel Preisser, father of Leslie Preisser.

Joel Preisser remembers the moment he was told his daughter Leslie had died. Police officers knocked on his door early Sunday morning.

“And they said, ‘You need to brace yourself,'” Joel Priesser said. “They said ‘It’s your daughter Leslie.'”

“And that hit me like I got slapped across the face, because I knew she was gone. I don’t even know how I was still standing after that, but I remember the police had to help me sit down,” he said.

He is still processing his daughter’s death. “I’m just glad she didn’t suffer,” Joel Preisser said. “Everyone has said that she was killed instantly, so I don’t think she felt any pain, and that’s some comfort.”

Leslie Preisser has two daughters: 23-year-old Delainey and 15-year-old Liberty. Joel Preisser says his daughter did everything she could to support them.

“Her kids wanted me to say she did it for all of them,” he said. “She did it all by herself.”

That same mindset translated to Leslie’s friends, as well. “If you were in a jam, she wanted to help you,” Joel Preisser said. “She would go all out. It’s cliché, but they say ‘There’s a person that would give you the shirt off their back,’ and she literally would.”

After a long conversation with Our Quad Cities News about what happened to his daughter in LeClaire, Joel Preisser made sure to highlight the good times he spent with his daughter.

“We were out taking care of the kids one afternoon,” he remembers. “Leslie looked up at me as Delainey was chasing her around the house, and she said ‘Dad, can you help me?’ I said ‘Nope, I’m enjoying this too much.'”

Molly Ann Vance was released on bond Monday from Scott County Jail, and is scheduled to appear Feb. 20 in Scott County Court.