Tennis Star Killed by Suspected Drunk Driver Months After Family Lost Home in Palisades Fire

• Braun Levi, 18, was struck by a vehicle around 1 a.m. on Sunday, May 4
• Jenia Belt, 33, was arrested on suspicion of DUI and murder
• Levi was killed just a few months after his family home was destroyed during the Palisades Fire

A high school tennis star was killed after he was hit by a vehicle driven by an alleged drunk driver.

When officers arrived around 1 a.m. Sunday, May 4, they found Braun Levi, 18, in the street next to a vehicle along Sepulveda Boulevard in Manhattan Beach.

He was taken to the hospital where he died from his injuries, according to a Manhattan Beach Police Department press release.

Levi was “a four-year Varsity starter for Loyola Tennis and cemented himself as one of the most accomplished student-athletes in program history, having just won his 4th consecutive league championship on April 29^th,” Loyola High School’s athletics department posted on Facebook. “The ultimate team captain, Levi was a true leader throughout our campus serving as a member of the Student Council, a senior Big Brother, Kairos retreat leader and volleyball team manager, to name a few.

“His lovable personality, infectious smile, and boundless energy made him a beloved member of the Loyola community. He was a true Man for and With Others, and we will miss him dearly.”

According to the Los Angeles Times, Levi was killed just a few months after his family’s home was destroyed during the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles County in January.

“His family lost their home and had relocated to the South Bay,” Jamal Adams, Principal and President-elect of Loyola High School of Los Angeles, tells PEOPLE. “In the short five months of 2025, their family’s been through quite a bit.”

According to Adams, after the wildfires destroyed the homes of many students, he stepped up — despite losing his own home — to care for others. He helped create a peer-to-peer counseling space for students who had been displaced and, in March, worked with his best friend and the school administration to organize an overnight retreat for those affected.

“It was just to be in community,” says Adams, “to talk about their feelings and the emotions of losing their homes.”

In everything he did, Adams says, he put others first. “He was a shining example of caring for other people — even in the midst of going through his own personal situation.” 

He was scheduled to graduate next month and had plans to go to the University of Virginia in September, per the Times.

At a prayer vigil on Sunday night, Loyola High School Assistant Principal Paul Jordan described the teen as “a friend and an inspiration to me. He was a friend to all who knew him, and we are all better for having known him. Braun loved his family, he loved Loyola, he loved his Palisades community, and he loved all of you, his fellow Cubs,” per ABC7.

Police said Jenia Belt, 33, was arrested on May 4 and is facing charges of driving while under the influence and murder. It’s not immediately clear if she has entered a plea or retained an attorney.