Colorado's yearly traffic fatalities are on the rise and among the most careless types of incidents are hit-and-run crashes, where a driver leaves an injured — sometimes fatally — person behind at the scene.
Denver7 is going in-depth on hit-and-run crashes around the metro area today and you can watch our coverage of this important issue tonight on Denver7 or our streaming channels. Colorado's yearly traffic fatalities are on the rise and among the most careless types of incidents are hit-and-run crashes, where a driver leaves an injured — sometimes fatally — person behind at the scene.
Throughout the year, police departments and sheriff's offices around the state ask for the public's help solving these crimes, which includes offering cash rewards through Crime Stoppers. In Colorado, a hit-and-run crash that causes non-serious injuries is punishable by 10 days to a year in jail and/or a fine of $300 up to $1,000. If the person is seriously injured, the driver faces a Class 4 felony punishable by two to six years in prison and/or a fine up to $500,000. If the person is killed in the crash, the driver faces a Class 3 felony with four to 12 years in prison and/or a fine up to $750,000. It is against the law to leave the scene of any crash, even if nobody is injured. If you witness a hit-and-run, either use your phone or try to memorize as much as you can about the suspect vehicle or the driver . Then call 911. Authorities urge witnesses not to pursue a fleeing suspect and instead tend to anybody who was injured. READ MORE: What's behind the dramatic rise in Colorado traffic deaths? The stats, trends and what needs to change The entries below detail 2023 hit-and-run crashes around the Denver metro area where at least one person was injured or killed. This list does not include crashes of solely property damage.Denver7 used police departments' and sheriff's offices' social media and press releases, along with our own reporting, to collect the list below. Reach out to newstips@denver7.com if you know of an injury hit-and-run crash in the Denver metro area from January 2023 to include here. Denver officers investigated a hit-and-run crash involving a motorist and four pedestrians around 11:40 p.m. Four people were transported to a hospital with serious injuries. The driver fled the scene. Police are investigating this crash as an assault. During the investigation, police identified the suspect as Orlando Martinez, Jr., 22. Police said he allegedly struck the pedestrians"intentionally following a verbal altercation." He faces four counts of investigation of attempted murder, two counts of first-degree assault causing serious bodily injury and two counts of second-degree assault.Around 1:40 p.m. on Jan. 12, the driver of a dark-colored Chevrolet Camaro was traveling westbound on California Street and struck a pedestrian who was crossing at 22nd Street. The pedestrian was seriously injured.Jan. 13 | E. Colfax Avenue and N. Grant Street Denver police are searching for a driver and vehicle involved in a serious hit-and-run crash on Jan. 13 around 1:18 a.m. Police said the driver was headed west on Colfax just east of Grant Street and struck a pedestrian in the roadway. The driver fled the scene. The suspect vehicle may have minor damage to the passenger side of the vehicle. It is described as a small, dark SUV, similar to an Acura RDX.On Jan. 21 around 2:09 a.m., the driver of a black Nissan sedan was traveling northbound on I-25 and struck a silver truck traveling in the same direction, police said. The truck collided with the center barrier wall and the driver was seriously injured.A Medina Alert was issued for a white 2011 Chevy Cruz with temporary plate 443-8404 that was involved in a hit-and-run crash north of Cheesman Park around 6:30 p.m. The victim was seriously injured.Around 7:35 p.m. on Jan. 24, a driver crashed into a bus stop at Colfax and Moline, striking two people who were waiting for the bus. The driver then ran from the scene and has not been located. The two victims were pinned between the vehicle and the bus stop shelter, according to Aurora Fire Rescue. One of them was transported to a hospital with serious injuries. The other person did not require medical treatment. The driver was described as a Black man who was wearing a hoodie. He was last seen running south from the location.The driver of a large SUV hit an older man at E. 19th Avenue and Peoria Street just before 7 a.m. on Jan. 26, Aurora police said. When officers arrived at the scene, they found a man lying in the roadway with life-threatening injuries.The suspect vehicle was found nearby but the driver had left the scene. Based on the initial investigation, Aurora police believe that the driver of the SUV was headed southbound on Peoria Street as the pedestrian was crossing at the E. 19th Avenue intersection. The driver then struck the man and fled, police said.A Medina Alert was issued on Jan. 25 after a suspect in a white 2011 Dodge Ram 1500 allegedly struck a pedestrian at S. Broadway and W. Floyd Avenue, according to Aurora police. The pedestrian's leg was injured in the crash. Based on the investigation, the Englewood Police Department said the suspect driver was initially involved in a minor crash with another car, but when the drivers started to exchange information, the suspect fled from the scene, running over the victim in the process. Authorities said they believe the car has damage to the front grill and windshield, and does not have license plates. It had a blue tarp or black tonneau cover on the truck bed. Authorities also said they believe the pickup truck was stolen out of Adams County.Around 5 p.m. that day, the Medina Alert was canceled after police located the Dodge, but the driver remains at-large.Around 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 22, officers in Westminster responded to Highway 36 and Federal Boulevard after receiving a call about a pedestrian in the roadway. Shortly afterward, they received a call that a man was lying in the road and may have been hit by a car.Police determined that the vehicle that hit the man was possibly a black 2016-2019 Chevy Silverado, with possible heavy right front-end damage. On Jan. 23, police said thanks to a tip from the public, they had arrested the suspect, who was identified as Kenneth Wade Taylor, 39.Jan. 1 | Interstate 25 between E. 144th Avenue and Highway 7 A woman was struck and killed in a hit-and-run along I-25 after the rideshare vehicle she was in left her and her friends on the interstate shortly after midnight on New Year's Day, according to Thornton police. A preliminary investigation into the deadly crash revealed the woman and a group of friends had been traveling in a rideshare vehicle after a party when she became ill. The driver pulled over along I-25 between E. 144th Avenue and Highway 7 before the passengers ended the ride. Police said the woman then walked out into the roadway a short time later and was sideswiped by a dark truck that continued driving. Another car then struck the pedestrian while she was lying on the roadway, Thornton police said. That second driver stopped. The woman died of her injuries. On Jan. 2, the driver of the dark truck came in to speak with investigators and was arrested for hit-and-run involving death, police said. He was identified as 33-year-old Adam Wooley, of Frederick. He was formally charged on Jan. 17. Wooley told police there were no cars around him and thought “someone had thrown something at his truck,” arresting documents show.Greenwood VillageArvada The Follow UpWhat do you want Denver7 to follow up on? Is there a story, topic or issue you want us to revisit? Let us know with the contact form below.
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