Woman feels lucky to be alive after police chase leads to 8-car pileup on I-70 in Jefferson County
When Carly Williams looks at video of the crash that changed her life, she feels lucky to be alive.
"I've never seen a car accident like this, let alone be in one," she said. "It's scary. I can't believe I was part of it."
The 23-year-old was on her way home to Denver last Tuesday when it happened. Denver police officers were chasing a carjacking suspect down I-70 near 6th Avenue during rush hour.
"I remember seeing all these cop cars going the other direction," Williams told CBS Colorado's Kelly Werthmann.
At first the chase was westbound, until the suspect turned the stolen SUV around in the eastbound lanes. Several police officers did the same, and moments later Williams' car was hit from behind.
"I called my mom immediately because I couldn't get out of my car," Williams explained. "I was screaming."
Williams doesn't remember the impact, but the scene of the 8-car pileup is something she will never forget.
"The back of my car was so crunched, and the glass was broken, and I could see out the back," she recalled. "I see so many police officers yelling at me to 'duck' with massive guns, and I have no idea what just happened."
Williams said someone opened her door and she managed to run to a safe spot in the median. She was eventually loaded into an ambulance with another woman who'd just been pulled out from beneath a truck's tire. That woman was Kathleen, whose husband shared an emotional account of what happened with CBS Colorado the day after the crash.
"I saw her on the stretcher," Williams said. "I, thank God, I wasn't that impaired."
But Williams does have serious injuries of her own, including a severe concussion and separated shoulder. Adding salt to her wounds, Williams said she is stuck footing her mounting medical bills and insurance claims with no help from investigators.
"It's been weird that I was involved in such a crazy car accident, and then, I just get sent along my way, and I don't have answers," she said.
"Are you angry," Werthmann asked.
"I am. I'm frustrated," Williams replied. "I feel like it happened, and they don't care. They're not giving me anything. They're not giving anyone anything."
Williams said she is now working with a personal injury attorney, hoping to get more information and a resolution.
As for the suspected carjacker, 30-year-old Ganeea Trujillo is being held at the Denver jail on several charges including aggravated robbery, aggravated motor vehicle theft and vehicular eluding with injury. Trujillo is due in court on Wednesday morning.