Platteville officer charged for handling of arrest before train-patrol vehicle collision appears in court

Four months after a female suspect was handcuffed and left in the back of a police car that was parked on train tracks in Weld County, the officer who allegedly left her in that car on the tracks was in court.

Platteville police Sgt. Pablo Vazquez appeared before a judge Tuesday morning. He faces charges of reckless endangerment, obstructing a highway or other passageway, careless driving and parking where prohibited.

All of the charges stem from Sept. 17. Vasquez was stopping a 20-year-old woman on reports of road rage and possible possession of a firearm. Yareni Rios-Gonzalez pulled over just beyond train tracks and Vasquez stopped his squad car on the tracks.

Rios-Gonzalez was detained on the tracks, then placed in handcuffs and into the back of Vasquez's police vehicle while he helped search her car.

Moments later a freight train approached and honked its horn repetitively, but by the time Vasquez and another officer allegedly noticed what was about to happen, it was too late. Miraculously Rios-Gonzalez survived the violent crash between the train and the police vehicle but she had to be hospitalized for weeks.

The other officer in charged in the incident was Fort Lupton Officer Jordan Steinke, who faces charges of criminal attempt to commit manslaughter, second degree assault and reckless endangerment -- charges that are arguably more severe than that of Vasquez's.

The judge ordered Vasquez Tuesday to not harass, influence or contact others involved in the court process.