Reports of street racing continue to rise in Denver metro area
As street racing concerns grow there's a renewed focus on how to get these dangerous drivers off the street. Things turned deadly on Interstate 70 over Father's Day weekend when driver John Jaros attempted to get around racers and was shot and killed with his wife and three children in the car.
A closer look at the reports made online at ReportStreetRacing.com shows while often tied to metro area roads street racing is more widespread with more tips coming in on that site from more than 50 cities and counties across the state.
"This is a large-scale problem that is going on beyond just one city," Colorado State Trooper Josh Lewis said.
And while the problem has been around for years, it surged in 2020 when fewer people were on the roads.
Denver police say in 2019 they had 134 911 calls that contain street racing or other keywords. In 2020 that number jumped to 505 calls.
"I think because of the more severe crimes that are coming from it, it is becoming more noticeable," Sgt. Joel Hopper said.
Sgt. Hopper heads up a unit within the Jefferson County Sheriff's office tasked with stopping those drivers long before they hit excessive speeds.
Work that starts with help from the community.
"Report Street racing went live at the end of 2020," Trooper Lewis said.
The Colorado state patrol helps run the site which has now become a resource now for dozens of law enforcement agencies.
In less than two years they've had more than 3,000 reports, the majority on Sunday nights between 10 and 11.
"We are still fighting it every single day, so the idea of sharing information is very beneficial getting that information from multiple sources whether it be law enforcement sharing it with one another or the general public," Trooper Lewis said.
In Jefferson County, Sgt. Hopper says their proactive operations targeting street racing are helping and less street racing, means less risk to the community.
"Our biggest concern is public safety we don't want innocent civilians getting caught up in the ongoings with the street racers," Sgt. Hopper said.
In addition to sharing the online report information, there's also a street racing working group that includes multiple law enforcement agencies and insurance companies working together as well.