Adams County Commander Sentenced To Probation, Community Service For Causing Fatal Crash
BRIGHTON, Colo. (CBS4) - John Paul Bitterman, a commander with the Adams County Sheriff's Office, was sentenced Friday to two years of probation and 250 hours of community service for his role in a crash near Bennett last year that killed one person and injured another.
Bitterman, 44, was off duty the day of the accident but responded to a call on his own, according to prosecutors. He was not "running code," or using his unmarked patrol vehicle's lights or sirens, before the March 2019 crash.
Bitterman ran the stop sign at East 88th Avenue and Colorado Highway 79, heading westbound, about seven miles north of Bennett. Evidence showed he was attempting to log on to his vehicle's computer system before the entering the intersection, but also slowed slightly and then floored the accelerator just before impact.
Bitterman's vehicle collided a Nissan Murano driven by Maria Del Refugio Corral Saenz, 58. She had two passengers on board, Eira Saenz Sandoval, 85, and Sandoval's daughter. Sandoval was killed and his daughter seriously injured.
Copter4 found a sign at the intersection memorializing a previous fatality crash from only months earlier.
At the conclusion of a two-day jury trial last month, Bitterman was found guilty of two careless driving charges.
Deputy District Attorney Danielle Warly told the court, "Maria, with a broken sternum and a broken leg, screaming for help, had to watch her mother die. The defendant swore an oath to protect the public and hold others accountable for their actions. Shouldn't those same standards apply to him?"
Judge Leroy Kirby added, "You thought you could make it through. We all make mistakes. You are a commander in the Adams County Sheriff's Office. I would hope that police officers, of all people, would show more care in what you do. I see police cars zipping around me with no lights on all the time. They think because they are in a police car, I can do whatever I want. That is not true."
