DUI suspect in deadly Colorado crash that killed young mother to appear in court
A suspected DUI driver accused of killing a young mother in a crash along Interstate 70 in Colorado will be in court this week.
Video captured the moment a suspected DUI driver entered I-70 going the wrong way. Almost immediately, the driver is seen having to dodge oncoming traffic. Video shows that, despite nearly hitting the first car he saw, the driver continued onward.
Cameras from the Apple Inn along the I-70 Frontage Road show eight vehicles narrowly missing the wrong-way driver before it leaves the screen.
Wheat Ridge police spokesperson Alex Rose said before reaching the next exit at Ward Road that the vehicle collided with oncoming traffic, killing a young mother now identified as Jody Chavez.
"Our preliminary investigation indicates that this was a near head-on collision. It was really kind of a driver-side-to-driver-side collision. As you can imagine, that's a massive amount of impact given the direct force of two speeds going head-to-head," Rose said.
Thirty-four-year-old Jian Chen was arrested at the scene. Investigators believe he entered the interstate using the Kipling exit ramp, which is lined with wrong-way signs, before heading west on the eastbound lanes of I-70.
According to arrest documents, Chen told first responders he thought he was in Oklahoma, where his license was issued. Firefighters and police both reported the smell of alcohol on his breath.
"In Wheat Ridge in 2024, which is very concerning, is a 62% increase in DUI crashes and calls for DUI crashes in our jurisdiction. We can control our enforcement on the back end but what we can't control is people's behavior before they get behind the wheel of a car," Rose said.
Chen will return to court for filing of charges including vehicular homicide, driving under the influence of alcohol, driving a vehicle on the wrong side of a divided highway and failure to present evidence of insurance.
