The Colorado State Patrol did not arrive at the scene of a crash that resulted in the loss of two Berthoud teens’ legs until 10 hours after it occurred, a delay that officials say may have hampered the investigation into who was at fault, according to reports obtained by 9News.
Additionally, a paramedic who responded to the scene said the driver charged in the crash helped save the life of one victim. That driver, 17-year-old Michelle Berra, told investigators that she hit the teens because her vision was impaired by a large truck that was following her closely just before the crash.
“We didn’t get the opportunity to do what we do best, and that’s do a good, thorough investigation,” said Colorado State Patrol Master Trooper Ron Watkins, referring to the delay between the time of the crash and when the CSP was finally notified by local authorities.
The case information, including a report that shows the injured teens stopped in a highway lane to change a flat tire, was mailed anonymously to 9News. A lawyer for Berra filed papers Friday alleging that the injured teens, 17-year-old Tyler Carron, the driver of the car that stopped, and his friend 17-year-old Nikko Landeros were “unlawfully drinking and impaired by alcohol.”
The district attorney for Larimer County, who is prosecuting Berra for careless driving and causing injury, released a statement Monday saying the office would review the “new” information.
The night of the accident, Jan. 15, Carron and Landeros, accompanied by three teenage girls, were leaving a school dance, records show.
After getting a flat tire shortly after 11:30 p.m., Carron stopped his Isuzu Trooper on County Line Road 17 to change it. Berra, who was also southbound on the highway driving a Toyota Land Cruiser, struck the teens as they stood behind the vehicle. Both boys’ legs were amputated as a result of the accident.
Because of confusion between Berthoud police and the State Patrol about whether the accident occurred within city limits or in CSP jurisdiction, patrol investigators didn’t get to the scene of the accident until 10 the next morning. By then, the opportunity to gather critical evidence was gone.
But even after taking control, the State Patrol never interviewed some who were at the scene.
One of the two first responders on the scene, Thompson Valley Emergency Medical Services paramedic Aaron Applegate, said in an interview with 9News that neither he nor his partner were interviewed by investigators.
If they had been, Applegate said, investigators would have known that the boys were not pinned between the two vehicles as previously reported but were instead thrown onto the roadway.
Applegate said he also would have told investigators that Berra held one of the boys’ heads while Applegate worked on his injuries. Berra said she was holding Carron’s head.
“She was phenomenal,” Applegate said.
