Littleton — A state patrol chase left a fleeing motorcyclist dead in the intersection of Simms Street and Bowles Avenue just as nearby Littleton schools were letting out of the day this afternoon.
The state patrol said the unidentified man sped away from a trooper at Kipling Street and U.S. 285 at about 2:30 p.m. A few miles away the chase ended in the busy intersection, when the cyclist ran a red light and broadsided a white Chevy Suburban. The driver of the SUV was unhurt.
The motorcycle’s license plate was not registered to the vehicle, troopers said.
A hill by a Rite-Aid overlooking the intersection gave dozens of teens from nearby Summit Ridge Middle School a cinematic view. The twisted red racing bike and the covered body of the unidentified motorcycle rider lay on the pavement for two and half hours.
“Kids shouldn’t see that,” said mother Theresa Dennis on the hillside, there to shoo her son home. “I don’t know why it took so long to get that (body) out of here.”
Traffic was detoured around the six-lane intersection for the rest of rush hour, clogged further by the rubberneckers who veered around.
Since the crash involved a police chase, a task force of investigators from agencies across Jefferson and Gilpin counties will investigate the chase and crash, according to the highway patrol.
Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
