The man who crashed into a Visionworks store at the Greeley Mall on July 10, killing two people, crashed because of a medical condition and will not be charged.
The Weld County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday that investigators determined Peter Wesley Lain, 30, of Evans, had “an unforeseeable blackout due to an acute medical condition” before the crash. There was no criminal conduct.
Further information about his medical condition was not released.
Kimberly Fletcher, 32, of Greeley, a customer in the store, and Jennifer Hudgens, 23, a Visionworks employee and University of Northern Colorado student, died in the accident.
Witnesses had told police that Lain appeared to be unconscious when his Chevrolet pickup drove through the plate-glass window at Visionworks.
Fletcher’s husband, Tony Fletcher, was a security guard at the mall and was one of the first to respond to the crash. The Fletchers’ 9-year-old son, Zachary, also was in the store at the time. He was treated at North Colorado Medical Center for cuts from flying glass and released.
Tony Fletcher told 9News Friday night that he was actually relieved that his wife’s death was an accident and nothing malicious.
Hudgens was from Pueblo and was a student at the University of Northern Colorado.
Her father, Robert Hudgens, is a captain with the Pueblo Fire Department.
Hudgens told 9News that the lack of charges was “somewhat of a disappointment.”
“I realize that medical things happen to people on a first-time basis, having been in the medical field myself for 30-some years,” he said.
“We still grieve for the other family in Greeley that lost a mom. You know we feel for them and we realize that right now there is nothing we can do to change that decision from the DA’s Office because it is their investigation.
“It’s just kind of saddening on our end.”
Earlier this month, Jennifer Hudgens’ mother, Cheryl Hudgens, told The Denver Post she held no grudge against Lain.
“I’m wrestling with emotions. One minute I am angry at God, and the next I’m thankful that I gave birth to this beautiful person,” she said then. “It is my privilege and pleasure to have had her with me for 23 short years.”
Lain has not talked to media since the accident. He had previously issued a statement through his attorney, David Japha, that said Lain, his mother and his father were saddened “by the profound loss of these two young women,” and, “They don’t have a ready answer on what happened.”
Robert Hudgens told 9News that he “really had no idea” what he would say to Lain if he had a chance to talk to him.
He said the past few weeks had been tough.
“But we’ve got a very close-knit group of friends and family that have taken care of us through this and they’re still helping,” Hudgens said. “And for that we can’t thank them enough.”
