AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — Students gathered at the scene of a fatal crash Monday in Aurora to remember the young victim they called a friend.
They gathered at the crash site outside a Sprout grocery store near East Alameda and South Chambers Road.
Police say two drivers were street racing when one of the vehicles lost control just before 1 a.m. Saturday. The Aurora Police Department said two cars were racing through the streets when the driver of the BMW failed to negotiate a turn. The police statement stated that the car was traveling at a high speed and left the road.
Yolanda Hernandez told FOX31 she was in the front passenger seat when the car crashed.
“I was just closing my eyes. I wasn’t thinking about it. I was just closing my eyes,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez said that the young man who died was also a passenger in the car and that he was like a brother to her.
As of late Monday evening, the identity of the victim who died had not been revealed.
Aurora Police say the driver of the vehicle that crashed, 19-year-old Edwin Rosales Sandoval, had a prior DUI and a revoked license and should not have been driving. The police department announced Monday that Rosales Sandoval now faces charges including vehicular homicide, reckless driving, driving under the influence and driving with a revoked license.
Since October of last year, Aurora police say there have been 1,130 crashes involving drivers 19 or younger. Of these cases, 34 were related to drunk driving and 122 were related to speeding. However, this is the first fatal drunk driving crash in Aurora involving a driver under 20 this year.
“We can prevent a lot of these incidents from happening. This particular incident was reckless and irresponsible,” said Kevin Barnes, Aurora Police Deputy Chief of Special Operations.
Eighteenth Judicial District Attorney Amy Baden says a number of DAs are working to propose legislation to tighten DUI laws that could focus on drivers with prior DUI accidents.
“I would like to see the penalties increased for that. In particular, we’re looking at ways to make vehicular homicide either a crime of violence that would increase the penalties or add some aggravating factor one way or another,” Baden said.
Returning to the memorial, Hernandez says she feels lucky to be alive. She believes her seat belt helped save her life.
Sandoval, the driver of the car, now faces a number of charges related to the fatal crash including vehicular homicide, driving under the influence and driving while license revoked.