Massive 28 vehicle wreck on I-70, 4 dead

[rickmastfan67]

Truck driver avoids runaway ramp and crashes into stopped traffic from another wreck.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbgUh2mHLIo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1r58hioHKQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=watGiEAkrk8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4J0sPrkfpc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18bp4u6RtH4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCZID209s3o

[thenetwork]

It was a tragic event.  There were only 4 fatalities -- it could've been much worse.

The local Denver stations were reporting this morning that the trucking company he worked for has had numerous violations and some other 'issues' with drivers in the recent past. 

I also heard there was a GoFundMe account to help pay for the truck drivers bond.  WTF???

[Brian556]

It was a tragic event.  There were only 4 fatalities -- it could've been much worse.

The local Denver stations were reporting this morning that the trucking company he worked for has had numerous violations and some other 'issues' with drivers in the recent past. 

I also heard there was a GoFundMe account to help pay for the truck drivers bond.  WTF???

It really pisses me off when people start GoFundMe accounts for those who cause accidents

[thenetwork]

It was a tragic event.  There were only 4 fatalities -- it could've been much worse.

The local Denver stations were reporting this morning that the trucking company he worked for has had numerous violations and some other 'issues' with drivers in the recent past. 

I also heard there was a GoFundMe account to help pay for the truck drivers bond.  WTF???

It really pisses me off when people start GoFundMe accounts for those who cause accidents

I gotta shake my head in confusion for those who put up roadside memorials for a person who was killed in single-car accidents because the individual did something stupid (driving under the influence, reckless driving, using cell phone,...) but did not harm anyone else.

"See where that stuffed teddy bear is with the cross over there?  That's where my drunk dumb ass neighbor did 120 into the telephone pole".

[roadman65]

Truckers today have no common sense!  I deal with some at the toll plaza and many of them are totally ignorant of roads despite they drive them for a living.  Its not pleasant what I see, but its a miracle that more stuff like this does not happen.

[Verlanka]

It really pisses me off when people start GoFundMe accounts for those who cause accidents

I agree.

[renegade]

If that was indeed the truck involved in the accident, the driver's legal problems began when he passed the runaway truck ramp shown in the last video.  If he had used that ramp, he would have been another nameless, faceless dumbass facing a huge tow bill instead of four counts of manslaughter.  I expect he will do some prison time as a result

[Mark68]

The company the driver was working for is certainly no stranger to safety violations:

https://www.9news.com/article/news/investigations/trucking-company-connected-to-i-70-crash-has-history-of-safety-issues-involving-brakes/73-18e8ce1f-5486-4dc8-828c-e52b3fdd6239

"Online inspection reports from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reveal 30 violations connected to Castellano 03 trucking since late 2017.
At least 10 violations include issues like "brake tubing and hose adequacy"  and "clamp or Roto type brake out-of-adjustment," the reports say."

[The Ghostbuster]

How long might the truck driver spend in prison? I would expect a hefty sentence.

[thspfc]

This is terrible. It's hard to believe a person who drives for a living would overlook the dangers of driving his out of control truck straight into heavy traffic. Really, 23 year old drivers should stay off tricky roads like that part of I-70. Those jobs should go to more experienced drivers.

[keithvh]

The I-70 descent is well marked and well signed all the way from Idaho Springs to the C-470 interchange.

I think what a lot of people don't appreciate --- I-70 takes awhile after C-470 to truly flatten out.  It continues to have a non-insignificant downhill descent all the way from C-470 to C-58 (Golden Expressway).  The I-70/C-470 interchange is at 6180 feet.  The I-70/Denver West interchange (where the accident occurred) is at 5680 feet.

That's another 500 vertical feet over 3 horizontal miles.  Only a 3%-ish grade, but it's still downhill. 

Makes it even more important for trucks to use that runaway truck ramp up the hill if they can.  It's the only runaway truck ramp and there's more downhill than explicitly advertised ahead.

[nexus73]

This is terrible. It's hard to believe a person who drives for a living would overlook the dangers of driving his out of control truck straight into heavy traffic. Really, 23 year old drivers should stay off tricky roads like that part of I-70. Those jobs should go to more experienced drivers.

If companies paid those who drive for a living a better wage as well as the mechanics, their accident rate would go down.  Turnover rates run in the 100% territory for many of the major carriers.  Management forgets the most valuable capital is human capital.  Truck drivers, as opposed to nuts behind the wheel, do not grow on trees! 

Rick

[oscar]

If companies paid those who drive for a living a better wage as well as the mechanics, their accident rate would go down.  Turnover rates run in the 100% territory for many of the major carriers.  Management forgets the most valuable capital is human capital.  Truck drivers, as opposed to nuts behind the wheel, do not grow on trees!

Neither does the cash earned by trucking companies. What makes you think the companies can afford to pay the higher wages? The turnover rate you cite suggests it's not just the shakiest operations that are living on the edge, financially.

[theroadwayone]

I think 15 years per count is a decent enough sentence. He won't get out till he's in his 80s.

[thspfc]

I think there's an ancient thread on this crash, but I couldn't find it. There's been a lot of clamoring for the sentence to be shortened, including truckers going on strike.

[tolbs17]

Well Ryan Stone got sentenced to 160 years in prison for carjacking several people in the same location back on March 13, 2014.

[SectorZ]

Are truckers seriously planning striking over this?

I get that the sentence may be aggressive, but we have video proof that this guy willfully avoided a runaway truck lane after he was losing control of the truck. That's when an accident leaps a bit beyond being an accident.

(Notwithstanding that very few crashes are "accidents" anyways).

[zzcarp]

Are truckers seriously planning striking over this?

I get that the sentence may be aggressive, but we have video proof that this guy willfully avoided a runaway truck lane after he was losing control of the truck. That's when an accident leaps a bit beyond being an accident.

(Notwithstanding that very few crashes are "accidents" anyways).

I've not heard anything locally about strikes. Most truck drivers know the difficulties of driving in the mountains and the requirement of specialized training to drive those routes.

The 110 year sentence was due to mandatory sentencing laws, and even the judge didn't want to sentence him for that long. Of course I have a friend in prison who got 17 years for burglary and assault where nothing was stolen and no one was hurt at all, so maybe the sentence is "appropriate" for 4 people killed in the context of our current judicial system. That said, I think 20 years is appropriate for the driver's willful negligence. I wouldn't be surprised if Gov. Polis commutes it to a more reasonable sentence after any appeals are done.

[Brandon]

I think there's an ancient thread on this crash, but I couldn't find it. There's been a lot of clamoring for the sentence to be shortened, including truckers going on strike.

The big problem is that these are mandatory minimum sentences.  Even the sentencing judge though it was too long.
https://reason.com/2021/12/15/he-was-sentenced-to-110-years-in-prison-for-causing-fatal-traffic-accident-colorado-judge-mandatory-sentencing/

[ran4sh]

Yeah, there may be truck driver opposition but the strong opposition comes from people who are against the idea of mandatory minimum sentences in general. Logically one would think that, if someone doesn't deserve the mandatory minimum (i.e. a lower sentence would be appropriate) then they should just be ruled not guilty, but in practice that's not what happens.

[ilpt4u]

I believe this is the original post about this incident: https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=24919.0

I'll let the Mods decide if this should be merged into that thread

AFA the sentencing...If it is too long, let the Lawyers deal with it on Appeal. People died because a Trucker didn't use the available runaway truck ramps with failing breaks coming out of the Rockies into Denver

[rickmastfan67]

I believe this is the original post about this incident: https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=24919.0

I’ll let the Mods decide if this should be merged into that thread

AFA the sentencing…If it is too long, let the Lawyers deal with it on Appeal. People died because a Trucker didn’t use the available runaway truck ramps with failing breaks coming out of the Rockies into Denver

Now merged.

[SD Mapman]

I've not heard anything locally about strikes.

Not sure if it would really be a strike, but more of a embargo on Colorado per the TikTok posts in this article: https://www.deseret.com/2021/12/20/22846630/truck-drivers-boycott-colorado-after-driver-sentenced-to-110-years-in-prison
Now, I'm not sure if these TikTok posts are legit ("Believe everything you see on the Internet" - Abraham Lincoln) or just trying to incite controversy.

[KCRoadFan]

I'm guessing that he drove the truck with the faulty brakes because the company wanted the load delivered by a certain time, and that if he had the truck fixed, he might have been fired or at least lost that day's pay. Or so I have heard.

In that case, it's at least partly the company's fault, and he should be let off - or at least have the sentence reduced. What do you think?

[Rothman]

I'm guessing that he drove the truck with the faulty brakes because the company wanted the load delivered by a certain time, and that if he had the truck fixed, he might have been fired or at least lost that day's pay. Or so I have heard.

In that case, it's at least partly the company's fault, and he should be let off - or at least have the sentence reduced. What do you think?

No.  The driver should be held accountable for incompetence shown in the video.  Yes, the sentence was too harsh.

I also don't think we know if the truck had faulty brakes from the beginning.

That said, the company should be held accoutable for putting an undertrained and inexperienced driver on that route.

Has any action been taken against his employer?