Brighton Vehicular Assault and Homicide Defense Lawyer

Colorado draws a hard line between a traffic accident and a crime, and the difference often comes down to how a prosecutor reads a single moment. Brighton vehicular assault and homicide defense requires someone who understands not just the criminal statutes, but how Adams County prosecutors build these cases, what evidence actually drives them, and where the factual and legal gaps are that a defense can work through. Reid DeChant has handled serious felony cases across Adams County and the Denver metro, including cases built on reconstructed crash evidence, blood test results, and contested accounts of what happened in the seconds before impact.

What Separates Vehicular Assault from Vehicular Homicide Under Colorado Law

These two charges share the same foundation but differ in outcome. Vehicular assault under C.R.S. 18-3-205 applies when a driver causes serious bodily injury to another person while driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or while driving in a reckless manner. The charge is a class 4 or class 5 felony depending on whether impairment is alleged. Vehicular homicide under C.R.S. 18-3-106 applies when someone dies as a result of the same conduct. A DUI-based vehicular homicide is a class 3 felony, one of the more serious classifications in Colorado’s sentencing grid.

The distinction matters at every stage. With assault charges, the prosecution must prove that the surviving victim suffered injury meeting the legal definition of “serious bodily injury,” which requires more than pain or minor harm. Broken bones, disfigurement, and injuries creating a substantial risk of death qualify. With homicide, causation is the central issue. The government must connect the driver’s alleged impairment or recklessness to the death itself, not merely show that a death occurred and the defendant was behind the wheel. These are different evidentiary problems, and they call for different defense strategies.

How Adams County Prosecutes These Cases

Brighton sits in Adams County, and the Adams County District Attorney’s office treats vehicular homicide and serious vehicular assault cases as high-priority prosecutions. These cases typically involve law enforcement reconstructionists, toxicology experts, and in fatal cases, a significant investigative investment before charges are even filed. By the time a defendant learns they are being charged, the government may have months of preparation behind them.

Crashes on U.S. 85, E-470, and the stretch of I-76 running through the county are common sources of these cases. Highway patrol and Adams County Sheriff investigators who respond to serious crashes are trained to begin collecting criminal evidence from the first moments on scene. Blood draws at the hospital, interviews of witnesses and passengers before anyone is told a criminal investigation is underway, and data pulled from the vehicle’s event data recorder can all find their way into the prosecution’s case. The speed with which this evidence is gathered is one of the reasons defense preparation cannot wait.

Adams County courts have seen cases where the same crash results in civil wrongful death litigation and a parallel criminal prosecution. The two proceedings run on different timelines and different standards, but they can intersect in ways that create risk for the defendant. An attorney who handles only one side of that equation may miss important strategic considerations.

The Evidence That Drives These Prosecutions and Where It Can Be Challenged

Blood alcohol and drug test results are often the spine of an impairment-based vehicular homicide or assault charge. Colorado’s express consent law means that drivers suspected of DUI are required to submit to chemical testing, and most defendants in these cases have a blood draw on record. But a blood test result is not self-explanatory evidence. The draw must occur within the required timeframe, the sample must be handled according to chain-of-custody rules, and the laboratory analysis must meet scientific standards. Reid has focused training and experience on fighting impaired driving charges, including the chemical testing process, and that work carries directly into vehicular assault and homicide cases where the impairment theory depends on those results.

Accident reconstruction is the other major evidentiary pillar. Prosecutors frequently retain experts who use physical evidence at the scene, skid marks, vehicle damage patterns, and data recorder readouts to offer opinions about speed, braking, and driver behavior. These opinions are only as reliable as the data they are built on. Road conditions, vehicle maintenance history, the behavior of other drivers, and environmental factors at the moment of the crash can all complicate a reconstruction narrative that looks clean on paper. Cross-examining reconstruction experts requires understanding both the science and its limits, and being prepared to put forward an alternative account supported by the physical record.

Recklessness is its own contested question in cases not built on impairment. Colorado courts have drawn lines between negligent driving and the conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that recklessness requires. Not every crash that results in serious injury or death reflects reckless conduct in the legal sense. That distinction can determine whether someone faces a felony or something significantly less serious, and it is a line worth fighting for.

What a Felony Conviction Actually Means for Someone in Brighton

A class 3 felony vehicular homicide conviction carries a presumptive sentencing range of four to twelve years in the Colorado Department of Corrections, with the possibility of extraordinary circumstances pushing that range higher. Class 4 felony vehicular assault under the DUI theory carries two to six years in the presumptive range. These are prison sentences, not county jail, and they are accompanied by mandatory parole periods after release.

Beyond the sentence, a felony conviction in Adams County follows a person in ways that matter long after they leave custody. Colorado’s record sealing rules treat class 3 and class 4 felonies differently than lower-level offenses, and vehicular homicide convictions are not eligible for sealing. For someone working in transportation, healthcare, or any profession subject to licensing, a felony conviction can end a career. For someone who is not a U.S. citizen, a crime involving serious bodily injury or death can trigger immigration consequences including removal proceedings. These downstream effects are part of why the fight at the criminal case level carries so much weight.

Questions Worth Asking Before Any Decision Is Made

Is it possible to be charged with vehicular homicide even if the crash was not my fault?

Colorado law requires a causal connection between the driver’s impairment or recklessness and the death or injury. If another driver’s negligence was the true cause of the crash, that goes directly to the element of causation and is a legitimate defense issue. It does not automatically defeat a charge, but it is a factual argument that can be developed and presented.

What happens if I refused the blood or breath test?

Refusal under Colorado’s express consent law results in automatic license revocation and can be used against you as evidence in a criminal proceeding. However, it does not mean the government has no chemical evidence. Hospitals sometimes draw blood for medical purposes, and that blood can potentially be obtained by law enforcement through a warrant. The refusal question is more complicated than a simple yes or no.

How long does a vehicular homicide case typically take in Adams County?

These cases often involve significant pre-trial litigation over evidence, expert witnesses, and motions to suppress. It is common for a serious felony case to take a year or more from filing to resolution, depending on how many contested issues arise and whether the case goes to trial.

Can the case be resolved without going to trial?

Many felony cases resolve through negotiation, but the strength of any negotiated outcome depends on the quality of the defense developed before any offer is made. A prosecutor willing to reduce a class 3 felony to a lesser charge is responding to the strength of the defense case, not to a request made in a vacuum. Thorough preparation is what creates leverage.

What is the role of the event data recorder in these cases?

Modern vehicles record data in the moments before and during a crash, including speed, braking inputs, throttle position, and seatbelt use. This data is often downloaded by law enforcement at the scene or shortly after. It can support the prosecution’s account or, depending on the facts, create complications for it. Either way, it is typically a central piece of evidence in any serious crash investigation.

Does being charged with vehicular assault mean my license is automatically suspended?

An underlying DUI charge that accompanies a vehicular assault will trigger DMV proceedings separate from the criminal case. Colorado’s DMV process has its own timeline and procedures, and the two proceedings require separate attention. Reid has successfully challenged DMV express consent actions in Adams County, which is directly relevant when a vehicular assault charge includes an impairment allegation.

Talking to a Brighton Vehicular Homicide Defense Attorney

The gap between a devastating accident and a felony prison sentence is not as wide as it should be under Colorado law, which is why defense preparation in these cases cannot wait for the prosecution to make the first move. DeChant Law works with clients facing vehicular assault and homicide charges in Brighton and throughout Adams County, bringing the same tenacity to serious crash cases that Reid has applied across the full range of criminal defense work in this region. If you or someone close to you is under investigation or has been charged following a serious crash, reaching out to a Brighton vehicular homicide defense attorney who knows this court system is the most direct path toward understanding what your options actually are.