DENVER — A car crash that left a woman dead and her passenger seriously hurt spawned lawsuits this week against the driver accused of causing the wreck and a tavern where he allegedly drank beforehand.
Katharina Rothman, a 42-year-old mother, was working as an Uber driver when, police said, a speeding driver ran a red light and smashed into the Tesla she was driving early the morning of Jan. 22, 2023.
Rothman died at the scene, and the customer she was transporting, Jason Blanch, suffered a traumatic brain injury, according to his attorney, Kaitlin Nares.
Both suits seek unspecified damages from the driver accused of crashing into the Tesla, Coban Porter, and the Crimson and Gold Tavern. The suits allege that workers at the Tavern served Coban Porter even though he was in “a visibly intoxicated state.”
Coban Porter is the younger brother of Nuggets star Michael Porter Jr. At the time of the crash, Coban Porter was a member of the University of Denver men’s basketball team.
He faces criminal charges of vehicular homicide and vehicular assault.
According to Colorado Secretary of State business records, Crimson and Gold Tavern is operated by Potter Restaurant Group. Christopher Potter, identified in those documents as the representative of the company, could not be reached Monday for comment.
Coban Porter also could not be reached.
Attorney Whitney Traylor, a 9NEWS legal analyst, said it’s common that incidents involving injuries or death spark both criminal and civil cases.
“It happens, actually, quite often,” Traylor said. “This case does really illustrate how one set of events, one circumstance or one factual situation can lead to both a civil case and a criminal prosecution.”
The criminal case may wrap up soon – Porter has a Feb. 8 hearing for a possible disposition, a description that suggests there could be a plea deal.
The civil cases are just getting started, but Nares, who represents Blanch – the injured Uber customer – said what happens in the criminal case will play into them.
“The facts that come from the criminal case very much will be relevant to our civil case,” she said.
The suits seek unspecified damages to be determined at trial.
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