ELBERT COUNTY, Colo — The trial began Tuesday morning in Elbert County for a man accused of killing the young daughter of a Denver Police officer in a wrong-way crash on Interstate 70 near Limon in 2018
Jared Purdy was driving a pickup truck eastbound on Interstate 70 on Nov. 17, 2018, just before 6 p.m. when another driver - going the wrong way on the highway - crashed into him, a spokesperson for the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) said. His six-year-old daughter Reagan was also in the vehicle.
>The video above aired in 2018, days after the crash.
Purdy suffered serious injuries, CSP said. Reagan was killed in the crash.
Gary Williams was driving the other vehicle, a 2006 Toyota SUV, according to CSP.
An arrest affidavit says investigators noted the roads were icy and wet that evening, and that Williams was traveling westbound on I-70 when he lost control of his vehicle. He was pulling a trailer at the time.
According to court documents, Williams told investigators he regained control of his SUV, but was facing eastbound in the westbound lanes. Although he was facing the wrong way, he told investigators he did not want to attempt to turn around his vehicle and trailer in order to drive the correct way “due to the state of the roads,” court documents said.
Williams told investigators he put his flashers on and started driving the wrong way, looking for a place to cross the center median.
CSP said Purdy tried to avoid being hit by Williams, but the two vehicles collided.
Williams was arrested on investigation of several charges including vehicular homicide, vehicular assault, reckless endangerment, and reckless driving. CSP said he was also transported to a local hospital with injuries.
His trial, which is expected to last four days, began Tuesday in Elbert County.
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