PARKER, Colo. — A weekend spent at home surrounded by his family and dogs sounded great to Jayden Smith. His mom picked him up from school at the University of Colorado Boulder and the two were headed eastbound on U.S. 36 when they witnessed gunfire between a driver and Colorado State Patrol (CSP) trooper.
"I mean it's not something you really ever think you're going to get into," Smith explained. "I think on the news, we see this kind of thing occasionally, we get kind of desensitized, but then when it happens to you, it’s a big overload, you don’t know what to do."
During the press conference on Saturday, CSP Col. Matthew Packard said CSP Cpl. Tye Simcox was doing paperwork in the center median of the highway when a passing driver fired multiple shots aiming at Simcox.
"As the vehicle continued eastbound, it pulled over onto the left shoulder, a male suspect exited from that Chevrolet pickup truck and began to engage our trooper again," Packard said. "Our trooper exited his patrol car, and immediately began to return fire. He deployed his rifle that was issued to him and was able to, strike and ultimately kill the suspect that was attacking him."
Smith described hearing a weird sound "like a whizzing" and realizing the terrifying scene through which they were driving.
"I think in reality, it probably lasted like five to 10 second, but it feels like a lifetime," Smith said. "It's a terrifying thing and you don't really know what's going to happen next, you know, a bullet could come through the windshield, it’s just it's a scary situation."
That moment became even scarier when the two realized their car had been hit.
"Then we heard a ding on the car, I thought it hit the windshield, but there, I think two bullets that hit the car," Smith explained. "We have two dents, and then we have something in the tire and my mom said she felt it in the side door. The whole car kind of shook, and then we realized we're like, 'Oh, the car just got hit by a bullet.'"
Simcox was shot in the arm, according to Packard. Simcox was able to make it back to his vehicle where he applied a tourniquet and waited for help to arrive. He was then transported to Denver Health Medical Center and after was released to go home.
Smith and his mom were able to make the drive back home, but now are left processing what they saw and heard along with a car showing the impact of what they witnessed.
"I think if there's anything to take away from this, it's just it's really easy to get desensitized to this type of thing because you see it a lot, but it is very real, and it's very scary when it happens," Smith said.
Packard stressed the courageous and swift response of Simcox.
"He acted incredibly, and I don't use the term heroically lightly, but that's exactly what he did today. He looked at the face of evil and responded appropriately and won," Packard said.
Smith acknowledged the actions of Simcox and recognized there could have been a very different outcome of this drive home.
"I would thank him, it's really commendable, and I can't thank him enough makes me feel safe," Smith said.