WASHINGTON, D.C. — Federal regulators have shut down the trucking company at the center of a deadly crash on Highway 285 in Jefferson County last month.
The crash happened around 5 p.m. on June 11 on Highway 285 at milepost 232, south of Conifer. Colorado State Patrol (CSP) troopers said Ignacio Cruz-Mendoza was driving a semi-truck southbound on US 285 when he allegedly drove off the edge of the road, causing the semi to roll onto its side and dump its load of pipes and angle iron onto five vehicles.
Loved ones said Scott Miller, 64, was on his way home from the grocery store, less than 6 miles away from his house, when the load struck his vehicle. He was killed in the crash.
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Cruz-Mendoza was arrested for suspicion of vehicular assault and vehicular homicide. He was charged with one count of careless driving resulting in death and three counts of careless driving resulting in injury.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials told Denver7 Investigates Cruz-Mendoza was in the U.S. illegally and had been ordered to be removed to Mexico. The agency had been aware of Cruz-Mendoza since an arrest in Jefferson County, Oregon, in April 2002. Since then, an ICE spokesperson said Cruz-Mendoza had faced multiple removals and returned to Mexico at least 16 times.
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Cruz-Mendoza was driving for Monique Trucking at the time of the crash. Following the crash, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) launched a compliance investigation into the California-based company.
The FMCSA determined that Monique Trucking was "egregiously noncompliant" with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). The company had been cited for various violations, including:
- Failure to have in place a Controlled Substances and Alcohol Use Testing Program. The company also was not registered in the FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearing House
- Failure to ensure that the driver employed met Commercial Driver's License Standards
- Failure to comply with Hours of Service for Drivers requirements
- Failure to comply with Vehicle Maintenance and Inspection standards
Federal regulators noted that the leadership of Monique Trucking "demonstrated a lack of knowledge of safety regulations" despite receiving multiple roadside violations in the two years before the Jefferson County crash. The company also "[lacked] safety management controls," according to the FCMSA.
The FMCSA determined that Monique Trucking was "an imminent hazard to public safety" and ordered the company to "immediately cease all interstate and intrastate operations" on July 2.
According to the FMCSA, failure to comply with the Imminent Hazard Order may result in fines of up to $33,252 for each violation.
The order may be rescinded if Monique Trucking meets 14 standards, including implementing a controlled substance and alcohol testing program, establishing safety management controls and ensuring periodical inspections of its commercial motor vehicles (CMVs).
