DENVER — The man accused of the New Year’s Day hit-and-run crash that killed a rideshare passenger on Interstate 25 in Thornton was formally charged Tuesday.
The 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office charged Frederick resident Adam Wooley, 33, with leaving the scene of an accident, a felony.
The crash occurred around 12:46 a.m. on Jan. 1and killed a 22-year-old Texas woman who was traveling in a rideshare vehicle with two of her friends on their way to a weekend home rental in Frederick, according to an affidavit.
The victim was pronounced deceased at the scene.
During the ride on northbound I-25, the 22-year-old intoxicated woman became ill and vomited into the front passenger seat of the car.
At that point, the rideshare driver pulled over, causing the victim to become “upset and got out of the vehicle and walked eastbound into an open field,” according to the affidavit.
Documents show the other women then paid the rideshare driver and walked after their friend, who was walking north in the field parallel to I-25 and then onto the roadway.
When the victim entered the highway, a passing Dodge Ram Pickup, allegedly driven by Wooley, struck the 22-year-old woman, knocking her down on the ground, the documents said.
Police said the Dodge pickup never stopped after hitting the woman and was struck by a second vehicle after her friends entered the roadway to try to stop traffic, according to the affidavit.
The driver of the second vehicle remained at the scene, police said.
Later that night, Wooley contacted Thornton police after watching the news and told them something had struck his truck and broke his driver-side window, headlight and mirror, the affidavit said.
He said there were no cars around him and thought “someone had thrown something at his truck,” arresting documents show.
Wooly turned himself in to police the next day, on Jan. 2. He was joined by his wife and attorney, the documents said
His wife told police she thought she heard a noise before seeing that Wooley’s window had shattered.
“She thought the window was busted by a rock or was shot out,” the affidavit reads, before stating, “They continued north and went to her grandmother’s house in Frederick… they never called policed and were just scared and drove home.”
Speaking to investigators, Wooley said he was traveling northbound on I-25 in the right lane and was going at approximately 70 miles per hour.
“He said his window broke and he thought it was a rock. He looked around and didn’t see anyone. He said he never pulled over and continued to drive home. He does not remember swerving,” the affidavit states.
Wooley’s wife told police they could “see a woman on the shoulder who caught their attention before hitting something, thinking it was furniture,” the affidavit states.
Other witnesses who spoke with police told the officer they were traveling northbound on I-25 when they were passed by a pickup that was “driving erratic and weaving,” before cutting off a small white SUV.
Wooley was taken into custody and later taken to the Adams County Detention Center.