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The driver in the tragic car crash that killed one area teenager and injured others appeared in Garfield District Court Monday in Glenwood Springs, where the magistrate set bond at $4,000.
Jesse Lloyd, 18, of Carbondale is charged with felony vehicular homicide and two counts of vehicular assault, as well as driving under the influence and 3rd degree assault, both misdemeanors.
He’s also charged with possession/consumption of alcohol as a minor in connection wit the fatal crash in Missouri Heights near Carbondale Friday night.
Deputy District Attorney Tony Hershey also noted in court that Lloyd was not initially charged with operating a vehicle with a suspended license. However, his driver’s license was suspended so that charge could be included, Hershey said.
Lloyd was also on probation from juvenile court “on a very serious burglary,” Hershey said, without specifying details of that case.
Prosecutors requested $5,000 bond, in part due to concerns for safety. Lloyd and the others involved in the crash “were obviously not supervised properly,” Hershey said.
Representing Lloyd in court, attorney Lawson Wills said his client was not a flight risk, and had family and deep ties to the community. Wills requested a personal recognizance bond, which does not include cash bail.
“Obviously, this is a very serious case,” Wills said. Lloyd would have the support of his family, who would abide by any stipulations to the release, Wills said.
Magistrate Susan Ryan said the $4,000 bond was justified due to the charges and the possible impact to public safety. There was no protection order, but Lloyd is required to submit to drug and alcohol testing as a condition of bond.
During the late-Friday crash along County Road 102, also known as Fender Lane, two of the five passengers were ejected from the vehicle Lloyd was allegedly driving.
The car reportedly rounded a curve and struck a large rock, rolled, and two occupants not wearing seatbelts were ejected, according to Colorado State Patrol spokesman Ivan Alvarado.
One of the passengers who was ejected, Tyler Ribich, 16, a junior at Basalt High School, died as a result of the injuries. Also, David Rothman, 19, “suffered serious bodily injury” after being ejected from the vehicle, according to an affidavit for Lloyd’s arrest.
Henry Twitchell, 18, who was not ejected from the vehicle, also suffered serious injury. The fifth occupant, who is 17, reported the crash and did not suffer serious injury, according to court records.
Lloyd told a Colorado State Patrol trooper at the hospital after the crash that he had consumed “5 or 6 shots of vodka” starting at 9:30 and ending about 10 p.m., according to court documents. The crash was first reported at 11:38 p.m.
A breathalyzer test indicated Lloyd’s blood-alcohol content was 0.153, according to the affidavit. The legal limit in Colorado is 0.08. Lloyd also had “bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, and a strong odor” of alcohol, the trooper wrote in the affidavit.
Lloyd’s next court appearance, where prosecutors will return formal filing of charges, is scheduled for May 30.
