Driver in fatal wreck sent text ‘seconds’ before hitting 10-year-old, CO officials say
A driver accused of sending a text right before hitting a 10-year-old boy on a bike, and then deleting messages a short time later, was sentenced to jail, prosecutors in Colorado said.
Amy Weiss was sentenced to 365 days on a charge of careless driving causing death and 364 days on a charge of tampering with physical evidence in connection with the 2023 wreck that killed Ollie Stratton, the District Attorney - Eighth Judicial District said in a March 7 post on Facebook.
The jail time is concurrent and work release is authorized, according to prosecutors.
The sentence also includes revoking Weiss’ license, prosecutors said.
McClatchy News reached out to Weiss’ attorney March 10 and was awaiting a response.
Weiss is accused of using her phone for calls and texts as she drove from Fort Collins to Timnath on Aug. 2, 2023, prosecutors said. She struck Ollie “seconds” after sending a text, and then deleted the messages “mere minutes after” the wreck, according to prosecutors.
Ollie was riding home from a friend’s house when he was hit, an online obituary said.
He had “a beautiful soul” and “was forever trying to squeeze more snuggles out of life,” the obituary said, describing how he’d “often ask to stay snuggling with his mother Clarissa long past bedtime.”
Weiss was convicted of careless driving resulting in death after a trial in December, according to prosecutors. She’d earlier pleaded guilty to tampering with physical evidence.
She received the maximum sentence for each charge, prosecutors said.
“Our hearts continue to break for the Stratton family. The loss they have suffered is immeasurable,” District Attorney Gordon McLaughlin said, per the release. “While no sentence can do justice to the life lost, it is important to continue to hold distracted drivers accountable.”
Prosecutors said Weiss’ sentence is stayed, or delayed, per state law because she’s appealing, but they “remain confident the case will be affirmed upon appeal and the sentence will be imposed.”
Timnath is about a 60-mile drive north from Denver.
This story was originally published March 10, 2025 at 5:13 PM with the headline "Driver in fatal wreck sent text ‘seconds’ before hitting 10-year-old, CO officials say."
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