Pueblo woman pleads guilty in connection with 2023 crash that killed 15-year-old
A Pueblo woman has pleaded guilty to one count of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death in connection with a June 2023 wreck in which a 15-year-old boy was killed.
In exchange for 18-year-old Ahdora Muniz's Jan. 17 plea of guilty, a more serious charge of vehicular homicide was dropped by 10th Judicial District Attorney Jeff Chostner.
Leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death is a class 3 felony in Colorado with a presumptive sentencing range of 4-12 years in the Department of Corrections. Muniz's plea agreement stipulates her sentence will not exceed 10 years. She will also be required to pay an as-yet-determined amount of restitution to her victim's family.
Muniz was allegedly street racing when she struck and killed the 15-year-old victim near the intersection of Gaylord and Thatcher avenues on June 21, 2023, according to a Pueblo Police Department arrest affidavit. According to court documents, police used crime scene forensics to determine Muniz had been traveling at a rate of 96 mph in a 35 mph zone prior to the crash.
One witness told police he and other friends were at the Pueblo reservoir that day and on their way back to Pueblo, he and Muniz began racing each other in their vehicles.
The witness said at one point he stopped at a stoplight, but Muniz, who was driving a Saturn Aura, went around him at the light and swerved to avoid a second car before crashing. The witness said he did not see Muniz strike the pedestrian.
The witness told police he stopped his vehicle, at which point Muniz and a passenger in her car jumped inside. He then gave them a ride to the east side of Pueblo and dropped them off near Plaza Verde Park.
In surveillance video taken from near the scene of the accident, two women could be seen jumping into a black SUV immediately after the crash occurred. The witness' vehicle matched the SUV seen picking up the two women the night of the crash, according to the affidavit.
Muniz is set to be sentenced on April 8 by Judge Thomas Flesher.
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This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Pueblo woman pleads guilty in crash that killed 15-year-old
