A woman from Colorado will now serve time in prison after she killed a motorcyclist while she was driving drunk. Kassy Winburn confessed to the crime and pleaded guilty to all charges related to the death of Joe Kroiss, a motorcyclist. The collision occurred when Winburn hit Kroiss from behind near Interstate 25 and Harmony Road in 2019.

Winburn pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide-DUI, vehicular homicide-reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident involving death, and driving under restraint alcohol-related.

This is not the first time Winburn has killed a driver while intoxicated. Years before, she was arrested while nearly three times over the legal limit after killing another victim. During this accident involving Kroiss, Winburn was traveling more than 100 miles per hour when she rear-ended his motorcycle.

Motorcyclists are at increased risk of serious injury and death from accidents due to the unprotected nature of riding as compared to driving a car. When a drunk driver is involved, this danger is much more severe.

Danger of Motorcycle Accidents in Denver

Motorcycle accidents are especially dangerous because of how unprotected a rider is. Even when wearing the proper safety equipment and a helmet, a person can easily be thrown from a motorcycle, resulting in serious injury or death. When a person is injured or killed due to the negligence of another driver, the motorcycle rider and/or their family is entitled to financial compensation related to those injuries.

Motorcyclists tend to suffer very extreme injuries in motor vehicle accidents, such as:

• broken bones
• loss of organs
• concussion
• traumatic brain injury
• spinal cord damage
• paralysis
• loss of limb
• disfigurement
• road rash
• loss of memory
• bleeding

Not only do these injuries pose a significant risk to your health, but they will also have a major impact on your finances. Medical treatment is expensive, especially when broken bones, surgery, diagnostic scans, and other expensive procedures are involved. When this is the case, you will likely deal with the major impact of high medical costs.

To help avoid the pain of this, a personal injury case puts the burden of payment where it belongs—on the responsible party. You should not have to pay for your medical costs, and you are entitled to compensation for the pain and suffering you have endured.

Intoxicated Drivers

Driving while intoxicated is a crime, but it is also considered negligent conduct. If a person is convicted of a DUI related to the accident that harmed you, that conviction can be used as evidence in your personal injury case to establish that the other driver was intoxicated and negligent. 

Even when the other driver does not get convicted, it should not stop you from presenting evidence that the driver was intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. Because of the different standards of proof between criminal and civil cases, you can still present this evidence to prove your case.

Consult an Experienced Denver Personal Injury Attorney

As the injured victim, you deserve compensation for your injuries. Contact the experienced personal injuries at accidentdenver.com to fight for your rights and get the financial compensation you deserve.