Man Convicted In DUI Death Has Troubled Past
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) - An Aurora man who was driving drunk when he hit and killed a 22-year-old man in a crosswalk has been convicted of second degree murder.
On Tuesday, an Arapahoe District Court jury found Christopher Tarr guilty in 22-year-old Dalton McCreary's death. They also convicted Tarr of attempted murder in the second degree because of injuries to his friend.
Prosecutors say on Aug. 21, 2016, Tarr was driving drunk when he ran a red light at the intersection of South Chambers Road and East Iliff Avenue in Aurora.
McCreary was crossing the street with the light in the crosswalk with his friend, Jordan Mulumulu. McCreary saw Tarr's Toyota 4-Runner coming at them and tried to get himself and his friend out of the way.
"He heard Dalton scream 'look out! look out!' He felt Dalton push him," McCreary's aunt, Erin Agee, told CBS4's Dominic Garcia.
The friend received a minor injury; McCreary was killed.
"I commend the jury for seeing that this case was more than another tragic drunk driving fatality. This was a murder occasioned by the conduct of a repeat drunk driver," said District Attorney George Brauchler.
"DUI is the one crime from which we cannot shield our families, unless we choose to live in a cave. All who walk and drive our roads are protected from injury and death only by signs, lights, paint on the roads, and the trust that drivers will obey them," said Brauchler. "Here, Tarr selfishly engaged in lethal behavior, killing an innocent man. There is never an excuse for a drunk driving death, but in this case, the defendant had been explicitly made aware of the consequences of drunk driving. He just didn't care," Brauchler said.
McCreary's family said he was a good person who always put family and friends first.
"People were showing up to court that we didn't even know. Just wonderful to see the lives he touched," Agee said.
It turns out this isn't the first time Tarr has been in trouble for drinking and driving.
"The last time this defendant got caught drinking and driving, he ran into a bunch of cars and a house," said Senior Deputy District Attorney John Kellner, who prosecuted the case with Deputy District Attorney Rory Devlin. "This time he senselessly killed a young man in a cross walk. I'm thankful for the jury returning a verdict that tells him it was murder."
Christopher Tarr, 42, will be sentenced Jan. 25.
Dominic Garcia anchors CBS4 News at 5 p.m. and reports for CBS4 News at 10 p.m. Connect with the Denver native on Twitter @cbs4dom & on Facebook.