A Colorado police officer who was struck and killed by a driver was still training to become a new officer

The day after Death of Golden Officer Evan DunnCity workers and law enforcement officials cleared snow and set up tents over Dunn’s patrol car. The vehicle is parked directly in front of the town hall in the middle of the city of Colorado.

Dunn, 33, another officer and two citizens were struck by a car Wednesday while officers were conducting a crash investigation on the Golden Freeway. Dunn died at the scene.

Before his death, Dunn had a partner with him at all times while he was on patrol. That’s because he was still in training.

For law enforcement, just participating in a patrol is a point of pride and an accomplishment. Dunn was just weeks away from that goal.

His patrol car now stands as a memorial in front of the Golden Police Department. Flowers have been placed under the snow-covered tents by community members, the Colorado Department of Transportation, people who trained with Dunn at the police academy and others who knew him.

Dunn was “destined to do great things”

In the afternoon, community members brought boxes of coffee to the police station to lift the spirits of the grieving police. They also handed out cards offering condolences for the life of an officer who was described as quiet but great.

Dunn worked for the Golden Police Department as a code enforcement officer for several years before attending the police academy, graduating and becoming a member of the police force. Before that, he was in the Army and was an aviation officer who flew Blackhawk helicopters.

Just hours after his death, his boss emotionally described a man who was “first and foremost a man of faith, loyal, steadfast, calm and attentive.”

“Evan had a bright future and was destined to achieve great things, and we will never get over his loss,” said Chief Joe Harvey.

Details surrounding the officer’s death are becoming clearer

Less than a mile away on the Golden Freeway, several investigators were still at the scene of the crash that killed Dunn on Thursday.

Arrest documents for the 43-year-old driver, who is accused of being under the influence of alcohol and causing the accident, state that the driver’s car was not the one that directly hit Dunn. The documents show that Stephen Geer’s car collided with a pickup truck that was parked on the center line of the highway in the area of ​​the accident scene. The car then crashed into the car parked directly in front of it, and the car hit Dunn, pinning him underneath.

Investigators said Geer told police he tried to stop his car when he saw a patrol car with its emergency lights on, but he was unable to stop in time.

Officer Bethany Grusing was the other officer hit by the car. She and a woman involved in the original accident both suffered serious injuries. The woman’s father was also outside his vehicle and was thrown across the median, suffering large cuts to his face and arm.

School of Mines shares “thoughts and prayers”

Geer is an educator at the Colorado School of Mines. He is described on the university’s website as a teaching assistant professor of engineering.

The university released a statement after the crash (on Thursday, before it was publicly announced that others besides the officers were injured):

“Mines was informed by the Golden Police Department that one of our employees was involved in the fatal accident in Golden on November 6th.
The Mines community is deeply saddened by the tragic loss of a Golden police officer yesterday and the injuries of a second officer while responding to a crash on Colorado 58.
The officers, their families, their colleagues in the Golden Police Department and everyone else most impacted by this devastating event are in our thoughts and prayers. We grieve with them today, we pray for the injured officer’s recovery and we will look for ways to offer support during this incredibly difficult time.”