Press Release
Aspen Police announce charges in fatal crash
Aspen, CO – The Aspen Police Department has filed charges following an investigation into a fatal car-pedestrian crash that occurred on Dec. 14, 2024.
The driver of the vehicle, Andrea Contreras Canales, 21, of Glenwood Springs, faces charges of leaving the scene of an accident that resulted in death, a third-degree felony; and tampering with evidence, a sixth-degree felony.
The investigation showed that Contreras Canales did not cause the crash but faces charges for her actions after the incident.
The pedestrian, Lisa Sabatka, 33, was struck by a car operated by Contreras Canales on Highway 82 at approximately 10:51 p.m. The crash occurred as Sabatka was in the eastbound lane of the road near the Aspen Country Inn, 38996 Highway 82, where she lived.
Contreras Canales then left the scene of the crash, heading east into Aspen. Sabatka was lying unconscious in the center median turn lane when Aspen Fire Department firefighters, responding to an unrelated structure fire, found Sabatka’s body lying in the paved median. An ambulance and police officers were sent to the scene, and Sabatka was transported to Aspen Valley Hospital.
Sabatka was pronounced dead at AVH at 11:20 p.m. Her blood alcohol level was found to be .286, which is nearly six times the legal limit for drivers in Colorado.
While officers were on scene investigating the crash, at about 12:04 a.m. on Dec. 15, Contreras Canales returned to the scene, accompanied by a male party whom Contreras Canales had picked up in Aspen, after the crash. She was cooperative with the investigation.
Working with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado State Patrol, Pitkin County Coroner’s Office, and the Ninth Judicial District Attorney’s office, the Aspen Police Department executed search warrants for the blood of the driver, the phone data for the driver, passenger and the decedent, the vehicle itself, as well as the vehicle data, and the I-cloud data for Sabatka’s telephone.
“Our team conducted a thorough investigation to bring this case to a proper conclusion,” APD Chief Kim Ferber said. “In complex crash investigations it is critical that we have a complete picture of what happened, rather than rushing to quick judgement. We have conducted a thorough investigation and are ready to proceed.”
The last data point police were waiting for was the Colorado Bureau of Investigation blood analysis of Contreras Canales, the results of which were received on March 5. It established that Contreras Canales was not under the influence of intoxicating substances. The investigation also found that speed was not a factor in the crash, there was no indication of distracted driving based on the evaluation of cell phone data, and Sabatka was last observed exiting a bus that was headed eastbound, towards Aspen, on Highway 82 near her residence.
“The standard for determining fault in a crash is finding the first harmful event, and in this case, that was the pedestrian being in the roadway,” said lead APD investigator Lauren Turner.
Forensic pathologist Dr. Robert Kurtzman found the manner of death as “accident,” and the interval between the crash and death was “minutes” caused by “multiple blunt force injuries.”
Due to the sensitive nature of the prosecution, no further comments will be provided.
The city of Aspen emphasizes the fundamental principle that every person accused of a crime is presumed to be innocent unless and until their guilt is established beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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