Texas man charged with reckless driving appears in court

Four local teenagers injured in July 4 incident

[  By Katherine Nettles  ]

A young man who has been charged with vehicular assault and leaving the scene of an accident had an initial court appearance last week and is now scheduled to appear in district court in September. William Runyon, an 18-year-old resident of Dallas, Texas was involved in an incident on the night of July 4 that resulted in several injuries at a campsite near Farris Creek. Runyon was arrested and charged with two violations, and he appeared in Gunnison County Court on Tuesday, July 22 on bond and arraignment. The matter was bound over to district court with an arraignment scheduled on September 7 at 1 p.m.

As previously reported by the Crested Butte News, Colorado State troopers who responded to the incident described Runyon as having been at a campfire party near Brush Creek Road and driving a 2009 Toyota SUV in circles just before 11 p.m. on July 4 when he struck and seriously injured an 18-year-old Crested Butte woman and three other local teens. One was an 18-year-old Crested Butte male who was taken to Gunnison Valley Hospital with moderate injuries, one was a 16-year-old Gunnison male who sustained minor injuries and did not seek medical treatment and another 18-year-old Crested Butte female who sustained moderate injuries but who also did not seek medical treatment. 

The Colorado State Patrol and Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte law enforcement officers responded to the scene, and Runyon had reportedly left the scene. The seriously injured women was taken to Gunnison Valley Hospital where she was admitted with significant injuries and later transferred to Colorado Springs. Runyon was taken into custody later that night with suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. A toxicology report has not been released.  

According to the Gunnison Combined Courts, Runyon was charged with vehicular assault-reckless, and leaving the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury. He posted a $5,000 bond and was released from jail. He then appeared in court on July 22 with Gunnison County attorney Thomas Riser.