The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Excessive speed a factor
[ by Mark Reaman ]The one-vehicle accident on Monarch Pass that resulted in the death of Crested Butte’s Jim Harlan on April 20 is not suspected to have involved alcohol or drugs, but excessive speed is suspected as a contributing factor.
According to Colorado State Patrol trooper Gabriel Moltrer, the incident remains under investigation as “an intentional act.” The initial patrol report stated Harlan was driving alone in a Chevy Concord when the accident occurred about 11:30 a.m. that Saturday. The 58-year-old Harlan was driving west on Highway 50 near mile marker 194 when he failed to negotiate a righthand curve and went off the left shoulder through a large pullout.
According to Moltrer he vehicle went off a steep embankment toward a steep ravine when it went airborne before impacting the ground. The vehicle overturned several times and came to rest at the bottom of the ravine. Harlan was ejected from the vehicle and suffered fatal injuries. He was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.
The patrol is continuing the investigation.
