BOULDER, Colo. (BRAIN) – The driver involved in the hit-and-run collision that seriously injured an industry veteran while riding a bicycle should receive a stipulated sentence of two years in prison, mandatory parole and compensation during his appearance on Friday. .

Stephen Thomas Grattan, 49, of Lafayette, Colo., Is expected to plead guilty to reduced charges of leaving the scene of an accident, reckless driving and criminal attempting to leave the scene of an accident involving Andrew Bernstein, who works for marketing firm True Communications and is a former editor of Ride a bike magazine.

Bernstein intends to address the court, speaking about the significance of the sentence, the impact it has had on him and the difficult relationship between motorist and cyclist.

The collision happened on July 20, 2019, as Bernstein was cycling home after a workout at the velodrome, on Arapahoe Road in Boulder. After a lengthy investigation by the Colorado State Patrol and the Boulder County Attorney’s Office, an arrest warrant was issued on November 9, 2020. Grattan was apprehended on June 19, 2021, during a traffic stop in Thornton , Colorado.

Grattan’s attorney, Mr. Colin Bresee, told the Boulder Daily camera that “Stephen Gratton is expected to litigate and take full responsibility (Friday). “

“Stephen is adamant that he didn’t know he had hit someone with his vehicle,” Bresee said in a statement to the newspaper. “He is overcome with guilt and understands how meaningless an apology sounds. Stephen realizes that there are no words he can say to Andrew Bernstein to help him in the recovery process other than “Guilty, Your Honor.” “

The impact with Grattan’s vehicle left Bernstein, 34 at the time, in a roadside ditch with fatal injuries, including a fractured pelvis that caused internal bleeding and required surgery. emergency and several blood transfusions. He also suffered several fractures – including his tibia, fibula, femur – and collapsed lungs. A passing driver noticed Bernstein in the ditch shortly after the collision.

Bernstein wrote about his experience in a first-person story for Outside magazine in May 2020, “To the driver who ran over me and ran away.”