On Wednesday, March 23, 2022, Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) Falcon division officers were dispatched to the area of I-25 and Garden of the Gods Road regarding a traffic crash involving a vehicle and a pedestrian. Upon arrival, officers located the pedestrian deceased on scene. Due to the nature of this incident, the CSPD Major Crash Team was notified and responded to take responsibility for the investigation.
During the on-scene investigation, it was determined that the vehicle involved was driving east bound on Garden of the Gods Road in the center through lane of traffic. The pedestrian, dressed in all black, was in the center east bound lane of traffic where he was struck by the passing vehicle. It was also determined that the pedestrian was not in a crosswalk at the time he was struck.
On March 23, 2022, the El Paso County Coroner’s office conducted an autopsy of the deceased pedestrian. He has been identified as 57-year-old John Vidmar. Speed and alcohol are not considered to be factors in this investigation. This is the first fatal crash of 2022 involving a pedestrian and the 6th overall traffic related fatality of 2022. At this time last year, we had 5 fatal traffic crashes.