Lemaster Appears In Court Over Fatal Tour de Fat Crash

Van Edward Lemaster, 88, sat beside his attorney wearing a headset Thursday as Judge Daniel McDonald reviewed seven charges against him in the Aug. 29 Tour de Fat crash that killed Joshua Douglass. The hearing in Fort Collins was Lemaster's first court appearance since the incident.

McDonald listed one count of vehicular homicide, four counts of vehicular assault and two counts of reckless endangerment. He told Lemaster that vehicular homicide carries two to six years in prison, rising to 12 years if aggravating circumstances are found. Lemaster told the court he understood the penalties.

The crash happened on Mountain Avenue in Old Town as the bicycle parade was ending. An arrest affidavit says Lemaster was backing a Chevrolet Silverado out of a parking space when the truck hit another vehicle, then accelerated onto a sidewalk and patio where pedestrians had gathered. Several people were struck, and Douglass later died of his injuries.

The affidavit states that Lemaster told an officer at the hospital he had tried to back out several times before he "just gunned it" to leave the space. Investigators cited vehicle data showing the accelerator was fully depressed as the truck moved forward.

Lemaster's next hearing is set for 10 a.m. on Dec. 8.