PARKER, Colo. — The man who struck and killed a Parker cyclist in a hit-and-run last summer has been sentenced to 18 years in prison, officials announced Wednesday.
Preston James Dorris, 37, pleaded guilty in February to leaving the scene of accident involving death, vehicular homicide, and careless driving in the death of Edward "Chuck" Vogel, Jr.
Vogel, 64, a frequent cyclist, was riding his bicycle south on Pine Drive in Douglas County on July 4, 2019, when he was struck from behind by a Kia Spectra, driven by Dorris, a Nebraska resident.
Vogel died the next day, and police also found the Kia abandoned in Parker that day. Investigators traced the vehicle to Dorris, who was arrested in Nebraska a week later.
Authorities said Dorris came to Colorado to buy drugs and that marijuana and an open bottle of vodka was found in his abandoned car.
“This man was a pillar in the Parker community and gave untold volunteer hours to help others," District Attorney George Brauchler said of Vogel. "Mr. Vogel was taken from us by a selfish coward who hit him and drove off."
Vogel's son said in a news release that his father "was left on the side of the road to die — not surrounded by friends and family, but alone."
Vogel was soon to become a grandfather when the crash happened.
"Chuck was left on the side of the road like a piece of trash," his wife, Teri Vogel, said in court. "That was my husband, my best friend – he never regained consciousness and was on life support."
Dorris had two prior felony convictions and 23 misdemeanor convictions since 2003, authorities said.