DENVER — A downtown Denver crash that left three women injured is renewing scrutiny of a driver whose record shows years of escalating traffic offenses.
Videos circulating on social media show the moments after investigators say a suspected drunk driver ran a red light and hit three women in a crosswalk, dragging one of them under the car for roughly half a block before stopping.
The crash happened in the early hours of Sunday morning, as crowds of people were coming out of bars near the intersection of Larimer Street and 20th Street.
The driver, identified as Cesario Serrato, 56, was arrested, but has not been formally charged. Court documents show he is being held on a charge of vehicular assault. His criminal history shows a number of traffic offenses leading up to the latest incident.
According to the probable cause statement in Serrato's case, he was driving with a revoked driver's license at the time of the crash. The document continued to say investigators saw signs of intoxication at the scene, including bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, and a strong smell of alcohol.
“What this looks like is an escalation in driving offenses, allegedly," said Eric Faddis, a former felony prosecutor who is currently a civil and criminal litigator. “The law is somewhat limited when it comes to the tools it can use to address this kind of situation.”
Faddis went through Serrato's criminal history with Denver7, explaining what he sees in the court documents.
Records obtained by Denver7 show Serrato had a driving under the influence charge in Denver in 2018. That charge was dismissed in exchange for a guilty plea to reckless driving in 2020. Serrato was sentenced to one year of supervised probation as a result.
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"It looks like there is a prior DUI charge from 2018 that was pled down to what's called a wet reckless — a reckless driving. So, it's really taken out of the alcohol-related traffic offense context and put into just a normal traffic offense context," said Faddis. "In my prosecutorial experience, it's rather uncommon to plead a first DUI case down to a wet reckless, unless you have a really good reason.”
Also in 2020, Serrato was charged with possession of a firearm by a previous offender. In that case, records from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) database show he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of altering the identification of a weapon.
In 2021, Serrato had another initial DUI charge on his record from Aurora. In that case, he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of driving while ability impaired (DWAI).
In addition, Serrato was ticketed in Feb. 2026 by Glendale Police for driving under restraint, failure to display proof of insurance, and marijuana possession.
“That is when, based on some prior driving activity, the Department of Motor Vehicles suspends or revokes a person's license, and the person has knowledge of that revocation, and they drive anyway," Faddis said, explaining what driving under restraint is. “There are a number of potential bases for that restraint. It can be a points suspension, or it can be an alcohol-related suspension. There are a number of other grounds as well.”
Meanwhile, Denver County Court shows Serrato was cited for not having insurance and red light violations in Feb and March of 2026. A driving under restraint charge is also listed for Feb. 2026.
The CBI database also shows charges of identity theft and forgery with guilty pleas accepted by the Arapahoe County court in 2011.
Denver7 asked Faddis why traffic offenses often result in plea deals.
“In terms of prosecutorial priorities, these driving cases are just not at the top of the list," said Faddis. “We look at past driving under restraint charges, past traffic offenses, and those are handled, but they're not given the same gravity as perhaps a domestic violence case or something like that. You can sometimes see folks who have sort of a storied criminal history when it comes to alleged driving offenses, and those folks are still on the road, and I understand why that might be concerning to many motorists in Colorado.”
At last check, the 21-year-old woman who was trapped underneath the car is in the hospital. DPD said the other two women sustained injuries as well.
While Serrato is suspected of driving while impaired at this time, Denver Police Detective Joshua Koen — who is not working Serrato's case — explained how drunk driving leaves a lasting impact on countless lives.
“It just leaves behind devastation for the whole community," Koen said. "I'm up at the Capitol talking about how we need to increase enforcement and penalties for impaired driving, because people still don't get it. We can stand out there until we're blue in the face, talking about how dangerous it is and why people shouldn't be doing it, but obviously they're still doing it.”
Koen has worked within the Denver Police Department (DPD) for seven years and was investigating a crash on Interstate 25 in Nov. of 2021 when his life was changed forever.
"Unbeknownst to us, an impaired driver was traveling at nearly 90 miles per hour, approaching our scene," said Koen. "He was driving impaired. Nearly killed me that night. Nearly killed a tow truck driver.”
Koen suffered a number of injuries, ranging from a spinal fracture to a traumatic brain injury. His experience as a victim in the criminal justice system gave him a unique perspective on drunk driving cases and the people they impact.
"I take the cases that I get more personally, especially having been on the other side of these things, knowing what they're going through, because I've been through it," said Koen. "It's upsetting. There is no reason that anybody should be getting behind the wheel while intoxicated, especially in this city.”
Denver7 spoke with a representative of the Denver District Attorney's Office, who said charges against Serrato are still pending.
Serrato is being held on a $50,000 cash-only bond.
