In the spring of 2021, Gwen Erffmeyer Inglis was riding in a bike lane in Lakewood with her husband when a driver under the influence of drugs struck and killed her. The driver, Ryan Montoya, was sentenced to eight years in prison this past summer, and this week, a jury awarded her family $353 million in the civil suit.
"It is very uncommon to see a verdict of this size in JeffCo or Colorado," said Megan Hottman, the family's lawyer, who worked alongside lawyer Rich Kaudy. "We are hoping this verdict is used as a precedent in future cycling cases and that other lawyers representing injured or killed cyclists will point to this verdict in their cases and say- 'This is what you should do here as well.'"
Gwen's husband, Mike Inglis, was surprised. "Nobody could expect that," he said. "That was them [the jury] just setting precedent."
Gwen, 46, was a professional cyclist well known in the community. Her brother, Keith Erffmeyer, said she is remembered not only as a great competitor, but also as a kind, respectful, selfless person.
For Erffmeyer, the criminal penalty of eight years feels light.
With the civil suit, he says no amount of money will ever be enough, but hopes that the large figure will deter others from dangerous driving.
"As far as the civil action, I think we were trying to get a message to the greater community that if you even consider driving drunk, and if you end up killing somebody, you will lose everything," he said. "The jury's message here is that really shouldn't be tolerated. It's just unacceptable behavior in this day and age."
Moving forward, Inglis said he wants to see stronger laws for people with DUIs, and higher insurance minimums for people with a history of driving under the influence. The driver, Ryan Montoya, had a history of impaired driving before hitting Gwen. "How did that happen?" Inglis asked. "How is that a society?"
Both Inglis and Erffmeyer said communities also need to do more to protect cyclists, make roads safer and prevent impaired driving.
"I often say, 'You'll never know about the life you save,'" Erffmeyer said. "If even one person decides they're not going to drive drunk and saves a life, we'll never know it. But we will if they don't."
