Two people died in a crash that resulted from an Aurora police pursuit last week, which the city’s decree monitor is reviewing.

The monitor said the incident underscores the “inherent risks” of pursuits.

Meanwhile, the city police department said it has no plans of changing its pursuit policy, arguing the tragedy resulting from the crash was the fault of the suspects – not the officers.

The crash happened around 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 1, ending a police pursuit of a sedan stolen out of Fort Collins, according to the police. Both people in the car — Sheena Fuentes, 41, and Manuel Tovar, 52 — died on impact.

In a city camera video, published Wednesday, the stolen car is seen speeding down South Peoria Street, weaving in and out of traffic, before losing control and slamming into a traffic light pole while attempting to make a left turn onto East Alameda Avenue.

Fuentes had previously been arrested in October for accessory to a murder and was out on bond. Tovar, the driver, also had an extensive criminal history.

The department noted in the post that the “vast majority” of those who lead officers on a chase have a criminal history.

“This is yet another reminder: People who run from police don’t just break the law, they gamble with lives, including their own,” the city police wrote in an X post Wednesday.

Since the department’s new pursuit policy was implemented in March, allowing police to pursue stolen vehicles, the number of car chases has increased exponentially, according to the most recent consent decree monitor report.

The consent decree, which the city entered into with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office in 2021 to implement sweeping changes to policing, notably in the use of force and how officers engage with residents, is envisioned to last about five years, according to Independent Monitor Jeff Schlanger.

Before the policy change, police were not allowed to chase stolen cars. During the consent decree report covering Oct. 1, 2024 to Feb. 15, there were three police chases.

In the latest reporting period, between April 1 and Aug. 15, there were 107, with 80 of them for stolen vehicles.

In the pursuits during that time period involving stolen vehicles, 39 subjects were apprehended, 38 escaped and there were three crashes.

Of the 27 other vehicle pursuits, eight were for known felonies in progress or that just occurred, 10 were for suspected criminal activity and nine were for suspected DUI.

Since the reporting period ended and through Nov. 30, there were an additional 108 pursuits, an Aurora Police spokesperson told The Denver Gazette last week.

At the time of the latest report’s publishing, the monitor noted that the shift brings “significant responsibility for officers and supervisors in the field.”

The monitor reviewed all of the pursuits in that period and said they were “generally pleased with officer judgment, the level of supervisory oversight of the pursuit in progress and the supervisory review, adjudication and documentation of the reviews and adjudications.”

Following the fatal incident last week, Schlanger said the consent decree monitor’s team began a preliminary review to “assess (the incident’s) alignment with departmental policies and the broader reforms outlined in the (consent decree).”

While the monitor does not set a mandated risk tolerance for pursuit authorization, it can make recommendations for training, equipment and policy adjustments, Schlanger said.

Regardless of how its review turns out, Schlanger said the event “underscores the inherent risks of vehicle pursuits, even brief ones.”

“Our thoughts are with the families of Manuel Sanchez Tovar and Sheena Fuentes, as well as the broader community affected by this event,” Schlanger told The Denver Gazette.

Continuous risk assessment is mandated throughout a vehicle pursuit, taking into account traffic conditions, time of day and offense severity, a police spokesperson said.

The department has no plans to change its pursuit policy following the fatal incident, the spokesperson said, adding that Fuentes’ and Tovar’s deaths were “a tragedy,” but not a result of officers’ actions.

“It rests solely with the suspect’s decision to steal a car and run from our officers attempting a traffic stop,” the spokesperson said. “Their actions not only ended their lives, but their reckless driving behavior put innocent lives at risk.”

The consent decree monitor will continue to review the incident, and, depending on the results of the review, may include it in the next monitoring period’s report, Schlanger said.

An administrative review of the incident is already in progress, the Aurora police said.

“There is something that can be learned from every interaction in the law enforcement profession,” the police spokesperson said. “Monday’s pursuit is working through our established administrative review process, which is still ongoing.”