Hundreds of criminal cases mistakenly dismissed

ARAPAHOE COUNTY — One of 285 warrants canceled by mistake represented the best chance to catch a wanted man before his recent alleged involvement in a drunken-driving crash that killed a grandmother, 9News reports.

Alberto Alvarado-Barojas is charged with vehicular homicide in the Sept. 14, 2009, death of Barbara Barben, of Denver.

A 9News investigation reveals a warrant for Alvarado-Barojas’ arrest on a previous DUI charge was prematurely dismissed, eliminating an opportunity for authorities to arrest and potentially deport him a year before the crash that killed Barben.

The 18th Judicial District, Colorado’s largest by population, including Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert and Lincoln counties, accidentally purged hundreds of unresolved misdemeanor cases years before they were due to be reviewed for dismissal.

Read the full story at 9News.com.