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As Victim Struggles For Life, Suspected DUI Driver's Case Moves Forward

BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4) - A mother whose son has been in critical condition for nearly a month after a two-car crash says anger is among the emotions she feels toward the man who is allegedly responsible.

Daniel Mays, 28, is still fighting for life at Denver Health Medical Center and has had his mom at his side most of the time.

"Daniel has an exuberance for life. He's not a quitter," Robin Konkle Mays told CBS4.

A friend of Mays had just picked him up on July 21 from work when another car smashed into them on the Diagonal Highway near 55th Street in Boulder County. The car had been traveling down the wrong side on the highway before the collision, according to prosecutors in the case.

Mays' friend was taken to the hospital where he was treated and released, but Mays was critically hurt and was transported to the hospital in Denver.

A judge agreed Thursday that there's enough evidence against the suspected drunk driver -- Dean Carlson, 56 -- to move the case forward.

Dean Carlson
Dean Carlson (credit: Boulder County Sheriff)

Carlson allegedly told police he had 10 to 12 beers at various bars on the night of the crash. He has three DUIs on his record -- two in Texas, where he lives, and one in New York -- all of which ended in convictions. His driver's license had just been reinstated in Texas after his last DUI conviction.

"How many times do you have to do this to get the message?" Mays said of Carson.

She said she hopes Carlson never hurts anyone else again, and that others will learn of the dangers of impaired driving.

"I hope that people wake up and realize up that lives they destroy are innocent, young lives," she said.

Mays believes her son -- her only child -- can survive the massive trauma to his brain.

"He's my world. He's my world, and I'm his world, and we were more than mother and son. We were each other's friends."

Carlson remains in the Boulder County Jail on a $100,000 bond.

Additional Resources

A fundraising campaign is under way to raise funds for Mays. Visit the following two websites for more information: indiegogo.com/danielmays | facebook.com/getbetterdan

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