Father Who Tried To Kill 2-Year-Old Son In Crash Gets 20 Years
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) - A father in Arapahoe County has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after admitting he tried to kill his young son by crashing his car.
The crash happened on South Eudora Way in Centennial on Aug. 21, 2016.
Nathan Weitzel, 29, pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree murder after deliberation.
Weitzel was going about 75 mph when he crashed his Acura sedan into several parked cars, prosecutors said.
He was wearing a seat belt but his 2-year-old son was not restrained in anyway. The child needed as many as 30 stitches in his head.
"I was trying to kill my son," Weitzel told investigators after the crash.
Weitzel admitted using cocaine and told investigators that being a father was a big responsibility and he did not think he was man enough to raise a child.
The boy has recovered from serious injuries but was left with a scar, prosecutors said.
"The scar on the victim's forehead will remind him every day when he looks in the mirror that his father, instead of caring for him, tried to kill him," Senior Deputy District Attorney Cori Alcock told the court.
"No amount of prison can fix what the world's worst father has done here, but it will give him ample opportunity to seek forgiveness and redemption... if either of those things are even possible," District Attorney George Brauchler stated.
The boy's mother said Weitzel had no remorse or sympathy for his son.
"He's a selfish human being... I think he is only sorry that he has to stay in prison and deal with the consequences," she said.
