What happened to Officer Jordan Steinke? We discuss the strange case of a police officer and the charges against them.
This feature is going to fall into the category of truth being stranger than fiction, with a calamitous series of events leading to a court case against two police officers and an accident that nearly caused the death of a woman.
The incident that happened on September 22, 2022, would make the headlines, with people wondering how the situation arose in the first place, and footage of the incident that was released would shock, horrify, and stun viewers who watched it.
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What should probably have been a routine bust for the officers involved turned into a shocking viral situation that has had many people trying to figure out how the events occurred, so this feature will answer the question: What happened to Officer Jordan Steinke?
Who is Jordan Steinke?
Jordan is a former police officer from Fort Lupton in Colorado.
What happened to Officer Jordan Steinke?
Jordan and another officer, Pablo Vazquez from Platteville, attended a road rage incident on the night of the terrible incident. They pulled over Rios-Gonzalez on Sept. 16, 2022. Jordan would place Yareni Rios-Gonzalez handcuffed in the back of the Platteville police car. The car was parked on train tracks, and shockingly, a freight train crashed into the vehicle with Rios-Gonzalez still in the vehicle. The shocking crash was recorded by body cameras and dash cams, and the footage later released by the Platteville, Colorado Police Department would go viral.
Fortunately, Yareni Rios-Gonzalez, 21, survived the collision but suffered a broken arm, a fractured tibia, a fractured sternum, and nine broken ribs. Video footage of the crash is available on YouTube from The Associated Press.
You can watch it at the link below.
Viewer discretion is advised.
Was Jordan Steinke charged?
Yes, both officers that were in attendance would be charged after the event. Jordan was the first to stand before a judge. She was found guilty of reckless endangerment and assault but was acquitted of a third charge of criminal attempt to commit manslaughter.
There was no jury at the trial. Instead, a judge would listen to the evidence and make a decision. Judge Timothy Kerns was presiding over the case.
The Judge would state that the prosecution could not convince him that the officer deliberately tried to cause harm to the victim. Police officer Jordan Steinke was charged with attempted reckless manslaughter, a felony, and two misdemeanors of reckless endangerment and third-degree assault.
She was found guilty of reckless endangerment and third-degree assault but was acquitted of a criminal attempt to commit reckless manslaughter. Steinke would claim that in the darkness, she was not aware that the car that he placed the suspect into was parked on the railway lines.
She claimed he placed the woman in that patrol car as it was the closest one to her. Prosecutors would argue that Steinke knew the police car was parked on train tracks but did not properly assess the situation or understand the possible danger involved.
Pablo Vazquez is also being prosecuted for misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment and traffic offenses.
At the time of writing, Steinke has yet to appear for sentencing, and Vazquez has not entered a plea.
