Vanessa Reichert, Vehicular Homicide and Competency to Stand Trial

Vanessa Reichert was the daughter of a close friend of my mother's. She used to baby sit me when I was little, and she was one of the best people I knew. About two years ago she was killed by a drunk driver. Now, the man who killed her may be able to walk away. The following is an email that Vanessa's mother sent those who were close to her.

Vanessa’s Community,
To all of you who made Vanessa’s life the life she truly loved to live,
I am asking you to take time to help protect others from the tragedy we
all faced as a result of her loss.

John Hoff , the man who crashed into Vanessa’s vehicle while he was
driving drunk on the wrong side of the road, has been living at the
Pueblo State Mental Hospital since he was found incompetent to stand
trial. It is believed that he will continue to digress and he will more
than likely never stand trial. There has been a motion’s hearing set in
July by his defense attorney to ask the judge to rule that the case be a
civil rather than criminal offense. If that happens it is very probable
that he will not only leave the mental hospital, but be in a half way
house or possibly just monitored on a probationary type schedule.

To me this is very disturbing because he potentially could drive a car
and be yet again the cause of another tragedy. When John Hoff was
questioned at the hospital after he ran his car into Vanessa going the
wrong way down the highway, he did not even remember being in an
accident or vehicle. Why did he even have a driver’s license? He also
had been stopped for a hit and run before he hit Vanessa that he hadn’t
been to court for yet. He was carrying a gun in his car. He is dangerous
and should not be free in Weld County to hurt someone again.

Although death is an inevitable and natural part of life, we should
still try to protect citizens of Weld County from people we know are
incompetent and dangerous. The question we are asking Judge Hartmann is,
what exactly stands between an unsuspecting citizenry and a drunk,
armed, demented moron at large in the county?

Please consider taking the time to write a letter and send it via email
to Judge Hartrmann, Weld District Court, demanding that the citizens of
Weld County be protected from this dangerous person by keeping the
charge that of a criminal offense, not civil, so he is monitored 24/7.

I am sending this to as many people as I can who knew how Vanessa
touched our lives. Please forward to others who may want to help with
this call to justice.

Thanks for being in my daughter’s life.
Debra Reichert

Please send your letter to;

Judge James Hartmann
Reichert/Hoff Case
Nineteenth Judicial District
PO Box 2038
Greeley, CO 80632

I can't see how this man could be considered unfit to stand trial if he was competent enough to have a driver's license. An article I read said that John Hoff suffers from multiple sclerosis, which causes him memory loss and forces him to use a walker. I don't know much about the subject but something here doesn't seem to click. If anyone who reads this has any information about competency to stand trial that would help me write a letter to the judge, I would greatly appreciate it. If anyone out there also feels compelled to write a letter themselves, please do. We need all the help we can get here to make sure this man does not hurt anyone ever again.

My email address: street.soccer4@gmail.com

Here's an article regarding Hoff's competency to stand trial (sorry, I can't post URLs right now, I'm at the airport and the wireless service is all screwy).

COPYRIGHT 2007 Greeley Tribune

Byline: Vanessa Delgado

May 4--A man facing charges of vehicular homicide in the death of a 19-year-old Evans woman asked a Weld County Judge Thursday for a state evaluation to determine whether he is competent to stand trial.

John Hoff, of La Salle, was allegedly drunk and driving home from a bar Sept. 28 when his vehicle crashed head-on into a car driven by Vanessa Reichert-Fitzpatrick. She died the following day at North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley.

Robert Ray, Hoff's attorney, said Hoff suffers from multiple sclerosis, which in Hoff's case causes him memory loss and forces him to use a walker. Ray said his client is not capable of standing trial, which had been set for the first week of July.

Weld District Judge James Hartmann ordered Hoff be evaluated by the Colorado Mental Health Institute in Pueblo and scheduled another court date for July 12. Based on the findings from Hoff's mental evaluation, which are due by July 6th, Hartmann said he will determine what's next in the case.

Deb Reichert, Vanessa's mother, said she has been shocked by how long the court process has taken.

"My biggest concern is that I just want to make sure that John Hoff is not going to be out on streets driving," she said.

Reichert-Fitzpatrick graduated with an International Baccalaureate degree from Greeley West High School and received a full scholarship to Colorado College in Colorado Springs where she was studying to become a doctor. She was in town visiting her mom for the weekend when the crash occurred.

Ray said that Hoff no longer has access to a car and will not be driving because of his physical condition.

What's Next

John Hoff will be back in Division 12 of Weld District Court at 11 a.m. July 12 to review the results of a mental health evaluation.

Copyright (c) 2007, Greeley Tribune, Colo.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.


Article covering Vanessa's accident:

Police are still not confirming or denying whether alcohol was a factor in a crash Sept. 28 that killed a 19-year-old Evans woman. However, a background check shows two prior charges for driving under the influence of alcohol.

John Hoff, 34, of La Salle was driving south in the northbound lane on U.S. 85 near the U.S. 34 overpass Thursday about 7:30 p.m. when he hit Vanessa Reichert-Fitzpatrick, who was on her way to visit her boyfriend.

Hoff was charged for driving under the influence, a misdemeanor offense, in September 1994 and July 2001. Hoff also had several other charges on his record, which included drug possession/use and weapon offenses. He was last charged with a felony in 2003 for having a controlled substance, which was later dismissed in court.

According to Evans police Sgt. Rich Strang, Hoff stands to face charges of vehicular homicide.

Hoff and Reichert-Fitzpatrick were taken to the North Colorado Medical Center. Hoff, who's been in the hospital since the crash, was reported in good condition on Saturday. Reichert-Fitzpatrick, died at 1 p.m. Friday at NCMC from multiple blunt force injuries.

Reichert-Fitzpatrick graduated with an International Baccalaureate degree from Greeley West High School and received a full scholarship to Colorado College in Colorado Springs. She was in town visiting her mom for the weekend.

Family members said Reichert-Fitzpatrick was positive and giving person, who in the end donated her organs to others. Memorial services are at 4 p.m. Tuesday at St. John's United Church of Christ, 3815 20th St., Greeley.

Family members included the following quote from the Dalai Lama in her obituary:

"This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness."