A man who pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide in April, stemming from a Memorial Day crash in Kremmling, was sentenced on Thursday to the maximum punishment allowed by law.

Felix Cervantes, the driver of a vehicle involved in a fatal head-on accident last Memorial Day weekend, was sentenced to 18 years in prison for one count of reckless vehicular assault and one count of reckless vehicular homicide by Grand County District Judge Mary Hoak. Eighteen years was the maximum sentence allowed by law.

“This represents one of the worst case scenarios when people get impatient traveling on a two lane mountain highway,” said Deputy District Attorney Kathryn Dowdell. “The sentence here should send a clear message that reckless indifference to human life on the road brings the heaviest of consequences.”

The head-on crash occurred May 29, 2017, when Cervantes, 36, of Denver struck another car attempting to make an illegal pass on Highway 40. James Fagan, 24, of Breckenridge was killed in the crash, and his girlfriend, the driver, was hospitalized with serious injuries. Cervantes pleaded guilty to the charges in April.

The investigation was conducted by the Colorado State Patrol with assistance from the Grand County Coroner, Emergency Medical Services and local law enforcement. The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Kathryn Dowdell and Assistant District Attorney Matt Karzen.