A 30-year-old Aurora man is facing attempted murder charges after police say he chased down an SUV driver and opened fire following a hit-and-run crash involving an e-moto in northwest Aurora. Aurora officers took Titus Patterson into custody at his home in the 1300 block of Dayton Street, accusing him of firing several rounds at the SUV driver near East 6th Avenue and Fulton Street after the crash left him with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
According to the Aurora Police Dept, the chain of events began at 6:02 p.m. on August 31 when officers responded to a hit-and-run crash report near Dayton Street and East 13th Avenue involving an e-moto and a gray SUV. Police say the SUV driver left the scene before officers arrived, while Patterson, who had been riding the e-moto, ran from the crash site. Investigators developed information that Patterson armed himself with a handgun and pursued the SUV, ultimately firing several rounds at the driver near East 6th Avenue and Fulton Street. The SUV driver was not struck by gunfire, police said, and continued west on East 6th Avenue before crashing near East Lowry Boulevard and Yosemite Street in Denver. Aurora patrol officers later found the gray SUV near East 7th Avenue and Alton Street in Denver and contacted the driver.
How Investigators Connected the Dots
Patterson was arrested by Aurora patrol officers and now faces charges of attempted second-degree murder and attempted first-degree assault. Under Colorado law, attempted second-degree murder is a Class 3 felony that can carry a mandatory prison sentence of 10 to 32 years and fines of up to $750,000 when prosecuted as a crime of violence involving a deadly weapon, according to Justia Law. The attempted first-degree assault charge, meanwhile, requires prosecutors to prove Patterson intended to cause serious bodily injury with a deadly weapon, and Colorado court precedent holds that the charge does not merge into lesser offenses like felony menacing.
The circumstances that touched off the initial crash near Dayton Street and East 13th Avenue remain under investigation, police said. It is not yet clear what led to the collision between the e-moto and the SUV before the confrontation escalated into gunfire.
Why a Gun Unit Took a Case With No Gunshot Wound
The fact that a specialized unit investigated a shooting where nobody was struck by a bullet reflects a policy shift the Aurora Police Department made earlier this year. On January 20, 2026, APD expanded the mandate of its Gun Violence Suppression Team to cover all nonfatal shooting incidents, including cases where shots are fired at occupied vehicles or buildings without causing physical injury, according to the City of Aurora. Before that change, the unit only took on shootings where victims suffered actual gunshot wounds…