Crime
Judge issues gag order in case of missing Park County girl, arson
PARK COUNTY, Colo. – A judge on Monday issued a gag order in the mysterious case of a missing girl and a burned-out house, which will prevent authorities from releasing any further information about the case until the order is lifted.
Maggie Long, 17, went missing on Friday around the same time her home was damaged in a fire that authorities are saying is being investigated as arson. Continue reading
Donthe Lucas charged with first-degree murder in Kelsie Schelling disappearance
PUEBLO, Colo. – Donthe Lucas, the boyfriend of Kelsie Schelling, who disappeared in 2013 while in Pueblo, has been charged with first-degree murder in Schelling’s disappearance, which officials are now calling a homicide.
The Pueblo Police Department and Colorado Bureau of Investigation announced the charges against Lucas Friday.
Lucas, 25, was already in custody in Pueblo on separate charges after he was arrested last month at Denver International Airport in a robbery and assault case when he was served with the new charges. Continue reading
13-year-old accused of Manual High School shooting charged as juvenile with attempted murder
DENVER – The 13-year-old boy accused of shooting three people at Manual High School on Thanksgiving faces juvenile charges of attempted first-degree murder, among others.
The Denver District Attorney’s Office filed the attempted murder charge, as well as two counts of first-degree assault and one count of second-degree assault, against the teenager Friday morning. Continue reading
Sessions: Marijuana use is ‘detrimental,’ Justice Dept. still reviewing enforcement policies
DENVER – There are ongoing discussions within the Justice Department about making changes to marijuana enforcement at the federal level, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Wednesday.
At a press conference announcing new efforts to fight the opioid abuse crisis across the country, Sessions said he still has large concerns about the legitimacy of legal marijuana programs, and that his Justice Department met Tuesday to review possible changes. Continue reading
Coloradans increasingly displeased with President Trump, poll finds
DENVER – Colorado voters are increasingly displeased with President Donald Trump and are looking ahead to 2018’s political races with high interest, according to a new poll released this week.
The poll from Keating Research, based in Telluride, shows two-thirds of state voters have an unfavorable opinion of the president, and three in five think he is “dishonest and tells lies.” Continue reading
Lake County undersheriff was fired; sheriff’s office employees to undergo new harassment training
LAKE COUNTY, Colo. – Former undersheriff Fernando Mendoza was fired by the county sheriff’s office in what was an internal decision, and all sheriff’s office employees will undergo additional sexual harassment training after the allegations, a county commissioner said Tuesday.
“The Lake County Sheriff’s office has terminated Fernando Mendoza from his position as undersheriff as of Monday, Nov. 20, 2017 due to several women in the department bringing allegations of sexual harassment,” says a statement from the board of county commissioners delivered to Denver7 Tuesday. Continue reading
Affidavit: Colorado Springs pastor impregnated 14-year-old girl, she had his child
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The minister accused of sexually assaulting a teen girl had sex with her at least four times and fathered the child of the girl, who had just turned 15 when she birthed the child in September, new police documents reveal.
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said earlier this week it was looking for more possible victims of 22-year-old Romello Leach’s. Leach is a licensed minister associated with several churches that meet often at the Satellite Hotel in Colorado Springs, the sheriff’s office said. Continue reading
Colorado pimp sentenced to 472 years in prison, believed to be longest in U.S. for sex trafficking
ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. – The leader of a Colorado sex trafficking ring on Tuesday received a 472-year prison sentence in what prosecutors believe is the longest human trafficking sentence ever handed down by a judge in the United States.
Brock Franklin, 31, received the sentence after a jury found him guilty in March of 30 counts that included violations under Colorado’s Organized Crime Control Act, charges of pimping a child, human trafficking and sex assault. Continue reading
15-year-old boy accused in deadly Longmont stabbing faces first-degree murder charge
BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. – The 15-year-old boy accused in the deadly stabbing of a Longmont woman was charged Wednesday morning with first-degree murder as a juvenile, though prosecutors will try and get the case moved into adult court.
The boy was charged with 11 counts in Boulder County juvenile court. The charges include first-degree murder, three counts of attempted first-degree murder, felony menacing and sentence enhancers that would kick in if the boy is found guilty. Continue reading
Colorado’s Hickenlooper grants pardons for 22 he says have improved lives and communities
DENVER – Gov. John Hickenlooper granted clemency to 22 people Monday he says have “taken great strides to improve their lives and communities.”
“The 22 people I am pardoning today serve as an example that redemption is possible. I believe they will use this opportunity to continue improving their lives, raising families, and being productive members of their communities,” Hickenlooper said. “They have earned the opportunity for a second chance.”
The 22 pardons mean Hickenlooper has publicly forgiven those people, and come after each person’s completion of their sentence. Continue reading