Colorado Department of Human Services

Marijuana: Bill that would transfer MMJ patient fees for drug counseling gutted

A bill that would have used $10 million in medical marijuana patient registration fees for drug-treatment programs has been gutted for the second year in a row. The Representative Beth McCann-sponsored House Bill 1238, would have transferred $10 million over the next four years from the medical mari ... More >>

Reader: No surprise children are dying given flaws in system

Last week, Judge Chris Melonakis sentenced Donald Scarlett to 42 years in prison for child abuse leading to the death of a 22-month-old boy -- and in doing so, he blistered the Adams County human services department for what he saw as actions that could have prevented the tragedy but didn't. The fol ... More >>

Donald Scarlett guilty of killing toddler but system deserves blame, too, judge says

Unfortunately, instances of child abuse resulting in death happen far too frequently -- especially considering that "once" qualifies as "far too frequently." As a result, the sentencing of Donald Scarlett to more than four decades behind bars for the killing of 22-month-old Michael Harris was expect ... More >>

Gun legislation: Claire Levy's bill would enact real-time data transfer of mental-health records

As the debate around gun policy and mental health heats up in Colorado and across the country, Representative Claire Levy, a Boulder Democrat, is pushing forward with a bill that she says would help keep weapons out of the hands of the wrong people. The legislation would establish real-time data tra ... More >>

John Hickenlooper unveils new mental-health plan, days after Newtown tragedy

This morning's press conference to unveil Colorado's new mental-health plan was scheduled weeks earlier -- but the announcement ended up being very timely, since it took place just days after one of the worst mass shootings in history. And just as Governor John Hickenlooper's recent-gun control comm ... More >>

Can private probation companies be both monitor and counselor for their clients?

Abused kids may mingle with delinquents at a privately run facility

Child near-fatalities: Bill requires state to review them and release info -- with exceptions

Lawmakers have passed a bill that would require the state to review cases of abuse that result in the near-fatality of a child. The bill also requires review of "incidents of egregious abuse or neglect," a more amorphous category that the state Department of Human Services, which backed the bill, sa ... More >>

Child welfare: Hickenlooper's new plan calls for "common practice approach" in all 64 counties

State officials have a new plan for improving Colorado's child-welfare system, one that will beef up training for caseworkers, make data about child deaths more readily available, and employ a "common practice approach" in all 64 counties -- an idea that hasn't gotten far in the past, as explained i ... More >>

Strange but true news stories from the past year

Also read: 2011 Hall of Shame

SNAP Judgment: State officials hope to get food to the needy faster

Colorado day-care center proposal: Dolls must represent at least three different races

Flickr​Here's an item with the potential for firing up enemies of political correctness: New rules proposed by the Colorado Department of Human Services include a requirement that all day-care centers in the state make available dolls representing three different races.

Stepahnie Rochester baby-smothering case on hold because psych evaluation hasn't happened

Stephanie Rochester.​In June 2010, Stephanie Rochester was charged with smothering her infant son, Ryan, allegedly because she feared he might be autistic. More than a year later, the case remains stuck in limbo for a startling reason -- she still hasn't been formally evaluated by a state psy ... More >>

Troy Geske's Colorado Mental Health Institute death due to "malfeasance," grand jury reports

The institute.​A grand jury has concluded that a lethal combination of bad calls, poor training and inadequate supervision led to the death of a patient in restraints at the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo last year. But the probe found no criminal misconduct by employees in the inc ... More >>

Colorado Mental Health Institute deaths linked to understaffing, poor supervision

Colorado Mental Health Institute.​Short staffing, improper restraint procedures and dysfunctional policies contributed to three patient deaths at the state hospital, according to a new report by an independent team of investigators. Officials at the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo, ... More >>

Denver brings meth addicts and cops together in an unprecedented fight against drugs

Crying shame: Kristen Stillman relinquishes her four children in court

Kristen Stillman, victim of horrific abuse, gives up her children, but still has a bill for their care

​The outpouring of support for Kristen Stillman, the survivor of horrific abuse who first told her story in the September 9 issue of Westword, has been amazing. Many, many people want to know how they can help her, and I thought a follow-up that will be published here today would have an answe ... More >>

Benjamin Janicki accused of licking, tickling vaginas of girls at Park Hill day care center

From 7News coverage.​The arrest affidavit that's led to the arrest of Benjamin Janicki, nineteen, is a horror show for any parent -- or any human being with a functioning moral compass. At this point, the Denver District Attorney's Office has charged Janicki with sexual assaults on three chil ... More >>

Death Knell: Colorado wants reforms for its child-welfare system, but the biggest change is off the table

Pro-lifers can't escape the ink of Kenny Be

Justin Carter got out of the Army — and got in trouble

Troubled teens were banished to the Monarch Center wilderness program. Then their troubles really started

Death Sentence

A bureaucratic loophole limits halfway house residents' access to health care, making it harder to survive on the outside.

Get Lost!

These troubled teens found themselves at Lost and Found. But now the program is finding itself out of options.

Funny Money

All Grown Up

At eighteen, these foster kids aged out of a system that denied them a childhood.

The Chiva Game

American hunger for black-tar heroin has made downtown Denver the land of opportunity for immigrant dealers.

Father Hood

Nineteen-year-old Albert Galvan wants to raise his baby, but the court says she's better off with her foster parents.

Running Scared

Shawna Rush worked with troubled teens. Then she was killed by one.

The Centers of the Storm

Are we having funds yet?

Justice Come Lately

A controversial list of supposed child abusers has seen its last days.

Letters to the Editor

From the week of October 10, 2002

Past Due

Former landlords are raising the roof over the Manchegos, the tenants from hell.

Playtime Is Over

The state has barred a child psychologist from using adult sex toys in therapy sessions.

Follow That Story

To-Do List

Throw Away the Key

Boulder County slams the door on a group of juvenile homes that won't lock theirs.

Old-Age Wisdom

The state told Virginia Fraser to shut up, but she won't give up on the elderly.

Teach Your Children Well

The state is finding ways to treat behavioral problems when they first appear -- in daycare.

Follow That Story

Order in the Court

A Mile High

Trick or treatment?

Home for Dinner

To speed up its child welfare system, Denver will need to stop kidding around.

A Badly Altered State

A judge may force Colorado to take care of its homeless mentally ill population.

The Food Group

An innovative welfare-to-work program feeds the restaurant business.

Wish Upon a Czar

The mayor's efforts to crown a drug czar aren't exactly smokin'.

Ready, Willing and Disabled

The state's treatment of the developmentally disabled isn't broken. So why does Colorado want to fix it?

Boy Wonder

Raoul Wuthrich caught the Jeffco Juvenile Justice System with its pants down.

Changing of the Guard

After eighteen months as a ward of the court, Letty Milstein will finally get her day in court.

Adopting an Attitude

Since private agencies took control of adoption in colorado, costs have gone up. For would-be parents, so have the heartaches.

A CRY FOR HELP

THE MAYOR TRIES TO HAVE ONE OF HIS SONS COMMITTED FOR DRUG AND ALCOHOL PROBLEMS.