Colorado Springs Police Department

Atlantis Michaelson tied to 1997 sex assault after DNA hit

Judging by a series of mug shots online, Atlantis Michaelson, age 41, has a thing for changing his appearance -- perhaps in the hope of escaping responsibility for past offenses. Too bad for him that changing DNA isn't nearly so easy. Michaelson was recently arrested in Virginia (where he was in p ... More >>

Brandon Bougades, busted for Garden of the Gods gunfire, is wounded vet with PTSD

Folks living near Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs can be forgiven for wondering if they'd awakened in the middle of a firefight. Suddenly, the night exploded with the sound of gunfire. Maybe a hundred rounds' worth. Probably more. The man behind the trigger turned out to be Brandon Bougades, ... More >>

Miguel Sanchez took a leak outside -- and got busted for a thirteen-year-old murder

So you're on the run, and have been for years. But you haven't gotten caught because you've been smart, you've been cautious and you haven't done anything that would attract the attention of the law. Except for that one time -- when you really, really had to drain your lizard. That, in a nut sack ... More >>

Child charged with arson follows dozen 2012 juvie busts for starting fires in Colorado Springs

On Sunday, a Colorado Springs "juvenile male" said to be playing with matches set his bedroom on fire, after which he was arrested for fourth-degree arson. Unusual? Less so than you might think. Last year, the city saw 39 significant fire incidents involving minors and twelve arrests requiring the r ... More >>

Marijuana: Colorado Springs owes $3.3M-plus after dispensary prosecution fails, attorney says

In March, Rocky Mountain Miracles owner Ali Hillery was hit with felony charges over alleged discrepancies in the Colorado Springs dispensary's plant count. She was cleared of these charges last month, and her attorney, Sean McAllister, issued a motion calling for material seized by authorities to b ... More >>

Dr. Janice Husted, psychologist, charged with sex assault on military client

Hollywood loves stories about psychiatrists and patients drawn into love matches during their shared time together -- much of it involving a couch. But the folks at the Colorado Springs Police Department aren't nearly as charmed by the concept. Just ask Dr. Janice Husted, who's been arrested for all ... More >>

Colorado Springs vandalism: "I hate black people" and swastikas, just in time for the holidays

Nothing signals holiday spirit like the scrawled message "I hate black people," accompanied by a swastika. This was the message that vandals in Colorado Springs left just before Christmas, according to city officials. In an alert, police say they are searching for leads in two cases -- one involving ... More >>

Fifteen weirdest mug shots of 2012

Today, we begin our six-part roundup of 2012's most memorable mug shots, culled from our crime coverage throughout the year. And given what's happened in these parts over the past almost-twelve months, it's only appropriate that we're starting out with the weirdest images -- frequently with weird al ... More >>

David Grosse, retired Air Force chaplain, suspected of multiple sex assaults

Another week, another arrest of a man with a ministerial past on a sex-crime beef. Mere days after disgraced ex-priest Daniel Drinan was charged with pleasuring himself on a plane, David Grosse, a retired Air Force chaplain, has been arrested for suspected sexual assault against four victims and may ... More >>

Jasim Ramadon, former teen Iraqi hero, charged in horrific rape

Jasim Mohammed Hassin Ramadon is one of five Iraqi men charged in a rape so horrific that a Colorado Springs Police spokeswoman can barely describe the details without getting emotional. And yet last fall, Ramadon was featured in a TV report on view below in which he was hailed as a hero for helping ... More >>

Photos: Twenty most memorable mug shots of July 2012

There's one mug shot that will forever be associated with Colorado crime in 2012 -- and yes, you'll find it below. But before and after the dreadful events of July 20, plenty of other folks allegedly did wrong -- or were found guilty for doing so. Check out the twenty most memorable booking photos ... More >>

Dennis O'Dell charged with uncle's meth-fueled hammer murder two months after attack

Dennis O'Dell was first taken into custody circa early May in relation to a hammer attack on his uncle -- one allegedly fueled by a bad dream and their mutual interest in meth. Now, however, he's been charged with murder, after his horribly injured relative died.

Colorado Springs Police bust of Steven Woods first under urban camping ban ordinance

At approximately 9:50 a.m. yesterday, the Colorado Springs Police Department made its first arrest for the city's public camping ban, which officers began enforcing ordinance in 2010. During an investigation of unlawful camps that had been set up in the area, members of the city's Homeless Outreach ... More >>

Brian Hedglin, Springs murder suspect, tries to hijack plane before killing himself

Update: Only hours after we posted about Brian Hedglin, a man sought by Colorado Springs authorities in the murder of Christina Cornejo (he was on bond for having allegedly harassing her earlier this year), he ended his life in a blaze of infamy. Hedglin reportedly tried to hijack a plane in Utah b ... More >>

James Henry Bratt: Meth, ankle monitor and fatal stabbing of James Bidgood

The eleventh homicide of 2012 in Colorado Springs is an extremely sordid tale. The victim: James Bidgood, a local homeless man. The accused: James Henry Bratt, a 36-year-old with a noteworthy criminal record. The ingredients: domestic violence, an ankle monitor, meth and more. A lot more.

Father Charles Robert Manning allegedly acted like jealous lover around fifteen year old

The arrest affidavit pertaining to Father Charles Robert Manning, an ex-Catholic priest in Colorado Springs who's been busted on suspicion of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust, is currently sealed. But comments from a woman who says she reported Manning to authorities sugg ... More >>

Top ten Colorado posts on Raw Confessions

The website Raw Confessions specializes in unsigned posts, because anonymity encourages honesty, whether it's unflinching, ugly or hilarious. We've collected and photo-illustrated the ten most notable rants with Colorado connections. Some of the items encourage sympathy. Others definitely don't -- b ... More >>

Guy Cruz, probation officer, allegedly told woman no sex = jail

Guy Cruz is no longer a probation officer for the 4th Judicial District, and neither he is a high school tennis coach, the next gig he took up. But the Pueblo resident is in big trouble for allegedly threatening a parolee with jail or a loss of access to her son if she didn't get horizontal with him ... More >>

Miller moths cause fiery car crash in Colorado Springs

Colorado is under attack! By Miller moths! This earlier-than-usual invasion has inspired plenty of grumbling, as well as Melanie Asmar's list earlier this week of the top five alternative uses for the irritating little buggers. Note that Asmar didn't include anything about moths causing car crashes ... More >>

Charles McNew put in a jail cell for allegedly stealing a jail cell

Talk about the circle of life. Charles McNew is currently cooling his heels in a jail cell after being accused of stealing a jail cell -- a vintage one from the 1800s that was believed to be the last of its kind in existence. It's not anymore, though.

John Severe latest biker with military background busted in Virgil Means homicide

Update: "For all those who are worried.... I'm ok. Just dealing with some shit but I will be fine." That's a Facebook message posted a short time ago by John Severe, a Colorado Springs resident who's worked for the military. And he is indeed dealing with some shit: He's one of five people arrested t ... More >>

Bobby Harris busted for stabbing wife Angela Moser to death in Colorado Springs

Angela Moser, 44, was able to dial 911 after being brutally stabbed, but the wounds ultimately proved fatal. Who inflicted them? Police point the finger at husband Bobby Harris, who was Moser's junior by thirteen years -- and who a former girlfriend accuses of past violent behavior.

Rayshawn Laster: Guilty plea for man who shot his mother, Facebooked about it

Rayshawn Laster has pleaded guilty to fatally shooting his mother in the head late last year. Which was pretty much his only option, since in the immediate aftermath of the slaying, he texted a confession and admitted on his Facebook page that he'd done something unforgivable.

John Burrell second soldier busted in Virgil Means killing near motorcycle club

Update: In recent days, Fort Carson-based Sergeant Christopher Mountjoy was arrested in the death of Virgil Means outside the Sin City Disciples motorcycle club. Now, a second soldier, John Burrell, has been arrested in the incident. He's being held on the charge of murder in the first degree.

Daniel Kim accused of punching infant son hard enough to crack his skull

Every parent gets frustrated when a baby starts crying and won't stop. But 22-year-old Daniel Kim's alleged solution to this situation caused infinitely more problems for all concerned. He's accused of trying to silence his infant son by slugging him in the head hard enough to crack his skull.

Bud Linton shoots pit bull dead after alleged attack on three other dogs

The local Team Pit-A-Full organization continues to push an online petition against breed-specific legislation exemplified by Denver's pit bull ban. But such efforts are complicated by stories like one out of Colorado Springs, in which Bud Linton, pictured, shot a pit bull dead after it allegedly a ... More >>

Glen Godec, children's photographer and alleged porn fan, accused of sexually assaulting a child

Big pic below.​Glen Godec's Photobucket page features well over 1,000 images, most seemingly benign. But the closer you look, the more you notice that the preponderance of shots feature little girls -- a fact that's been rendered ultra-creepy by news that Godec has been busted on a couple of s ... More >>

Melissa Alexander faces possible 1st degree murder charge in death of Army beau's baby

Big pic below.​When Army recruit Matt Strickland was assigned to spend a month training in Louisiana in preparation for overseas deployment, he reportedly trusted his girlfriend, Melissa Alexander, to care for his one-year-old daughter. The decision had fatal consequences: The tot's dead and A ... More >>

Marcus Smith, man suspected of killing, burning remains of ex-deacon, 87: His apologetic past

The allegation is shocking: Colorado Springs Police believe Marcus Smith, 21, killed Kathryn "Kit" Grazioli, an 87-year-old former church deacon, and burned her body. This act contrasts strongly with an apology letter he wrote in regard to the theft of a computer and DVDs two years ago.

Marijuana bust: Chicago-Colorado Springs link, and possible tie to extraction pro Matt Schnur

​Last week, DEA personnel announced four arrests related to a marijuana shipment from Colorado Springs to Chicago. All the busts were made in Illinois, but a grow was destroyed near the Springs, and extraction expert Matt Schnur has been named in a related press account. What's Schnur's story? ... More >>

Kevin Gaylor reports Craigslist pal as burglar when girlfriend shows up

Flickr​The guy juggling two dates at the same time is a sitcom staple, and it's usually resolved in wacky fashion. But a happy ending seems unlikely in the case of Kevin Gaylor, who gave this plot a high-tech twist -- by reporting a woman he'd "met" on Craigslist as a burglar in a failed atte ... More >>

Aleister Wild guitarist Terry Span in coma after altercation with bassist Michael Sorden

Update 10/21/11: More troubling news today out of the Springs. There's been several reports filtering in last night and this afternoon that Aliester Wild guitarist Terry Span has passed away. We'll post more details as they become available. BandMix.comMichael Sorden (left) and Terry Span of Alies ... More >>

Joshua Carrier: Court sighting for school officer accused of doing genital exam for stomach ache

Big pic below.​The legal maneuverings continue in the case of Joshua Carrier, a former Colorado Springs cop who's charged with nearly 200 incidents of sexual assault on children. He had easy access to kids, given that he was a school resource officer and volunteer wrestling coach.

Arthur Baldwin allegedly fires shots, tries to grab student selling discount cards

Big pic below.​Most of us don't enjoy dealing with door-to-door salespersons. Even when they don't show up during dinner (which they usually do), they disrupt your personal time and space in irritating ways. But Arthur Baldwin allegedly took this dislike way too far... even before he grabbed ... More >>

Pit bulls at center of two shootings by Colorado police officers in two days

​The debate about Denver's longstanding pit bull ban continues to raise passions among those who love the breed, as well as people who fear it. And this week, two separate incidents have fired more debate. One in which Edgewater officers killed a Rottweiler after the dog and a pit bull chased ... More >>

Gay soldiers attacked in CO Springs, mayor rejects resolution denouncing hate crimes

​According to Charles Irwin, executive director of Colorado Springs Pride Center, two of the five gay people recently attacked at a fast-food restaurant in the city were soldiers. Nonetheless, neither the mayor nor the city council will sign a hate-crime-denouncing resolution prompted by the a ... More >>

Eric Caverly, youth group volunteer with CO Springs church, accused of child sex assault

Big pic below.​Eric Caverly, 37, was a youth group volunteer with a Colorado Springs church -- and we're using the past tense in this sentence because he's presumably been cut loose following his arrest on suspicion of sexual assault on a child. The victim in question? A young woman who was si ... More >>

Dog the Bounty Hunter: Did Duane Chapman make false report about CO Springs shooting?

Duane Chapman.​You might recall the hubbub back in 2009 when news broke that Duane "Dog" Chapman and his Dog the Bounty Hunter crew had apparently been shot at while attempting to apprehend a bail jumper in Colorado Springs. But now, the man arrested following the April 21, 2009 incident is su ... More >>

Parris Mathis: Weed apparently didn't mellow man accused of beating couple with spirit stick

Big pic below.​Was Parris Mathis immune to marijuana's well-known calming effects? You've gotta wonder given the police release about his arrest. Seems he got into an argument with a woman for "sitting on the stairwell" (!), and when a man tried to intervene, he allegedly pummeled both of them ... More >>

I friended the Department of Corrections: A look at Facebook's most boring fan pages

Now more boring than ever!​Colorado Attorney General John Suthers has been trying to get on Facebook for over a year. Due to issues with the social networking site's indemnity clause -- which says Facebook is not responsible for one user suing another -- Suthers last April ordered all state ag ... More >>

YTCracker on the virtues of Nerdcore and the finer points of hacking

Straight outta C Springs, YTCracker is among nerd core's finest​ YTCracker rolls with a crew and movement known as "nerdcore," the epicenter of all things sophisticated and geeky. The rapper -- aka Bryce Case, who pronounces his name as "whitey cracker" -- and his contemporaries, guys like MC ... More >>

Anthony Ganter, babysitter from hell, accused of sexually assaulting fourteen male children

Large photo below.​Beware the single guy who's a little too eager to babysit your male children -- at least if he resembles the description emerging of Anthony Ganter. Colorado Springs authorities have charged Ganter with sexual assault on a child, plus failure to register as a sex offender, i ... More >>

Alfred Luedtke has sword, will threaten -- until the cops tase him

Not Alfred Luedtke (although maybe in his mind).​Anyone can threaten people with a gun. People who do that are as common as Caucasians at Tea Party rallies. But Alfred Luedtke, 42, is allegedly a cut above. This weekend, according to the Colorado Springs Police Department, officers arrived a ... More >>

William James Rucker earns 17-year sentence for what was in his Crown Royal bag -- a gun

This would have gone down a lot more smoothy.​The item in William James Rucker's Crown Royal bag packed quite a kick -- maybe because it was manufactured by Smith & Wesson. Yesterday, Rucker, who'd been convicted of five previous crimes punishable by over a year in stir, took imprisonment to ... More >>

Text invite turns into April Fools' Day date from hell

A Flickr photo"Come on over for something special ;)"​Don't know what a guy expected yesterday when he responded to a text message from a woman he'd just met inviting him to come over. Maybe a friendly conversation -- or a glass of white wine -- or a booty call straight out of a hip-hop video. ... More >>

Felony weed charges dropped against "pregnant caregiver" Sherri Versfelt

Sherri Versfelt shows off her baby bump.​Boulder District Attorney Stan Garnett says he's "committed to having the most progressive approach to medical marijuana of any DA's office in the state." And yesterday, he took another step toward establishing that reputation by dismissing charges agai ... More >>

More Pieces of the Matthew Murray Puzzle

Bull's Eyeful

The sordid legal saga of Katica Crippen, Second Amendment pinup girl.

The Home of the Rave

Promoters hurry to get their acts together -- before parents, police and the courts decide the party's over.

Strange but True