Crime and Law

Noe Coronado and Jose Esparza's schmucky idea: Selling cocaine from a vacuum bag

Back in the bad old days, when snorting cocaine was seen as a symbol of sophistication and cool, as opposed to indicating throwback sleaziness, the act of getting a line from that powdery, scratched up mirror to your nostril was often described as "Hoovering" -- as in, "Did you see Chad Hoovering up ... More >>

Death penalty poll: Hickenlooper's decision to let Nathan Dunlap live loses nearly 3-1

There was an uproar immediately after Governor John Hickenlooper granted a temporary reprieve to Nathan Dunlap, the condemned killer who murdered four people and badly injured a fifth in 1993 -- and not just from critics like Colorado Attorney General John Suthers or Tom Tancredo, who said he's runn ... More >>

Photos: Ten Colorado counties with the drunkest drunk drivers

Yesterday, we posted about the ten Colorado counties with the most DUIs in 2012, using statistics from the NoDUIColorado.org website. But in addition to bust numbers, the site determines the average blood alcohol content of arrestees in each county. That allows us to figure out which county's drunk ... More >>

Here's why attorney general, Jeffco DA think Hick should have let Nathan Dunlap die

Governor John Hickenlooper's decision to grant a temporary reprieve to Nathan Dunlap, who killed four people and seriously wounded a fifth in an attack on a Chuck E. Cheese restaurant circa 1993, has been cheered in some quarters, but jeered in others. Tom Tancredo decided to run for governor due in ... More >>

Video shows Evan Ebel shooting Texas deputy

Yesterday, in announcing a reprieve for quadruple murderer Nathan Dunlap noted that Lisa Clements remains against the death penalty even after what happened to her husband, the late Colorado prison chief Tom Clements. What happened to Clements is that Evan Ebel allegedly murdered him, then took off ... More >>

Photos: Ten prisoners whose death penalties were switched to life

Yesterday's decision by Governor John Hickenlooper to grant murderer Nathan Dunlap a reprieve from the death penalty -- one that will stand as long as Hickenlooper is in office but can be reversed by successors -- doesn't stand alone. As noted by the Death Penalty Information Center, more than 270 d ... More >>

Photos: Do you recognize the Trick or Treat Bandits?

The FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force has dubbed a crew of bank robbers the Trick or Treat Bandits because surveillance footage shows one member holding a pillowcase like a goodie bag. And goodies they've collected. The feds suspect them of knocking off nine banks or the like from December ... More >>

John Hickenlooper gives Nathan Dunlap reprieve from death but doesn't grant clemency

Moments ago, Governor John Hickenlooper announced his decision regarding the scheduled execution of Nathan Dunlap, who was convicted in 1996 of killing four people and seriously wounding a fifth during an assault three years earlier at a Chuck E. Cheese restaurant. Rather than granting clemency, as ... More >>

Nathan Dunlap: Mom of victim Ben Grant latest to call for killer to die

We've been covering a clemency bid by Nathan Dunlap, who killed four people at a Chuck E. Cheese in 1993; see our previous coverage below. Yesterday, we shared a letter to Governor John Hickenlooper by a woman who was scheduled to work at the restaurant on the fateful evening but took the night off ... More >>

Air Force sex assaults: Prevention chief arrested ten years after scandal at Air Force Academy

The arrest of Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Krusinski on charges of sexual assault in Virginia has drawn condemnation from officials as high-ranking as President Barack Obama, and no wonder. After all, he was the Air Force's chief of sexual-assault prevention. Krusinski is also a graduate of the Air F ... More >>

Nathan Dunlap clemency bid: "No principled reason" to execute quadruple murderer

The decision by attorneys for accused Aurora theater shooter James Holmes to enter a not guilty by reason of insanity plea seems motivated mainly by an effort to avoid the death penalty. Those representing Nathan Dunlap, convicted of killing four people at a Chuck E. Cheese restaurant in 1993, are ... More >>

Miguel Ita stabbing: DA frustrated by new rules for charging fifteen year olds as adults

Last week, we told you about the decision of the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office to name Miguel Angel Ita, fifteen, as the prosecutorial target in a fatal Lakewood stabbing and begin the procedure to try him as an adult. That process has changed, and not for the better in the view of Je ... More >>

Ken McGill: Read lawsuit of inmate who suffered stroke in jail, wasn't treated for 24 hours

On September 17, 2012, as detailed in this week's cover story, "Life Sentence," Ken McGill suffered a stroke while incarcerated at Jefferson County Detention Facility for a DUI, and he told everyone he could about it. In response, he was forced to spend the night on the floor of solitary confinement ... More >>

Rollin Oliver pleads guilty to second-degree murder in slaying of Officer Celena Hollis

Rollin Oliver pleaded guilty today to second-degree murder in the shooting death of Denver police officer Celena Hollis last June. The 22-year-old faces a sentence of sixteen to 26 years in prison according to the plea agreement, which is on view below. The original charge of first-degree murder/ext ... More >>

Should the media forgo using killers' names and photos?

See also: For Aurora theater shooting victim Carli Richards, the worst isn't over yet

For Aurora theater shooting victim Carli Richards, the worst isn't over yet

See also: Should the media forgo using killers' names and photos?

Kevin Purfield arrested for harassing Aurora theater shooting victims' families

A Portland man has been arrested for harassing the families of victims of the Aurora theater shooting. Kevin Michael Purfield, 45, is accused of "e-mailing, calling and using social media to contact various family members of victims of the theater shooting," the Portland police say in a statement. ... More >>

Isaiah Moreno arrested in fatal stabbing of Estevan Ruiz on RTD bus (70)

Update: We've been reporting about a fatal stabbing on a Number 15 RTD bus near Federal and Colfax yesterday afternoon. A short time ago, the Denver Police Department revealed that Isaiah Moreno, twenty, had been arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder. Now, the Denver coroner's office has ide ... More >>

Edward Montour guilty plea ruling: David Lane on death penalty, James Holmes, "bloody 18th"

At a February hearing, Edward Montour sought to withdraw his guilty plea for a 2002 murder in an effort to avoid the death penalty he'd previously sought. The office of 18th Judicial District DA George Brauchler, who's also seeking death for accused Aurora theater shooter James Holmes, argued agains ... More >>

Fox News's Jana Winter won't face choice of jail or testimony tomorrow in theater shooting case

Fox News reporter Jana Winter won't face such a tough decision tomorrow after all. The judge in the Aurora theater shooting case has delayed a ruling on whether to compel Winter to testify about her confidential sources until after he decides whether to allow a notebook that suspect James Holmes mai ... More >>

Photos: Ten executions gone horribly wrong

Capitol punishment has made plenty of news in Colorado lately, thanks to a failed attempt to ban the practice and 18th Judicial District DA George Brauchler's pledge to seek seek the death penalty against accused Aurora theater shooter James Holmes. But what about when executions go wrong? CU Profe ... More >>

James Holmes prosecutor: "For James Eagan Holmes, justice is death"

Update: After DA George Brauchler announced at today's Aurora theater shooting hearing that he plans to seek the death penalty against James Holmes, Judge Carlos Samour turned his attention to defense attorneys' desire for Fox News reporter Jana Winter to reveal sources who gave her information abou ... More >>

James Holmes's court filing about guilty-plea offer a publicity ploy, prosecution says

Update by Melanie Asmar: Was James Holmes's court filing stating that he was willing to plead guilty to avoid the death penalty a publicity stunt? That's the allegation being made by prosecutors in a response to Holmes's filing (on view below). The filing, they wrote, "appears to be an attempt to ... More >>

Aurora theater shooting judge to hear oral arguments about Fox News reporter subpoena

The judge in the Aurora theater shooting case has agreed to hear oral arguments on Monday about whether Fox News reporter Jana Winter should have to testify about her unnamed sources. But he is requiring Winter to travel to Colorado, despite the fact that her attorneys requested she not have to do s ... More >>

James Holmes's Facebook supporters don't see guilty plea offer as proof of guilt

Yesterday, a newly released document revealed that James Holmes is willing to plead guilty to killing twelve people and injuring seventy others in the Aurora theater shooting if prosecutors agree not to pursue the death penalty. What's the reaction of online Holmes fans? Well, there appear to be a ... More >>

Civil rights lawsuits attack excesses of Colorado's sex offender laws

Colorado's tough sex offender laws are supposed to keep predators under tight supervision. But a series of lawsuits claim that the system is violating even minor offenders' rights to free speech and association, prohibiting contact with family members -- and, in one particularly bizarre case, telli ... More >>

Capitol Hill rape case wasn't highlighted because victim was a man, cops say

Earlier this month, we told you about a reported sexual assault of a man in Capitol Hill by two still-unknown male assailants. Afterward, a reader argued that the case had gotten so much attention because the victim was male, whereas incidents of women being raped in Capitol Hill happen frequently ... More >>

Death penalty battle heats up at the State Capitol

In more than eight hours of emotional testimony that stretched well into the evening, activists and faith groups seeking to abolish the death penalty in Colorado squared off against prosecutors and other backers of the ultimate punishment yesterday -- with family members of homicide victims speaking ... More >>

Former detective Pat Kennedy on The Jeffrey Dahmer Files

More than twenty years after the story broke, America's fascination with cannibal sex killer Jeffrey Dahmer lingers on. In The Jeffrey Dahmer Files, a new documentary on the case playing tonight and tomorrow at the Sie FilmCenter for the Denver Film Society's Watching Hour, three of the people close ... More >>

The five best jail-inspired musician memoirs

Pop culture incrementally improved the chances that books would outlive CDs when news spread that Lil Wayne had inked a deal to write a memoir about the eight months he spent locked up on gun charges. Titled Gone 'Til November, the book is scheduled to be released in May. While the hip-hop blogosphe ... More >>

Dahmer Drama

James Holmes: Read advisement judge will give him if he pleads not guilty due to insanity

The judge in the Aurora theater shooting case has settled on the advisement that he will read to James Holmes should the suspect plead not guilty by reason of insanity at tomorrow's arraignment. It includes warnings that if Holmes enters such a plea, he'll be subject to a court-ordered psychiatric ... More >>

Edward Montour case: Was inmate a "volunteer" for the death penalty?

In an unusual court hearing unfolding in Castle Rock, attorneys for Edward Montour Jr. are seeking to withdraw his guilty plea for the murder of a correctional officer in 2002, claiming that he was mentally ill at the time and seeking "court-assisted suicide" by firing his lawyers in a death-penalty ... More >>

Aurora theater shooting victims are being harassed by conspiracy proponents, DA says

Aurora theater shooting victims are being harassed by "proponents of purported 'conspiracies,'" according to a motion filed by prosecutors requesting that victims' names be redacted from court documents if the gag order in the case is lifted, as the city of Aurora requested. Some of the harassers "h ... More >>

Social Network Privacy Act: Could it help future CarlyCrunkBears?

The uproar over photos and messages associated with the Twitter account of Overland High's Carly McKinney, aka CarlyCrunkBear, offers a cautionary tale about the ways in which social media has changed the professional landscape. But a new bill headed to the Colorado legislature could make losing one ... More >>

Aurora theater shooting inspires local first-graders to launch Jar of Kindness project

How do you help young children cope with a terrible tragedy? A first-grade teacher in Aurora has come up with a way. Every day after recess, the kids in Megan Anderson's class at Peoria Elementary sit on the classroom's alphabet rug and talk about the kind things they've done that day. Each kind ac ... More >>

Photos: "Pro marriage" supporters protest civil union bill at State Capitol

At noon, two days after a Senate committee voted to approve a bill allowing same-sex civil unions, a sizable crowd of "pro-marriage" supporters rallied on the steps of the State Capitol building. A similar gathering took place in May last year following the failure of another civil union bill. But ... More >>

In 2013, debt collection is big business -- really big

Terrance Roberts' anti-gang initiative, Prodigal Son, faces potential shutdown

Terrance Roberts is one of Denver's great comeback stories. A one-time shot-caller in the Park Hill Bloods, Roberts turned his life around and founded the Prodigal Son Initiative, an anti-gang youth program in northeast Park Hill. When a 2008 gang-related arson attack destroyed the Holly Square Shop ... More >>

Robert Price in court: Dog-kill cop's charges not fueled by public pressure, DA's office says

In November, Commerce City Police Officer Robert Price shot and killed Chloe, a mixed breed dog, in an incident caught on video. After Price was charged with animal cruelty, a police group suggested that the accusations were fueled by a lynch-mob mentality. As Price made his first court appearance y ... More >>

Colorado Civil Unions Act to be reintroduced today, activist optimistic about its chances

Although Colorado has led the way in the effort to legalize small amounts of marijuana, it's another bill that may just push the state into the 21st century: the Colorado Civil Unions Act. After dying on the legislative floor last year, the bill will be heard and debated at 1:30 p.m. today by the Co ... More >>

The lifers book club: Of mice and men, hopes and regrets at the Limon prison

See also: The ten best books about America's prisons

Aurora theater shooting: City asks judge to consider lifting gag order against it

The City of Aurora has asked the judge in the theater shooting case to revise a gag order that prohibits law enforcement agents from discussing what happened. "The city has refused numerous requests...to give presentations regarding the theater shooting," an attorney for the city wrote in a motion f ... More >>

Police group: Commerce City cop charged in dog shooting is victim of lynch mob mentality

Reports of an Adams County deputy killing a dog after responding to the wrong address undoubtedly caused a case of déjà vu for locals, since it followed a dog shooting by a Commerce City cop that was captured on video in November; see it below. That officer was subsequently charged with animal cru ... More >>

Lynne Fenton, James Holmes's psychiatrist, sued by wife of Aurora theater shooting victim

At least eight lawsuits have been filed against Cinemark, owner of the Aurora Century 16, where twelve people were killed and seventy injured in a July 20 attack. (The theater will reopen tomorrow.) Now, however, a newly filed suit targets different parties: Dr. Lynne Fenton, who provided psychiatri ... More >>

Aurora Century 16's free reopening weekend to feature Taken 2, Bourne Legacy, Red Dawn

Nearly six months after the mass shooting in Aurora, Cinemark, the owner of the theater where the massacre occurred, is reopening the site to the public on Friday, sparking backlash from victims' families. More debate could arise about some of the movies being screened for free over the weekend -- i ... More >>

The ten best books about America's prisons

This week's cover story, "The Lifers Book Club," reports on the Words Beyond Bars Project, a pilot progam at the Limon Correctional Facility that puts high-security prisoners, many of them serving life sentences, in a room with volunteers to discuss great books. It's a modest effort that could trans ... More >>

User review making fun of Aurora theater shooting still on Movietimes.com months later

Last August, just over a week after the Aurora theater shooting, we checked movie-ticket websites for the shuttered Aurora Century 16 and were shocked to discover that a user review making light of the tragedy was on the Movietimes.com page. With the theater set to reopen on Thursday, we looked aga ... More >>

James Holmes case: Judge gives trial go-ahead, defense wants more time to enter plea

A judge has ruled that there's enough evidence to try alleged Aurora theater shooter James Holmes for murder. Holmes is accused of killing twelve people and injuring seventy others by opening fire at the Century 16 theater on July 20. He'll be back in court Friday at 9 a.m. for a hearing, at which ... More >>

Aurora theater shooting spawns eighth lawsuit (at least) against Cinemark

The Aurora Century 16, where James Holmes allegedly killed twelve and injured seventy, is slated to reopen next Thursday, January 17. But the attempts by Century 16 owner Cinemark to move on haven't stopped the shooting-related lawsuits against the firm that have appeared regularly over the past six ... More >>