U.S. Department of Justice

Alex Landau case: No charges against three Denver cops in his brutal beating

Update below: In February, the Justice Department decided not to charge the officers who beat Alex Landau to a pulp with federal civil rights violations. Then, days later, a cop who pummeled him was reinstated at the conclusion of a separate excessive-force investigation. Although Landau was frustr ... More >>

Marijuana: Eric Holder says fed response to Colorado law coming soon

Yesterday, eight former DEA administrators sent a letter to ranking members of the Senate Judiciary Committee (see it below), encouraging them to quiz U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder about why the Justice Department hasn't cracked down on Colorado and Washington state over their recently passed ma ... More >>

Marijuana: United Nations board says Colorado pot law violates international treaties

As we reported earlier today, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder didn't choose his appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee to share the Justice Department response to marijuana laws in Colorado that contradict federal policy. The measures contradict international treaties, too, as a new rep ... More >>

Alex Laundau responds to feds' decision not to charge Denver cops who brutally beat him

Organizations hoping to bury unpleasant or potentially controversial news traditionally release information late Friday, in the hope that many folks already in weekend mode miss the development. A classic example: Justice Department reps chose Friday at 6:30 p.m. to inform Alex Landau that they woul ... More >>

Appeals hearing for Michael DeHerrera officers delayed (again) until October

For those keeping track at home, the investigation of the April 2009 on-camera beating of Michael DeHerrera has lasted more than three years -- and it's not done yet: The Colorado Progressive Coalition announced today that the case had been delayed for five more months. Over the past three years, th ... More >>

Alex Landau refuses to re-enact Denver cop beating

On January 29, 2009, Alex Landau was brutally beaten by Denver cops after they pulled him over for what they said was an illegal left turn -- but he charged was racial profiling. And the City of Denver agreed -- or at least was worried enough about the federal lawsuit Landau filed to settle with La ... More >>

Prison rape: Justice Department says poor design, training, attitudes fuel assaults

Last year a federal review panel heard some amazing excuses from corrections officials about why their jails and prisons have exceptionally high rates of sexual assault. One sheriff even claimed inmates were faking stories of rape in order to get cookies from researchers.

Police misconduct: New review commander suggested suspension for DeHerrera officers

In the past month, the Denver Police Department has institutionalized numerous changes aimed at increasing the efficiency of its internal reviews and encouraging the public to put faith in the results. According to Police Chief Robert White and Manager of Safety Alex Martinez, this is a very, very g ... More >>

Rocky Flats land swap: Department of Justice headed to court to lift roadblock

The Justice Department could be in federal court today, filing a motion to lift the roadblock that Superior (joined by Golden) put in the path of the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife's plan to transfer a 300-foot right-of-way on the east side of Rocky Flats to the Jefferson Parkway Public Highwa ... More >>

Medical marijuana: Jared Polis shrugs off seizure letters amid sellout claims

U.S. Attorney John Walsh's seizure letters to 23 dispensaries near schools sent shock waves through the local medical marijuana community, since most if not all of the centers were legal under Colorado law. Afterward, criticism of Representative Jared Polis, a longtime MMJ supporter, mounted, with o ... More >>

Kenneth Scott, abortion protester, adds national lawyers to defense team in clinic-blocking case

Kenneth and Jo Scott.​ Kenneth Scott, abortion protester extraordinaire, recently added more firepower to his legal defense: He is now being represented by the Thomas More Society, a national pro-life law firm. In June, Scott and his wife, Jo, were served with a civil complaint by the U.S. Jus ... More >>

Jo Scott, abortion zealot, permanently enjoined from using threat of force at clinic protests

Jo Scott.​Jo Scott is the truest of believers when it comes the fight against abortion rights -- so much so that she's repeatedly violated both state and federal laws designed to protect clinic visitors. But the level of harassment will presumably be modified now that a settlement with the Jus ... More >>

Prison rape: Sheriff compares it to UFO sightings, other "cultural delusions"

​Corrections officials are understandably defensive about a controversial Bureau of Justice Statistics survey that indicates a high incidence of prisoner sexual abuse in their facilities. But is that any reason for jail bosses to claim inmates are concocting fake stories of prison rape in orde ... More >>

Medical marijuana could be legalized in more than half of U.S. states by 2014, advocate says

​Could the broader approval of medical marijuana lead to legalization of marijuana for recreational use? That's one theory put forward by cannabis activists like Morgan Fox, communications manager for the Marijuana Policy Project. Fox believes more than half of U.S. states could legalize MMJ b ... More >>

Prison rape: New resource center focuses on improving prosecution, prevention

​You won't find many prisons where the subject of rape behind bars is openly discussed, by inmates or staff -- not because it isn't a problem, but because it is. A Bureau of Justice Statistics report estimates that more than 200,000 adult prisoners endured sexual assaults in 2008, roughly one ... More >>

Michael Bennet says ID laws disenfranchise legit voters while searching for bogus ones

Michael Bennet.​These three Denver blog posts swam into our 'net. Colorado Independent's Scot Kersgaard on Michael Bennet's request that the Department of Justice look closely at voter-ID laws he thinks may disenfranchise thousands. At Colorado Education News, Sabrina Stevens Shupe weighs in ... More >>

Medical marijuana: Does Melinda Haag's memo foreshadow federal MMJ raids in Colorado?

Melinda Haag.​While medical marijuana is legal in Colorado, it remains against U.S. law -- and the push and pull between the state and the feds continues to concern the local MMJ community. Case in point: The Haag memo, a letter sent in February by California-based U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag p ... More >>

Asylum Denied: Only a fraction of Mexicans get U.S. asylum

Get Out!: Arizona and America Join Joe Arpaio in Rushing to Inquire: Are Your Papers in Order?

Medical marijuana and the Chris Bartkowicz home-grow bust: Does federal law trump Amendment 20?

The case involving Chris Bartkowicz, seen in a 9News image, has opened a legal kettle of worms.​Highlands Ranch's Chris Bartkowicz, whose home was raided by the DEA in February soon after he showed off his grow to a 9News reporter, is expected to offer a guilty plea in relation to the case. N ... More >>

Medical marijuana raid in Highlands Ranch: Chris Bartkowicz attorney Joseph Saint-Veltri on conflicts between federal, state marijuana law

Chris Bartkowicz, as seen in the 9News story that brought him to the DEA's attention.​Many of the attorneys who specialize in medical marijuana issues in Colorado speak, including Rob Corry, Lauren Davis and Brian Vicente, speak openly about cases while they're in progress. Joseph Saint-Veltr ... More >>

Rob Corry says Chris Bartkowicz medical marijuana bust proof the DEA has gone rogue

Rob Corry doesn't want the DEA to go rogue anymore.​You didn't think attorney Rob Corry would remain silent after the Drug Enforcement Administration raid on the home of Chris Bartkowicz, did you? After all, Corry's among the most vocal of all Colorado's medical marijuana advocates, and if he ... More >>

Scott McInnis (kind of) tops Colorado Ethics Watch's top five ethics scandals of 2009 list

"Hey, my hands are clean!"​Last year, ethics in Colorado improved by 50 percent -- at least judging by Colorado Ethics Watch's list of the year's top ethical standards. After all, the 2008 edition was ten items long, but the 2009 sports just five. "We realized it had been a slow year," says ne ... More >>

Wake-Up Call: Holiday parties go to pot

​At holiday parties this weekend, everyone was talking about pot. I haven't been asked about marijuana this much since my first day of college in 1972, when I wore a hippie-print dress and my dormmates assumed I could hook them up. People were talking about the booming business in medical mar ... More >>

How medical marijuana regulations could turn the wild West into the mild, mild West

See this bobcat? A Colorado couple has been charged with wanting to kill and skin it

A Flickr photo"If I ever see that Jeffrey Bodnar, I'm gonna rip him a new one."​ Hey, Jeffrey Bodnar and Veronica Anderson-Bodnar. If you're guilty of what a federal grand jury in Denver indicted you for earlier this week, you won't win a popularity contest among nature and animal lovers. The ... More >>

Wake-Up Call: Talk about the Mile High (and Higher) City!

​Even Balloon Boy couldn't knock our hunt for a medical-marijuana reviewer out of the national news. Yesterday, NPR's Sunday show ran a piece about our quest, resulting in still more applications coming in from across the country. But sorry, folks: We're looking for a Colorado resident, someon ... More >>

The Obama administration: a Colorado College cabal?

​Every presidency has its own biases about the kind of education that makes for good leaders. JFK stacked the deck with Harvard grads; Bush I and Bush II leaned toward Yalies, of course. Snobbery, Eastern elitism, Ivy Leaguism--it's been expected of the White House since the days of Woodrow Wi ... More >>

Exxon-Mobil: admitted bird killers

Talk about paying at the pump.​Exxon-Mobil had a bad day in court in Denver yesterday. The firm pleaded guilty to killing migratory birds in five states, including Colorado. The size of the fine and community-service payments Exxon-Mobil has agreed to pony up -- $600,000 -- is, to use an avian ... More >>

Colorado Crimes: Read the plea agreement in Denver halfway-house case

A Flickr photo Escaping from a halfway house isn't the same as busting out of jail. After all, it can be done while walking instead of running. But it's still a serious offense in the eyes of the law, which is why Alejandro Barron-Reyes, 34, was just sentenced to eighteen months for splitting from ... More >>

Colorado Crimes: Read the indictment in an alleged oil-and-gas investment scam

A Flickr photo "Three former Colorado Springs residents were indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver this week on charges of conspiracy and fraud for selling about $1.6 million of oil and gas investments in projects they did not own, Acting U.S. Attorney David Gaouette and FBI Special Agent in C ... More >>

Looking at and listening to staff attempts to save the Rocky Mountain News

The staffers at the Rocky Mountain News may not be in power positions when it comes to saving the paper, which was recently put up for sale by its parent company, E.W. Scripps. (Read our coverage in the feature article "The Rocky Mountain News is Going Down" and two sidebars, "Five Rocky Stars Who ... More >>

What are the rules about breaking up the Denver Newspaper Agency? Read them here...

One of the most intriguing questions about the possible closure of the Rocky Mountain News -- the subject of December 11 feature article supplemented by sidebars about Rocky scribes the Denver Post should covet and the joint-operating agreement that connects the Denver dailies -- involves the impa ... More >>

Fighting Mad

Tycoon Jack Grynberg says the energy industry has stolen millions from him -- and billions from the government. What if he's right?

More Messages: Barking and Biting

Best Candidate to Replace Gary Barnett

Ward Churchill

Off Limits

Hey, that's not funny

This War's Over

Shake hands and come out writing.

Language Barrier

Denver Public Schools' bilingual-education policy is open to interpretation.

Look for the Union Label

JOAs can be bad news for newspaper employees.

!Atencion, Por Favor!

Parents in northwest Denver say the school district doesn't listen--so they're making more noise.

Hazardous Wait

While You Were Away

Gag Reflex

Easy Come, Easy Go

A federal audit of the Weed and Seed anti-crime program finds one-fifth of its funds unaccounted for.

The Wheels of Justice

A lawsuit on behalf of handicapped state prisoners moves toward a settlement.

OFF LIMITS

STRAIGHTEN UP AND FLY RIGHT

OFF LIMITS