Last month, we reported that Gary Ridgway, widely regarded to be America’s most prolific serial killer, is now living in Colorado — in one of the state’s Supermax facilities. Upon his arrival, he joined some disturbing company. In 2012, we published our choices for the ten most notorious Colorado Supermax prisoners,…
It was only a few minutes. But in the hushed courtroom, where nearly all eyes were on the judge Thursday afternoon, the wait for the verdicts seemed like it lasted many more. The jury had entered moments before with an armful of manila envelopes. Inside were 165 verdict forms, one…
It’s a truism among criminal justice scholars that crime doesn’t pay — or, as the Denver Post used to sneer in big black type back in the heyday of Bonfils and Tammen, “Crime Never Pays.” Offenders who wind up with a prison record are less likely to find gainful employment…
Did James Holmes know right from wrong when he walked into a sold-out Aurora movie theater nearly three years ago and began shooting? Or was he so mentally ill that he can’t be held responsible for murdering twelve people and injuring seventy others? That’s what a jury will have to decide…
It’s difficult to imagine a more severe form of long-term isolation than the past seven years of solitary confinement experienced by former Colombian rebel commander Simon Trinidad, the subject of this week’s Westword cover story, “Gone Guerrilla.” Serving sixty years for his (much-disputed) role in the kidnapping of three American…
On Monday night, while a lame-duck Denver City Council debated spending $400,000 to bus the homeless to a shelter on the outskirts of town, a dozen demonstrators and homeless advocates gathered in the rain in front of a locked public restroom on Welton Street by Sonny Lawson Field. A year ago,…
“You do not want to be a victim in this country.” — Tom Teves, father of Aurora theater shooting victim Alex Teves More than seventy victims of mass killings from the last twenty years and their families — many connected to the Aurora theater shooting and the Columbine massacre — have come…
Forsooth, the festivities of ye olde Colorado Renaissance Festival were greatly upset this Satyr-Daye by the young scallywag Connor Ward, aged 22, when the knave allegedly disturbe’d a jousting match, seize’d a sword from a nearbye haystack & absconde’d therefrom, with various citizenry in close pursuite, finally to be tackle’d…
Another shocking act of violence has shaken the Denver metro area. Two men were shot to death yesterday evening outside an apartment complex in Thornton. Right now, representatives of the Thornton Police Department stress that there’s no danger to the public at large and add that they’re talking to three…
In the world of Internet shorthand, “OMG” is a benign expression of surprise. But to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), the initials stand for “Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs.” And a report entitled “OMGs and the Military 2014,” on view below, argues that such groups are actively recruiting current…
The video onetime Coloradan Nathaniel Scheiern posted on his Facebook page circa May 4 comes with an all-caps warning/message: “GRAPHIC FOOTAGE. ADULTS ONLY. LESSONS WITH LIFE’S TESTS MAKES EASY A`s! The clip appears to be an ISIS terror video — and we’re not sharing it here because invective is followed by scenes…
Right now, the biggest story in Denver involves the sad death of a 23-month-old toddler. Javion Johnson is portrayed by family and friends as an adorable, friendly and lovable child. But the boy died yesterday morning…
Unfortunately, road rage incidents aren’t exactly rare in these parts. But the one involving Boulder’s Gary Strand is unique in our experience. That’s because his arrest on suspicion of felony menacing involves him allegedly hurling a pecan pie. No, we’re not making this up. According to 7News, the incident took place…
In a move that could have resounding consequences for corrections practices and the for-profit prison industry in particular, a Denver federal judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by nine federal immigrant detainees, who allege that a private prison contractor forced them to perform maintenance and cleaning jobs for…
The FBI has already identified 109 victims of Lucas Chansler, who’s been convicted in regard to what the feds describe as “an extortion scheme to produce child pornography.” But they think there are more. A lot more. According to court testimony, Chansler targeted 350 minors in 26 states, three Canadian…
In May, we told you about the arrest of Kyle Moore in Greeley after a police chase that got underway after Officer Jobe Costa fired a shot at Moore’s vehicle. A followup report featured commentary from Moore’s mother, Renee, who was highly critical of the police response in the case — including…
Yesterday was a busy day for Matthew Burry. He appeared in court after being formally charged with child abuse resulting in death. The victim was his four-and-a-half-month-old son, Dominic. Meanwhile, a report revealed that Burry is a registered sex offender whose parole was revoked last year. As noted in his…
Back in January, we noted that the Denver Police Department had started posting stupid criminal stories on its Facebook page, and shared some of the funniest examples. Since our original post, the DPD definitely hasn’t run short of material. Indeed, the department has shared a whole new batch of tales in which…
We at Westword love Capitol Hill’s Nob Hill Inn. The venerable watering hole was the subject of a feature in 2009, the same year we named it Best Dive in our Best of Denver issue. The venue also ranked highly in our 2014 roundup of best dive bars — and a few months…
A few months back, Evans-based Jenessa Rosenbach posted the following on her Facebook page: “Is every man on this planet on a fucking dating website! Losing hope there are good men out there. Is the man not being on dating websites really that big of a request lol. Can’t you…
This past month, John Bowlen, son of Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, was busted on a domestic violence beef that involved booze and whippets. He also told the 911 dispatcher that he not only owned the Broncos personally (he doesn’t), but also claimed to be the “blood of the city” in…
The daughter of Kathleen and Kenny Sanchez may be alive today because Kenny hit her in public when she was three-years-old. This may sound like a strange statement, but the facts of the case, as spelled out in an arrest affidavit on view below, provide a strong argument for it…
