Update 1: As we've reported, Gwen Devilbiss was wounded during a police shootout involving two men, including pal Clifford Galley; see our previous coverage below.
Now, charges have been put forward in the case, but none have her name on them. She's listed as a person of interest in the wild case, while Galley and a cohort have been slapped with $5 million in bonds.
Just after midnight on February 23, the Parker Police Department notes, detectives from the Thornton and Northglenn police departments tried to contact a fugitive with several outstanding warrants -- Galley, whose lengthy rap sheet includes a December allegation that he threatened a Northglenn cop with a weapon. The location: a Taco Bell off Plum Creek south of Castle Rock. But Galley, accompanied by Devilbiss and David Vasquez, a man with a criminal record of his own, didn't come quietly. Instead, the trio took off in a car amid a hail of gunfire.As many as 100 officers from ten agencies joined in the chase and subsequent pursuit of Galley and Vasquez, who took off on foot after crashing into a police car near Crowfoot Valley Road and Stroh Road (two officers suffered minor injuries) and remained at large until around 6:30 a.m., when they were taken into custody.
Devilbiss, for her part, was rounded up quickly after the men abandoned the car -- because she'd been hit by a chunk of lead. She was hospitalized, but her wounds aren't considered life-threatening. Thus far, investigators haven't determined who put a bullet into her.
After the publication of our previous post, the Parker PD, the Town of Castle Rock and the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office jointly released information about charges. Galley will face seven counts of attempted first-degree murder on a peace officer, another seven of first-degree assault on a police officer and one count of felony menacing, in addition to those outstanding warrants. Vasquez is looking at a single count of attempted first-degree murder of a peace officer, as well as complicity. And Devilbiss? She hasn't been accused of anything, but is labeled as a "person of interest."Galley and Vasquez won't be going anywhere soon, thanks to the aforementioned $5 million in bonds -- $3 million for the former, $2 million for the latter. The reason, says 18th Judicial District Attorney George Brauchler in a statement: They present a "clear risk to public safety."
The pair will next appear in court at 1:30 p.m. Thursday for the formal filing of charges. In the meantime, the Northglenn and Thornton police officers and three Parker police officers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave -- standard policy after such an incident. And Devilbiss will continues to recuperate. But is she off the hook as far as the cops are concerned? Hard to say. The joint release notes that "this is an ongoing investigation and more charges are expected to be filled."
Continue for more about Clifford Galley and Gwen Devilbiss, including additional photos. Original post, 8:55 a.m. February 25: Clifford Galley, known to pals as CJ, and Gwen Devilblss look pretty devil-blissful in a photo she shared on her Facebook page. But the pair and a third man, David Vasquez, allegedly caused plenty of misery over the weekend, injuring two cops and requiring scores more to round them up after a car chase and shootout. More photos, a video and details below.Not a lot of info on CJ's Facebook page, beyond notes that he attended high school in Shawnee, Kansas, and moved from Columbus, Nebraska to Northglenn in 2012. Photos are scarce as well, but his profile pic shows him kissing a blond woman:
Is the woman on the other end of his lips Devilbiss? Hard to say from this shot. But in pics on her own, busier Facebook page, Devilbiss is depicted with dark hair, as in this shot.... ...and in one co-starring CJ. She also highlights the following graphic.... ...and a back tat with a strong message: Which brings us to a story that began just after midnight on February 23. According to the Parker Police Department, officers spotted what's referred to in a release as a "suspicious vehicle" -- it was reportedly thought to have been stolen -- near a Taco Bell off Plum Creek south of Castle Rock. But when they tried to make contact, shots were fired from the car, which then took off. Continue for more on the arrest of Clifford Galley, Gwen Devilbiss and David Vasquez, including more photos and a video. A chase followed through Castle Rock, with shots being fired -- and when police tried to put a stop to the action near the intersection of Crowfoot Valley Road and Stroh Road, more destruction followed. The suspects are said to have rammed a squad car, injuring two officers in the process (one had minor abrasions, the other suffered a broken finger) before abandoning the car and fleeing the scene on foot. But one of them -- Devilbiss -- didn't get far...because she'd been shot. She was taken to a hospital with a wound not thought to have been life-threatening.Shortly thereafter, the Parker PD named Galley as a person of interest and released the following photo:
Yep, it's a mug shot. The Denver Post reports that his record includes a potpourri of past charges, including a 2011 drunk-driving conviction and a probation violation the following year related to a drug accusation. More to the point in this case, he was charged in December with threatening a Northglenn cop with a weapon.As for his cohorts, the PPD initially thought they were two females. But no: In addition to Devilbiss, who had a 2008 conviction on a meth charge, he was thought to have been accompanied by Vasquez, who had a court hearing next month for car theft and possession of burglary tools.
By the way, Vasquez's Facebook page is nearly blank, but it does point out that he loves pit bulls.
A CodeRED emergency mass notification was sent out to homes in a one-mile radius of the spot where Galley and Vasquez vanished, with calls made to over 3,000 phone numbers advising residents to stay put. Meanwhile, approximately 100 cops from ten different agencies pitched in to round up the scofflaws. And by about 6:30 a.m., they'd managed to do so: Galley and Vasquez were taken into custody. No information about charges has been released to date, but you can bet when it is, Galley and Devilbiss will be wearing expressions different from the ones they display in the shared image above.
Here's a 9News piece about the incident, followed by another photo of Galley.
Correction: The first version of this post misspelled Gwen Devilbiss's name as "Devilbliss." We regret the error.
More from our Colorado Crimes archive: "Ethan Courrau, bipolar boyfriend, reportedly stabs and kills two kids, then himself."
