Editor:

Thank you for your coverage of convicted felon Douglas Bruce’s recent appearance in Denver District Court, where he is facing charges that he has violated the terms of his probation since his release from jail three years ago.

Probably most of your readers know of Bruce from his decades-long involvement in Colorado politics, as well as from the controversies that often have swirled around him — including his 2012 conviction on charges including tax evasion and attempting to influence a public official. However, many readers might not be familiar with key details of the latest controversy that has landed Bruce in hot water — and that also has embroiled a Colorado Springs City Council member who has engaged in business ventures with Bruce and has received campaign contributions from him.

Colorado Springs District 4 Councilwoman Helen Collins, a longtime ally and political protégé of Bruce’s, is now facing ethics charges brought by the city’s Independent Ethics Commission for her role in the real estate transaction last December that resulted in the probation-revocation proceedings underway against Bruce. After an extensive investigation, the commission released a searing set of findings in June that currently await action by the City Council. Among the commission’s conclusions was that Collins “has no place in government,” that her use of the real estate deal to help Bruce avoid paying a court-ordered judgment to the city was “unconscionable,” and that the transaction itself “was wrought with fraud.” The commission, which is not a law-enforcement body, also alluded to the possibility that Collins could be prosecuted.

In its investigation, the commission uncovered evidence that Bruce had openly boasted at the time of the deal that Collins was indebted to him for helping get her elected, and that was why Collins was helping him on the real estate deal.

Our organization has been tracking this issue for months, and in the course of our inquiry, we visited Kansas City, where Collins has owned two apartment buildings in which Bruce has played a pivotal role. We interviewed tenants who produced a copy of a lease signed not by Collins as landlord but by Bruce. They also told us Bruce had hired and fired the buildings’ manager and that they at one point were instructed to make rent payments to Bruce. Bruce’s name even appeared on the properties’ water bill — we obtained copies — which went unpaid and left the tenants without water for so many months that city officials finally removed the residents from the buildings.

Ours is a watchdog effort that seeks to hold public agencies and public officials accountable to the public they serve. Collins’ ties to Bruce are troubling. We are deeply concerned about the ethics and legality of Collins’ actions, and we are alarmed at Bruce’s apparent influence over her. Colorado Springs citizens deserve a full accounting. For further information, including the full findings by the ethics commission, please visit our website at www.CoSGW.com.

Dede Laugesenexecutive director Colorado Springs Government WatchColorado Springs