The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel: Deputy’s killer to grow old behind prison walls
What if a tough prosecutorial stance led to a life sentence for the juvenile who killed Mesa County Sheriff’s Deputy Derek Geer, only to become grist for an appeal based on constitutionality questions?
The possibility loomed large in discussions about whether Mesa County prosecutors should cut a deal with Austin Holzer, who was a couple months shy of turning 18 when he fatally shot Geer in February 2016.
In the end, it was Geer’s family that decided the no-quarter approach – and the threat of trial error – was a risk they preferred to avoid, opting to secure a long prison sentence for Holzer by giving their blessing for a plea bargain.
Merv Bennett, former member of Colorado Springs City Council and longtime YMCA leader, has died
O'Dell Isaac
odell.isaac@gazette.com
Updated 6 minutes ago
Merv Bennett, a former member of Colorado Springs City Council and a major force behind the growth of the local YMCA, died Saturday after a long illness, former Mayor John Suthers said. Bennett was 77. “Our city has lost one...
US rejects bid to buy tons of coal on public lands for less than a penny per ton | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
The Associated Press
the-associated-press@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 5 days ago
MONTANA Lowball coal bid rejected BILLINGS — Federal officials rejected a company’s bid to acquire 167 million tons of coal on public lands in Montana for less than a penny per ton, in what would have been the biggest U.S....
Calendar Oct. 27-Nov.2
Rachael Wright
rachael.wright@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 6 days ago
CoPo’s weekly political calendar will help you find political and public-policy events throughout Colorado. It includes candidate and issue campaign events, public policy meetings, court hearings, state and local party conventions, assemblies, debates, rallies, parades, speaking engagements, traveling dignitary appearances,...
Colorado Campaign finance commission convenes to address rising PACs, make other reforms | A LOOK BACK
Rachael Wright
rachael.wright@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 5 days ago
Thirty-Five Years Ago This Week: Gov. Roy Romer convened the first meeting of the Colorado Campaign Finance Reform Commission, which was led by Dr. Gene Nichols, dean of the University of Colorado Law School. The Campaign Finance Commission was made...
Federal judge ‘dumbfounded’ at government’s rejection of enforceable order holding ICE to its own policy
Michael Karlik
michael.karlik@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
A federal judge on Friday grilled the government over its position that an internal policy defining the ability of immigration agents to make warrantless arrests should not be enforceable through a court order. “As a citizen of Colorado and of...
Downtown Denver sees tepid signs of absorption in empty office space
Mark Samuelson Special to The Denver Gazette
mark.samuelson@denvergazette.com
Updated 13 minutes ago
Denver’s newly remodeled 16th Street is open at its full expanse, beckoning workers and employers back into a downtown that was partially vacated during the pandemic, when office vacancies climbed past 30%, then 35%. Now analysts are seeing a glimmer...
Colorado justices field questions about values, disagreement at East High School
Michael Karlik
michael.karlik@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court fielded probing — and in some instances, tough — questions from East High School students on Thursday, including how the court balances existing law with “evolving social values.” “Often what we’re looking at is...
Colorado hospitals are operating on ‘unsustainable’ margins, report finds
Marissa Ventrelli
marissa.ventrelli@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
Nearly 70% of Colorado hospitals ended 2024 with “unsustainable” margins, according to a new financial report from the Colorado Hospital Association. Tom Rennell, the group’s senior vice president of financial policy and data analytics, said hospitals’ expenses are outpacing their...
Divided appeals court upholds convictions despite ‘troubling and unfair’ contradictory police testimony
Michael Karlik
michael.karlik@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 3 days ago
Colorado’s second-highest court upheld a man’s convictions for unlawful possession of a firearm on Thursday, even as the majority acknowledged it was potentially unfair that a Denver officer testified to a different sequence of events at trial than earlier in...
Appeals court overturns Denver strangulation conviction for improper expert testimony
Michael Karlik
michael.karlik@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 3 days ago
Colorado’s second-highest court reversed a Denver man’s assault conviction on Thursday, finding an expert’s testimony about the potential risks of strangulation had no bearing on the facts of the case. Phillip L. Bauereiss and the victim got into an argument....
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Dick's beats profit target despite backlash over gun-sales restrictions
Despite backlash over halting sales of assault-style guns in its stores, Dick’s Sporting Goods posted higher revenue for its most recent quarter and greater-than-expected profit. The Coraopolis, Pa.-based company’s net sales grew 4.6 percent to $1.9 billion for the three months that ended on May 5. Net income was $60 million, or 59 cents per […]
The Steamboat Pilot & Today: New chief, new culture
When Cory Christensen was named police chief of the Steamboat Springs Police Department in November 2015, he was tasked with changing the culture of an agency that had been the focus of an outside investigation, which found evidence the city’s former top cops presided over a hostile work environment. In particular, the investigation revealed instances […]