Author: CHRISTOPHER OSHER
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Colorado Court of Appeals rules gag order may be unconstitutional but mother of 3 slow to file appeal
A judge’s gag order barring a mother of three from speaking out against a ruling terminating her parental rights may have been unconstitutional, but the mother lost her right to challenge her contempt citation that landed her in jail because she failed to timely appeal, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday. “A party…
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Ex-Aurora police chief’s partner faces charges after fraudulent child sex abuse report
The partner of former Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson has turned herself over to law enforcement authorities to face criminal charges that she filed a fraudulent child sex abuse report against an Aurora City Council member who had criticized Wilson’s performance as chief. Wilson’s partner, Robin Niceta, posted a $4,000 personal recognizance bond after she…
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False child sex abuse allegations used in intimidation plot against council member who wanted Colorado police chief fired: Police
An Arapahoe County social services worker weaponized the child protective system where she worked to retaliate against Aurora Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky’s push for the firing of the social service worker’s partner, Police Chief Vanessa Wilson, according to criminal charges authorities filed on Monday. An arrest warrant obtained by the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office alleges the…
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Thousands of Colorado patients put in peril due to risky prescribing of psych medicine
Gene Estes, looks out over the mountains his son, Shayn Estes, loved as he has a smoke outside his Crested Butte condo Thursday, May 5, 2022. Gene found his son died Oct. 17, 2020, from an overdose and believes benzodiazepines are responsible. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)Christian Murdock/The Gazette Gene Estes implored his son, Shayn, to…
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State of Colorado hid findings of ‘life-threatening’ errors at troubled mental health center
A pattern of “severe, life-threatening” prescription errors by the troubled mental health center responsible for treating 10 Western Slope counties put many of its patients at risk, according to the findings of an official investigation that three state agencies withheld from the public for more than nine months. The problems only came to light this…
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Supervision cases tied to homicides in Denver include felon who incurred firearm charges while on probation
Denver homicide arrests in the last two years include a felon who remained on probation despite arrests for illegally carrying handguns that his past convictions barred him from owning. Warren Simpson Jr. had a history of five criminal convictions, ranging from felony menacing to aggravated robbery, when a Denver District Court judge sentenced him on…
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Public can access new searchable database to determine instances when Colorado police officer certification was revoked
While continuing to withhold from the public fuller employment histories of Colorado’s police officers, the Colorado Attorney General’s Office unveiled on Monday a searchable database that allows the public to track instances where the state revoked the certification police officers must hold to work for police agencies. The public can search the database by typing in an officer’s…
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Xcel Energy spends $597 million to mitigate fire risks prior to historic Marshall fire
Though authorities have now dismissed initial reports suggesting downed lines owned by Xcel Energy caused the Marshall fire, the utility is currently engaged in a $597 million wildfire mitigation program across the state because of concerns about its powerlines starting fires. People walk though the destruction across from Davidson Mesa Open Space in Louisville, Colo.,…
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Judge rules southern Colorado sheriff and his office persistently mishandle evidence, impairing public safety
A judge ruled Huerfano County Sheriff Bruce Newman and his office persistently fail to follow Colorado law in the handling of criminal evidence to such a degree that public safety and the prosecution of criminal cases continue to be impaired. He ordered the sheriff and his office to start complying with the law. Huerfano County…
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Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo re-accredited despite scoring poorly on quality measures
Colorado Watch Surveyors found Colorado’s primary psychiatric hospital in Pueblo scored poorly on quality measures in comparison to other psychiatric hospitals in the nation but re-accredited the facility for the next three years. The Joint Commission, the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care, last month notified Jill Marshall, the chief…