Author: Lance Benzel, The Gazette

The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado on Wednesday asked a judge to halt the Teller County sheriff’s practice of detaining suspected illegal immigrants who would otherwise be eligible to post bail. The request for a preliminary injunction comes less than a month after the ACLU sued for the release of inmate Leonardo Canseco Salinas,…

The suspect in a shooting that left a Colorado Springs police officer in critical condition is an Iraqi refugee who’s been in the U.S. for six years, the Department of Homeland Security said Monday. DHS officials told The Gazette that Karrar Noaman Al Khammasi was granted refugee status in May 2012 and entered the country…

The ACLU of Colorado said it filed suit Monday against Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell, alleging that he violated the law by detaining a suspected illegal immigrant strictly at the request of federal immigration authorities. The suit over inmate Leonard Canseco Salinas alleges that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer falls short of what the…

COLORADO SPRINGS – Undercover agents infiltrated their ranks and police cruisers tailed them through the streets of downtown Colorado Springs. After a daylong trial, four members of a student-led protest group were convicted of obstructing traffic. A Municipal Court jury on Friday found Andrew Hunt, 23, Taylor Donner, 24, Eric Verlo, 56, and Nazli McDonnell,…

The El Paso County Attorney’s Office has followed through on a promise to appeal a 4th Judicial District judge’s ruling that bars Sheriff Bill Elder from holding suspected undocumented immigrants solely at the request of federal immigration authorities. The county on Friday asked the Colorado Supreme Court to overturn a preliminary injunction issued by El…

An El Paso County judge has dealt a blow to Sheriff Bill Elder’s practice of jailing suspected illegal immigrants solely at the request of federal immigration authorities. In a 13-page ruling, 4th Judicial District Judge Eric Bentley granted a preliminary injunction Monday, ordering the Sheriff’s Office to honor bonds for two ACLU of Colorado clients…

COLORADO SPRINGS – An El Paso County judge has dealt a blow to Sheriff Bill Elder’s practice of jailing suspected illegal immigrants strictly at the request of federal immigration authorities. In a 13-page ruling, 4th Judicial District Judge Eric Bentley granted a preliminary injunction compelling the Sheriff’s Office to honor bonds for two ACLU of…

Former El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa ducked a felony extortion conviction last month because two jurors thought his accuser was too “aggressive” at work and deserved to lose her job. Both holdouts were men who believed that Wendy Habert – a jail health care contractor whose brash management style and salty language drew a…

A judge on Monday formally dismissed charges against Ex-El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa and former Undersheriff Paula Presley, closing the book on a prosecution that rocked the county and dealt a blow to the once-popular lawman’s legacy. Fourth Judicial District Judge Larry E. Schwartz issued the orders Monday afternoon, 11 days after prosecutors requested…