Author: Nick Smith
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Colorado Springs mother Deborah Nicholls’ murder conviction overturned
A Colorado Springs mother convicted in 2008 of murdering her three children in a house fire might get a new trial after a judge ruled that prosecutors withheld key evidence that could have impacted the jury’s verdict. Deborah Nicholls, whose conviction was overturned Saturday, is scheduled to be transferred to the El Paso County jail…
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Defendant’s competency in question in El Paso County case involving slain Army police officer
It will be another 60 days before a 4th Judicial District court determines if a man charged in the shooting death of an Army police officer is competent to proceed in his case. Judge Erin Sokol granted a request Wednesday to have the defendant, Cameron Burton, undergo a third and final mental health evaluation before…
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Judge removes Fremont County DA from murder case
Discovery violations cited in at least 23 cases since former El Paso County prosecutor took over the office Eleventh Judicial District Attorney Jeffrey Lindsey and his entire office in Fremont County were removed from a double homicide and kidnapping case after a judge on Monday found multiple discovery violations. Eleventh Judicial District Judge Lauren Swan…
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3,000 evacuees remain displaced from Aspen Acres fire as incident command changes hands
By Savannah Eller and Nick Smith The wait has no end in sight for evacuated residents of Rye, near where the Aspen Acres fire continues to burn in rough, tinder-dry terrain to the west. While about 6,400 people have been able to return to communities like Colorado City, Wetmore and Beulah, Pueblo County Sheriff David…
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Shackled ICE detainees seen escorted from downtown Colorado Springs bank building
Incident follows an uptick in immigration arrests in the city, watchdog group says Four men shackled at the chest were shuffled into a GEO transport van at an unmarked immigration detention facility on Thursday in downtown Colorado Springs. After one of the individuals was seen being arrested outside the building that houses The Gazette, a…
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Colorado Springs family released from Texas ICE facility following judge’s order
Nearly a year after an antisemitic attack in Boulder, a federal judge ordered Thursday that the suspect’s Colorado Springs-area family immediately be released from a Texas immigration detention center. Hayam El Gamal and her five children, Egyptian nationals, were taken to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, in…
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Letecia Stauch murder conviction in stepson Gannon’s death overturned by Colorado appeals court
An El Paso County woman convicted of killing her stepson in 2020, shoving his body in a suitcase, then dumping it in Florida, is getting a new trial. The Colorado Court of Appeals published a 52-page ruling on Thursday, stating that the conviction of Letecia Stauch, 42, is reversed because the trial court committed “structural…
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Crews swiftly contain 600-acre wildfire in Huerfano County
Crews quickly dealt with a 600-acre wildfire that broke out near Turkey Ridge Ranch in Huerfano County on Wednesday. Dubbed by officials as the “Turkey fire,” the Huerfano County Sheriff’s Office was alerted about the blaze at 2:22 p.m., according to a statement from the office. Crews were deployed to the area of Country Road…
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Highway 115 fire blows up, road closed south of Colorado Springs
A fast-moving fire burning along Colorado 115 south of Colorado Springs blew the containment line Thursday, spreading farther east onto Fort Carson and scorching nearly 700 acres, officials said. The blaze, known as the 24 fire, was fully uncontained as of late Thursday afternoon, officials said, despite having been 50% contained earlier in the day. Smoke…
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Trial delayed for former Fountain city councilwoman accused of public assistance theft
The trial for a former Fountain City Councilmember accused of stealing over $37,000 in public assistance funds has been pushed to July. Detra Duncan, 55, resigned in mid-September 2025 after El Paso County investigators say they found forged documents that Duncan used to file for food assistance, Medicaid and other benefits for herself and her…