Tag: Criminal Justice
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Colorado Democrats propose changes to juvenile corrections, jail searches, municipal courts | Bills in brief
Colorado lawmakers introduce hundreds of bills each year. Bills in brief cuts through the noise by explaining which proposals matter, what’s at stake, and how decisions at the Capitol could affect everyday life across the state. Colorado lawmakers are advancing a slate of bills dealing with crime and corrections this session that would reshape how the state…
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‘Everything happens for a reason’: Veterans Trauma Court aims to help military members in times of need
Five years after he separated from the Army, Mark Bisset found himself in the Colorado criminal justice system. Bisset’s story started on April 9, 2022. According to past Gazette coverage of the case, the arrest stemmed from an alleged incident in which Bisset rode a four-wheeler to a property in the Indian Creek subdivision in…
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Gov. Jared Polis seeks $12M to house suspects declared incompetent
Colorado is planning to invest up to $12 million to fund additional commitment beds for individuals declared incompetent to proceed to trial, Gov. Jared Polis has announced. In a recent news conference on the state budget, Polis announced plans to request $8 million to $12 million in general fund dollars for additional civil commitment beds…
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PERSPECTIVE: The pendulum has swung too far
There is middle ground between mercy and justice. That is what Colorado’s leaders should search for in its criminal justice system. For more than a decade, Colorado has devoted extraordinary energy to reshaping its criminal justice system trying to meet this balance. Reformers, in good faith, have pushed to reduce incarceration, expand alternatives to…
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Restaurant nonprofit hiring incarcerated teens will open in historic Denver fire station
Café Momentum, a nonprofit restaurant founded in Dallas to hire youth who have gone through the justice system, is coming to Denver. The restaurant announced Monday it will begin construction early next year at the historic Curtis Park fire station on 3201 Curtis St. The nonprofit tapped Mike Waid, a former Parker mayor with experience…
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Audit: Colorado public defender’s office has high workloads, must study staffing
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Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save A large percentage of public defenders are working hours that exceed recommended standards, the state auditor’s office found in a recent report, and corrective measures are needed to ensure adequate representation for the criminally accused. The auditor’s report noted that since its last study of…
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Restrictions on no-knock search warrants pass Colorado legislature
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Three years ago, Breonna Taylor was fatally shot in her Kentucky apartment by police executing a no-knock warrant for her ex-boyfriend. Taylor’s death inspired national outrage and debate on the use of search warrants that allow police to forcibly enter people’s homes without warning. Colorado lawmakers are now tackling the issue with Senate Bill 254. If made…
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Colorado lawmakers target indecent exposure in front of children
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In January 2020, two Larimer County sisters ages 14 and 16 were sitting in a parking lot eating a snack after school when a strange man drove up to them. The man raised his pelvis to his window and exposed his genitals to the girls, masturbating in front of them. The man was immediately apprehended…
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Colorado report explores gaps in services if children can’t be criminally charged until 13
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A task force studying the gaps in services if policymakers raise the minimum age that Colorado children can be charged with crimes released its final report, recommending a slew of changes to mitigate potential impacts. The Pre-Adolescent Task Force was created by House Bill 22-1131, passed by the legislature in June. The bill originally sought…
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Lawmakers seek to give child victims, witnesses of crimes anonymity in public records
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Eight months ago, 17-year-old Riley Whitelaw was murdered in the break room of the Colorado Springs Walgreens, where she worked. The horrific details of the crime, allegedly committed by an adult co-worker who Riley had previously complained against, quickly consumed state and national news. In…