Families Declare Colorado Court Competency Laws Broken

By Jared Dean | KDVR Fox 31

DENVER (KDVR) — Joel Lang was in court, accused of hitting, dragging and eventually killing Kirsty Kerst at a Monument McDonald’s drive-through in 2024. Lang, who turned himself in after police sent out a bulletin with his vehicle in the image, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

His charges were dropped after he was found incompetent to stand trial earlier this month.

“This really has changed our entire lives. There is no going back to normal for us. This is our normal. We’re standing up to fight against injustice, and that’s not a small thing,” Kerst’s daughter Britany Visage said.

The Kerst family is now part of an advocacy group asking for a change in Colorado’s competency laws.

“I don’t want this to keep happening to other peoples, to other people. What happened to our mom really is devastating. But to be able to have this situation stop for other families, that’s the main goal,” Kerst’s daughter Hanna Kerst said.

The family is not alone, joined by Dante White. White’s son was the target of an attempted kidnapping by nearly kidnapped by Carmen Galligan, previously known as Solomon Galligan, who is a registered sex offender. The incident was caught on video near Black Forest Elementary School in Aurora.

Galligan’s charges were dropped last week because doctors ruled Galligan, too, has a chronic medical condition and will never be competent to stand trial.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t say I’d be, you know, that I’m pissed off. I’m mad, right? It’s just going to happen again, you know, and that’s the truth. He’s not going to get the help that he needs,” Smith said.

The group is organizing a movement to try and get lawmakers’ attention, calling out district attorneys to pressure their elected officials in the upcoming special session to reconsider legislation passed in the past year.

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