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‘You are here to serve’: As Colorado’s pension costs grow, some PERA members say its board isn’t listening
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

‘You are here to serve’: As Colorado’s pension costs grow, some PERA members say its board isn’t listening

By Brian Eason | The Colorado Sun Months before five Colorado school districts took the drastic step of suing the state pension plan, their elected representative tried to bring their concerns to the Public Employees’ Retirement Association Board of Trustees. “We (the Board) rarely hear from people in the field about how PERA staff decisions affect their organizations,” Scott Smith — a PERA board trustee at the time — wrote in a November 2023 email to school administrators. “If you have issues or concerns with any recent PERA staff decisions, I would encourage you to sign up for public comment.” The exercise got the board’s attention — just not the way Smith intended. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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FBI director Wray prepares to resign, does not want to be fired
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Approved, Breitbart, National

FBI director Wray prepares to resign, does not want to be fired

By Wendell Husebo | Breitbart FBI Director Christopher Wray does not want to be fired and will resign before President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office, sources inside the bureau who are familiar with the director’s thinking told the Washington Times. Trump, who originally hired Wray but grew dissatisfied with him after years of weaponizing the bureau, such as raiding Mar-a-Lago, recently nominated Kash Patel as a replacement. Wray is among President Joe Biden’s allies that Democrat and media supporters believe should receive a preemptive pardon. White House lawyers are studying pardons, reports indicate, which would appear to project an admission of guilt. READ THE FULL STORY AT BREITBART
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Trump says he’ll act on ‘first day’ on Jan. 6 defendants, but perhaps not by pardon
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Approved, CBS Colorado, National

Trump says he’ll act on ‘first day’ on Jan. 6 defendants, but perhaps not by pardon

By Scott MacFarlane | CBS Colorado President-elect Donald Trump plans to act on the "first day" of his presidency on the cases of some Jan. 6 defendants and said he believes the House members on the select Jan. 6 committee who investigated the 2021 Capitol riot, including Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson and former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, "should go to jail." In an interview that aired Sunday on NBC News' "Meet the Press," Trump told host Kristen Welker he would not direct the FBI director or attorney general to do so, but said "I think they'll have to look at that." The president-elect was also pressed on whether he would pardon some or all of the Capitol riot defendants. He indicated he would not issue a universal blanket pardon: "We're going to look at independent cases."...
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‘There are still a lot of unanswered questions’: Clerks react to investigative report on BIOS password exposure
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

‘There are still a lot of unanswered questions’: Clerks react to investigative report on BIOS password exposure

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice  A report detailing the findings of an investigation into the activities of the Colorado secretary of state's office during the public exposure of BIOS passwords, in the days leading up to the 2024 election, was released Monday. It drew mixed reactions from clerks on both sides of the Continental Divide. "I’m glad that they did an independent investigation," said Mesa County Clerk Bobbie Gross. "The secretary of state should be accountable and responsible for her actions.” Similarly, El Paso County Clerk Steve Schleiker praised the action. "The investigation demonstrated a commitment to accountability by addressing the serious error and trying to ensure public trust in the election processes," he said. The compl...
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Colorado lawmakers debate $150M in education cuts, impact on school budgets
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado lawmakers debate $150M in education cuts, impact on school budgets

By Anna Alejo | CBS Colorado The Colorado Joint Budget Committee is addressing K-12 education funding, with several members expressing concerns about what they say amounts to $150 million in cuts to public schools. Adams 12 Five Star Schools is one of the districts worried about the proposed budget, which officials say could disproportionately affect districts experiencing declining enrollment or limited property tax revenues. At the center of the debate is the state's approach to managing student counts. Some educators argue that the governor's proposed funding formula could significantly impact districts facing unique financial challenges. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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Central to Colorado Springs’ hate crime hoax case, Derrick Bernard had lengthy record in home state
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Approved, gazette.com, Local

Central to Colorado Springs’ hate crime hoax case, Derrick Bernard had lengthy record in home state

By GLENN WALLACE | The Gazette Derrick Patrick Bernard is the figure at the center of a federal indictment and political dust-up involving an alleged hate crime hoax in the closing days of the 2023 Colorado Springs mayoral election. But before his complicated career in Colorado Springs, Bernard had already had his share of run-ins with the law in his home state. Born in Florida in 1989, Bernard was 15 when state records indicate he was first arrested for petty theft. Just two months later he would be arrested again, this time for felony burglary and grand theft. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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Hindawi: Text messages from home and the fall of a dictator
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Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

Hindawi: Text messages from home and the fall of a dictator

By Salam Hindawi | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In late November, I had received a Telegram text from my brother, based in Germany, saying there were skirmishes between Syrian opposition forces and the Assad army - the official, regular Syrian armed forces - on the outskirts of our hometown of Aleppo, near our long-abandoned farmhouse. He sounded jubilant as he relayed the news, as if Assad would be toppled tomorrow. For me, I was far more skeptical to the extent of sarcasm. Years of dormancy in the Syrian Revolution - kicked off in 2011 - had made people pessimistic and dismissive of any idea of regime-changing victory, such as that which took place in Egypt or Libya.  “Bro…new frontlines seem to have been open. It looks different this time, maybe there’s more supp...
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Boulder PD investigating six overdoses on possibly tainted drugs at fraternity house
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Approved, kdvr.com, Local

Boulder PD investigating six overdoses on possibly tainted drugs at fraternity house

By Samantha Jarpe | Fox 31 News The Boulder Police Department is investigating after six college students were taken to the hospital after overdosing on possibly tainted cocaine at a party Saturday night. According to police, between 10-10:30 p.m., officers were called to the hospital and the Kappa Sigma fraternity in the 1100 block of Pennsylvania Avenue for reports of adult men who were sick and overdosing. According to the school, Kappa Sigma was expelled from the interfraternity council in 2015 due to safety and welfare violations. At least six men were transported or treated at the hospital and by medical personnel at the scene. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 31 NEWS
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Adams County fire engine wrap highlights ’50-50′ risk of deadly fentanyl dose
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Adams County fire engine wrap highlights ’50-50′ risk of deadly fentanyl dose

By Michael Abeyta | CBS Colorado Adams County Fire Rescue's Engine 11 has a new look. For the next three to six months, it will feature a fentanyl awareness wrap to help protect people from the deadly drug. "As Engine 11 serves this community, folks will easily see our display on both sides, showing that five out of every 10 pills out there contain a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl. Think about that for a minute—that's a 50/50 shot," DEA Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen said. Fentanyl poisoning is a crisis that has impacted both the nation and Colorado. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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Disciplined judges, after stepping down, show up in municipal courts
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Approved, gazette.com, State

Disciplined judges, after stepping down, show up in municipal courts

By DAVID MIGOYA | The Gazette via Denver Gazette Not long after 18th Judicial District Judge Natalie Chase resigned over a series of inappropriate racial remarks, she was back on the bench — as a municipal judge in tiny Deer Trail and as a traffic referee in Fort Collins. Despite a public censure by the state’s judicial discipline commission and her resignation in April 2021, Chase landed the part-time jobs within a few months and held them simultaneously for the next three years, according to payroll records from both locations obtained by The Denver Gazette. Chase is one of at least a half-dozen jurists who resigned or retired in the past decade over discipline issues they faced, nearly all of them private sanctions the public never knew about, then reappeared in another lower-l...
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