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Former Weld County IT Worker Sentenced After Downloading Child Abuse Videos From Police
CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Former Weld County IT Worker Sentenced After Downloading Child Abuse Videos From Police

By: Logan Smith | CBS Colorado A former employee with the City of Greeley's Information Technology Department was sentenced Wednesday to 14 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections after he removed hard drives from the Greeley Police Department.  The hard drives contained child sexual abuse material, also known as CSAM, which Jacob Schmidt downloaded to his phone, according to a press release from the Weld County District Attorney's Office. The videos were police department evidence which Schmidt was not authorized to access.  Schmidt was arrested on June 11, 2025, after investigators with the Weld County Sheriff's Office received several tips about Schmidt having CSAM on his phone, according to the DA's press release. Those investigators were able to ...
Montezuma County Sheriff Declines to Enforce Colorado Gun Law Citing Constitution and Costs
DENVER7, Approved, Local

Montezuma County Sheriff Declines to Enforce Colorado Gun Law Citing Constitution and Costs

By: Robert Garrison | Denver7 CORTEZ, Colo. — Montezuma County Sheriff Steven Nowlin announced Monday that his office will not participate in a new Colorado gun law, citing funding, staffing and constitutional concerns. Senate Bill 25-003, which took effect Aug. 1, adds new requirements for purchasing certain semiautomatic firearms, including obtaining a five-year eligibility card from a local sheriff's office and completing an in-person safety course. “As a Colorado Sheriff, and every member of the Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office, each of us has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Colorado, and perform the duties of the Office of Sheriff in Colorado by protecting those rights for all citizens in Montezum...
New Douglas County Charter School Opens With Focus on America’s Founding Principles
CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

New Douglas County Charter School Opens With Focus on America’s Founding Principles

By Olivia Young | CBS Colorado The ribbon has officially been cut on a new Colorado school as Douglas County continues to grow. John Adams Academy is the first school to open in the fast-growing community of Sterling Ranch. The school describes itself as liberty-based and offers a classical education. "This has been a long time in the making," said John Adams Academy Douglas County Co-Founder Kim Gilmartin. "We knew that there was a need for a school like this, so we put our heads together and brought it to fruition." CBS Gilmartin and her co-founder, Sterling Ranch mother Ellie Reynolds, say the school hopes to educate students through rigorous academics and a focus on the Founding Fathers' vision of America. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT CBS COLORADO
Denver Street Takeover Ends Without Arrests Despite Dangerous Stunt Driving and Fireworks
Uncategorized, Approved, DENVER7, Local

Denver Street Takeover Ends Without Arrests Despite Dangerous Stunt Driving and Fireworks

By: Kaylee Harter | Denver7 Video shows cars doing donuts, fireworks, and what appears to be something on fire at the intersection of Broadway and Mississippi. DENVER — No arrests were made, and no citations were issued after an "illegal street takeover" late Friday night and early Saturday morning, according to a Denver police spokesperson. Video captured by neighbors at the intersection of Broadway and Mississippi and shared with Denver7 shows cars doing donuts, fireworks, and what appears to be something on fire in the intersection. "The reckless driving and blocking of an intersection seen in the videos are incredibly dangerous and concerning," DPD spokesperson Doug Schepman said in an email to Denver7. One person who had posted video of the inciden...
Larimer County DA Blasts PR Bond for Fugitive Facing Child Sex Crime Charges
CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Larimer County DA Blasts PR Bond for Fugitive Facing Child Sex Crime Charges

By Dillon Thomas | CBS Colorado A Northern Colorado district attorney is accusing a magistrate of putting local children and others at risk after she released a fugitive on a personal recognizance bond. The fugitive was wanted for creating and possessing child sexual abuse material out of Wyoming. John Smallbone of Converse County, Wyoming, was originally arrested on 72 counts related to creating and possessing child sexual abuse material. According to prosecutors, he posted a $250,000 bond in Wyoming but failed to appear for his next court hearing, forfeiting the bond and becoming a fugitive. John Smallbone Larimer County After authorities located Smallbone in Larimer County, he was arrested on the Wyoming warrant while awaiting extradition.  "There is ...
Sheridan Parents Launch Recall Effort Against School Board After Historic Teacher Strike
DENVER7, Approved, Local

Sheridan Parents Launch Recall Effort Against School Board After Historic Teacher Strike

By: Adria Iraheta | Denver7 Denver7's Aurora/Arapahoe County Reporter Adria Iraheta is following up after learning a group of educators and parents are submitting a recall petition targeting the Sheridan Board of Education. SHERIDAN, Colo. — Three months after Colorado's longest education strike in recent history, Sheridan School District parents are now leading an effort to recall the superintendent and board of education. Denver7 Aurora and Arapahoe County community reporter Adria Iraheta happened to run into the group of Sheridan parents and educators at the county administration building this week while working on a different story. The group was there to submit a petition with the elections division — an effort to recall Sheridan's superintendent and board of ed...
Missed Insurance Deadline Could Leave Jeffco Taxpayers Paying $15 Million Sex Abuse Settlement
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Missed Insurance Deadline Could Leave Jeffco Taxpayers Paying $15 Million Sex Abuse Settlement

By Matt Kyle | The Denver Gazette Taxpayers may end up on the hook for a child sexual assault settlement, possibly worth up to $15 million, after Jeffco Public Schools failed to notify its insurance company in a timely manner about the case. The incident stems from the Imagine Kay Ewer case. Ewer, a former paraprofessional in the district, groomed and sexually abused a special needs student for several months in 2023. Ewer pleaded guilty in 2024 to criminal charges for providing drugs and alcohol, and engaging in several sexual acts with the then-16-year-old disabled student.  Ewer received a four-year prison sentence followed by 10-years-to-life probation last year. According to documents obtained by The Denver Gazette, Jeffco and its legal couns...
Colorado Judge Approves $3000 Bond for Woman Detained by ICE at DIA
CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Colorado Judge Approves $3000 Bond for Woman Detained by ICE at DIA

By Jennifer McRae | CBS Colorado According to the attorneys for Chantal Rojas, the woman who was detained by ICE at Denver International Airport, she could be released on bond on Wednesday after a judge granted her a $3,000 bond on Tuesday.  The Department of Homeland Security said Rojas is originally from Ecuador and overstayed her visa in the U.S.  She was taken into ICE custody on July 20 and placed in the detention facility in Aurora, Colorado, according to DHS. Last week's interaction between Morales Rojas and DHS was captured on camera and quickly spread online.  READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT CBS COLORADO
Jeffco Schools Lawsuit Seeks Clarity After Federal Challenge to Transgender Policies
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Jeffco Schools Lawsuit Seeks Clarity After Federal Challenge to Transgender Policies

By: Matt Kyle | The Denver Gazette In the wake of several threats by the Trump administration to revoke federal funding, Jeffco Public Schools filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education seeking to protect that badly needed money. Jeffco has been under investigation by the DOE’s Office of Civil Rights over the district’s policies regarding transgender students, which the federal government alleges violate Title IX. Jeffco officials said its policies are in line with Colorado state law and that the dispute is between the state and federal governments, not the school district. In its complaint, Jeffco said the district’s policies align with the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, which broadly prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identit...
Denver Among America’s Riskiest Vacation Cities
KYGO, Approved, Local

Denver Among America’s Riskiest Vacation Cities

By Shawn Patrick | 98.5 KYGO If you’ve ever parked your car on a Denver street and returned to find the window smashed and your backpack gone, congratulations: You are a data point. Denver has been named the fourth-riskiest vacation destination in the United States for property crime, according to a new analysis by home security company Vivint using FBI data from summer 2024. The Mile High City logged 401 property crimes per 100,000 residents during peak summer travel season, putting it behind only Honolulu (442), Seattle (415) and Philadelphia (408) among 25 popular U.S. vacation cities studied. That rate is nearly three times higher than Park City, Utah, which topped the safest list at just 136 per 100,000. The ranking is driven by three categories: burglary, la...