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Trump prioritizes Venezuelan gang crackdown, while Colorado and other sanctuary states resist
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local, National, State

Trump prioritizes Venezuelan gang crackdown, while Colorado and other sanctuary states resist

By Nicole C. Brambila | Denver Gazette As millions of immigrants fleeing the economic and political chaos in Venezuela used social media to navigate the journey north, Tren de Aragua (TdA) operatives embedded in their ranks and exploited these same platforms — particularly WhatsApp — to coordinate extortion, smuggling and violence. Venezuela’s economic and political chaos made the rise of an enterprising criminal organization like TdA almost inevitable, according to Ronna Rísquez, a Venezuelan journalist who's been investigating the gang. “The heads of the Tren de Aragua identified the massive and forced Venezuelan migration as a goldmine of business opportunities,” Rísquez wrote in her book, “El Tren de Aragua: La banda que revolucionó el crimen organizado en América Latina” (The...
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Michelle Chandler stopped a predator — and uncovered victims who may never know
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Michelle Chandler stopped a predator — and uncovered victims who may never know

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice On May 11, 2024, at Nordstrom Rack in Lakewood, Colorado, Michelle Chandler caught a man filming her inside a women’s fitting room. She didn’t freeze or panic. Instead, she confronted him, pinned him to the ground and held him until help arrived – or so she thought.  What happened next wasn’t the swift arrival of justice. It was abandonment: by store employees, by security and later, by a system more concerned with procedure than protection. Chandler’s story quickly gained attention when she posted about it on Instagram. Social media influencers – including David Harris Jr. posted about the video. Local radio and National news outlets reached out to cover the story. And strangers from Canada to Europe responded, showing their support.&nb...
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Cole: Illegal driving, rising costs, and scarce patrols—welcome to Denver’s roads
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Approved, Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Cole: Illegal driving, rising costs, and scarce patrols—welcome to Denver’s roads

By Shaina Cole | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Each afternoon, my three-mile commute home in Denver’s metro area is a nerve-wrecking ordeal. Drivers speed through stop signs, ignore red lights, or stop inexplicably at unmarked intersections. Cars swerve across lanes, straddle the center line, or disrupt four-way stops.  Vehicles without plates, with expired tags, or overdue permits are all too common.  As a single-income earner with only liability insurance, I dread a crash with an uninsured driver.  One accident could destroy my car—my lifeline to work and rent.  Since 2020, Denver’s roads have descended into chaos. I believe the combination of unenforced traffic laws, a 25% rise in undocumented immigration, and soaring cost of living fuels this...
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Six Colorado Springs nightclubs under police investigation for years, public just finding out
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Six Colorado Springs nightclubs under police investigation for years, public just finding out

The Denver Gazette Six nightclubs around Colorado Springs have been investigated for potential illegal activity since 2022, according to Colorado Springs police. Police said New Havana Bar and Grill off North Academy Boulevard, an unnamed after-hours club on Palmer Park Boulevard, and La Terraza on South Circle Drive were all shut down through the public nuisance process. Police said Babilonia Bar and Grill on East Platte Avenue, Nova Nightclub on South Nevada Avenue and El Huracán on South Academy Boulevard were evicted by their property owners. A Police Department spokesperson told The Gazette some of these clubs were licensed and some were unlicensed. The spokesperson said each of the locations had multiple calls for service, which started a police investigation an...
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Colorado Springs doctor ends teen’s exam after parents challenge gender identity question
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Approved, Daily Citizen, Local

Colorado Springs doctor ends teen’s exam after parents challenge gender identity question

By Emily Washburn | Daily Citizen Multi-state health conglomerate Common Spirit refused to serve a Colorado Springs family after parents objected to a doctor’s inappropriate and ideologically driven questions. Melissa and her husband, Carlos, are no strangers to the medical system’s disregard for parent’s rights. The devout Christian couple shuttled their four children to doctor’s appointments in several different states during Carlos’ more than 20-year military career. So, when thirteen-year-old Ricardo needed a physical to play football, the couple gave him a heads up. “I just asked, ‘Hey, if they ask you if they want us to leave the room, are you comfortable with that?’” Melissa explained. Years earlier, in Virginia, doctors had asked one of their daughters if s...
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American Rights Alliance files amicus brief, backs Tina Peters’ habeas petition over political targeting
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Approved, Local, National, State, yourNEWS

American Rights Alliance files amicus brief, backs Tina Peters’ habeas petition over political targeting

By yourNEWS | yournews.com Denver, CO — Former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters is seeking release from detention through a federal habeas corpus petition, alleging that her prosecution and incarceration violate federal law and her constitutional rights. The case, Tina Peters v. John Feyen and Philip J. Weiser, Civil Action No. 1:25-cv-00425-STV, is currently before U.S. District Court Judge Scott T. Varholak in the District of Colorado. Peters, convicted at the state level for actions taken while serving as the chief election official for Mesa County during the 2020 election, is now challenging the legitimacy of her prosecution. Her legal team argues that her actions were not only lawful but mandated by her duties under federal law to preserve election records. The America...
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Can Gross Dam expansion be completed before activists and courts dry it up?
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Approved, Local, The Colorado Sun

Can Gross Dam expansion be completed before activists and courts dry it up?

By Jerd Smith | Colorado Sun As Save the Colorado and Denver Water prepare to face off in a federal courtroom Tuesday, water officials across the state are watching the Gross Dam expansion case closely for its environmental impact and its affect on water projects across the West. Kirk Klancke, a long-time Grand County environmentalist and president of the Colorado River Headwaters Chapter of Trout Unlimited, said a decision that shuts down the $531 million water project, could also shut down 12 years of work on the Fraser River and its tributaries. Here’s why: Denver Water owns much of the Fraser with water rights dating back more than 100 years. And it is that water that has historically been piped through the Moffat Tunnel near Rollinsville to fill the existing Gross Reservoir. ...
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Feds using Colorado airport to deport ICE detainees—in large numbers
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Approved, KRDO.COM, Local

Feds using Colorado airport to deport ICE detainees—in large numbers

By Sadie Buggle | KDRO News ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (KRDO) – An airport near Denver is being used by the U.S. Coast Guard to transport Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees to Texas and California for deportation, our Denver news affiliate 9NEWS has confirmed. According to 9NEWS, at least three large U.S. Coast Guard cargo planes were spotted at Centennial airport in Englewood last Thursday, Friday and Monday. In a statement to our Denver affiliates, the Coast Guard confirmed the aircrafts were being used to transport individuals in custody. READ THE FULL STORY AT KRDO NEWS
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17 found trespassing in vacant Colorado Springs apartment; multiple arrested on outstanding warrants
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Approved, gazette.com, Local

17 found trespassing in vacant Colorado Springs apartment; multiple arrested on outstanding warrants

By Natasha Lynn | The Gazette Police said 17 people were cited for trespassing after allegedly breaking into a vacant apartment in southeast Colorado Springs Thursday morning.  Officers responded to a burglary call around 9:45 a.m. at a vacant apartment on the 3400 block of Vera Cruz Court, near South Academy and East Fountain boulevards, according to an online blotter entry by Colorado Springs police. Officers arrived to find two people trying to exit the rear window of the vacant apartment. READ THE FULL STORY AT TH GAZETTE
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Gazette editorial board: Sanctuary policies cost Denver taxpayers—again
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local, National

Gazette editorial board: Sanctuary policies cost Denver taxpayers—again

The Gazette editorial board | Denver Gazette Say what you will about the Trump administration, but give it credit for sparing U.S. taxpayers from bailing out cities whose sanctuary policies made them magnets for illegal immigration. The fact that Denver is among those cities isn’t Washington’s fault. It’s Mayor Mike Johnston’s. And the fact that Denver now likely won’t be reimbursed some or all of $32 million it had forced local taxpayers to pony up in welcoming the latest wave of illegal immigrants, as reported by The Gazette, is Johnston’s comeuppance. It’s also Denver taxpayers’ loss. The Mile High mayor who showboated before a congressional panel in Washington last March — and sanctimoniously pronounced, “… Denver made a choice as a city not to hate each other but to help e...
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