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Judge denies motion to dismiss in Colorado Springs ‘hate crime hoax’ case
Approved, KRDO.COM, Local

Judge denies motion to dismiss in Colorado Springs ‘hate crime hoax’ case

By Celeste Springer | KRDO COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - It's been six months since three people were indicted after allegedly staging a hate crime to help a Black Colorado Springs candidate, Mayor Yemi Mobolade, win an election. On Friday, a judge denied a motion to dismiss, signalling that the case will move forward and ultimately be heard by a jury. In April 2023, just before the Colorado Springs mayoral election, video of a burning cross in front of then-candidate Yemi Mobolade's campaign sign was sent to media outlets. The sign had also been painted with the "n-word." The event was thought to be a racially motivated attack on Mobolade, who was a Black candidate running against a white opponent. According to court records, investigators believe Derrick Berna...
Writing to remember and reconcile: Colorado Springs Rescue Mission marks Mother’s Day with purpose
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Writing to remember and reconcile: Colorado Springs Rescue Mission marks Mother’s Day with purpose

By Debbie Kelley | Denver Gazette Unspoken words flowed from head to heart to paper Thursday, with messages that are being sent from Colorado Springs to communities across the nation, or from earth to heaven. As Mother’s Day approaches, homeless people staying at the city’s largest emergency shelter and support campus wrote greeting cards with personal sentiments expressing thanksgiving, fond memories, forgiveness, regret, repentance and above all, their love to the women who gave them life. “I most want to tell her that we miss her so much,” said Sherry Kirkendall, who for the second year will observe Mother’s Day without her mom, who also was homeless at the time of her death in February 2024. “We were close,” she said, tearfully. “It’s been kind of tough. She was a rock, a f...
First American pope elected: Denver Catholics react with hope and caution
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First American pope elected: Denver Catholics react with hope and caution

By Hanna Powers | KDVR.COM DENVER (KDVR) — For the first time in history, the leader of the Catholic Church is from the United States. At Regis University, a Jesuit school in Denver, students and faculty reflected on the election of Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost of Chicago. “I’m truly surprised, I did not expect to have an American Pope in my lifetime,” said Kari Kloos, interim vice president for mission at Regis University. “I am very pleasantly surprised and also relieved,” said Alexandra Walker, a senior at Regis. Pope Leo XIV is being called a “pope for the modern world.” He speaks several languages and is known for emphasizing compassion and connection. “I found it really heartwarming and emotional that in his speech, he switched from Itali...
Mail carrier admits to ballot theft, voter fraud in Mesa County election case
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Mail carrier admits to ballot theft, voter fraud in Mesa County election case

By Mark Steffen | Trending Politics A Colorado U.S. postal worker has pleaded guilty to trying to rig the 2024 election, according to prosecutors who announced they reached a deal that may involve prison time. The absurd case involved Vicki Stuart, a 64-year-old former employee of the U.S. Postal Service who on Monday admitted to forgery and identify theft in an attempt to steal ballots and cast votes in the names of other Americans during the 2024 election. Stuart had been charged with 34 counts in connection with her ballot theft scheme, according to Colorado Public Radio. She and another woman in Mesa County allegedly stole dozens of mail-in ballots as they passed through her truck, opening and filling them out for their preferred candidate rather than delivering them to their ...
The $5 million shadow ledger: Pueblo Democrats’ HQ funded by bingo, not disclosed in filings
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The $5 million shadow ledger: Pueblo Democrats’ HQ funded by bingo, not disclosed in filings

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice A building paid for with bingo money. A political party using it as their headquarters. And more than $5 million in unreported financial activity that, to date, no one has answered for. That’s the core of Pueblo resident Jonathan Ambler’s ongoing legal challenge against the Pueblo County Democratic Party and its Central Committee. Ambler, a former Republican candidate, filed two complaints last fall alleging the party used a bingo-funded building for years without reporting it in TRACER. After the Colorado Secretary of State dismissed both complaints in April, Ambler – without an attorney – petitioned the Denver District Court for judicial review. "If political activities are occurring at the building – and the Party itself refers to it as...
Gimelshteyn: CPAN files federal complaint over D70’s deceptive TRAILS program violating rights
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Gimelshteyn: CPAN files federal complaint over D70’s deceptive TRAILS program violating rights

By Lori Gimelshteyn | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice On April 25th, the Colorado Parent Advocacy Network (CPAN) filed a formal civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), urging an investigation into Pueblo County School District 70 (D70) and its use of the “Transforming Research into Action to Improve the Lives of Students Social Emotional Learning” (TRAILS) program.  Our complaint is a direct response to the district’s reckless decision to embed this program into classrooms without parental consent, without transparency, and in direct violation of federal law. TRAILS, which was deceptively marketed as a “gift” to the district, is directly connected to the Tides Foundation, a radical political nonprofit. Under TRAILS,...
18 flagged for deportation after Colorado Springs nightclub raid, 86 remain in ICE custody
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18 flagged for deportation after Colorado Springs nightclub raid, 86 remain in ICE custody

Denver Gazette A spokesperson with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has confirmed that 18 people who were taken into custody on April 27 as part of a major raid on an unlicensed Colorado Springs nightclub had previously been ordered to be deported. According to the ICE spokesperson Thursday, 18 of the 104 individuals detained in the raid were “subject to a final order of removal.” The ICE website states: Once an individual receives a final order, ERO facilitates the individual’s safe return to his or her country of origin in accordance with U.S. immigration laws, as well as international commitments and any bilateral agreements which may be in place. The ICE spokesperson declined to say whether the 18 had been deported, or if they had been sent to their country of origi...
Friday vigil and fundraiser planned as Weld County mourns teacher killed in tragic car crash
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Friday vigil and fundraiser planned as Weld County mourns teacher killed in tragic car crash

By Brooke Williams | Fox31 DENVER (KDVR) — Community members are planning to gather for a vigil in honor of a beloved middle school teacher who was killed in a crash in Weld County. Christine Schwarz, a 57-year-old seventh-grade science teacher at La Salle North Valley Middle School, was one of three people who were killed in a crash on April 30. Colorado State Patrol previously said that the crash happened when a suspected stolen vehicle fled from deputies and crossed over into oncoming traffic on Highway 85 in Platteville. A spokesperson for the Weld County Sheriff’s Office told FOX31’s Vicente Arenas that they are not sure if a pursuit was happening at the time of the crash. Both agencies are investigating. When news broke of Schwarz’s death, classes at the school ...
District 51’s master plan delivers first wins with taxpayer-focused school upgrades
Approved, Local, The Business Times

District 51’s master plan delivers first wins with taxpayer-focused school upgrades

By Brandon Leuallen | The Business Times Mesa County Valley School District 51 continues to advance its 25-year Facility Master Plan, a comprehensive roadmap initiated in 2023 to address the district’s long-term infrastructure needs. At the Grand Junction Economic Summit on April 25, District 51 Superintendent Brian Hill discussed the district’s success in developing the facility master plan as a way to communicate with the community, provide updates on capital funding needs and establish a consistent approach to securing and responsibly utilizing funding for the projects. Origin of the 25-year plan In the summer of 2023, District 51 hired Hord Coplan Macht (HCM), an architectural and planning firm, to develop a long-range facility master plan. The decision was driven by the ne...