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Colorado Redistricting Measure Attracts $250K From National GOP PAC
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Redistricting Measure Attracts $250K From National GOP PAC

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun Dark money groups are financially backing Amendment 86, which aims to make it harder to redraw congressional districts outside of the normal census-driven process. A federal political action committee created by U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson is bankrolling a Colorado ballot measure this year that would make it more difficult to redraw the boundaries of the state’s congressional districts outside of the process already laid out in the state constitution. The American Revival PAC gave $250,000 in August to the Fair Redistricting Colorado issue committee, which is working to pass Amendment 86 in November. The leadership PAC was created by Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, in 2017. It’s funded by other political action commi...
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Colorado Springs Delays Data Center Decision After Intense Public Opposition
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, Local

Colorado Springs Delays Data Center Decision After Intense Public Opposition

By Michael Booth | The Colorado Sun Public overwhelmingly against massive computing warehouse, as 3 protesters are arrested and 1 hit with stun gun. Colorado Springs City Council voted Thursday night to delay a hotly controversial data center proposal near Garden of the Gods, after a raucous daylong hearing with speakers overwhelmingly and profanely shouting down the concept. A scuffle broke out between police and speakers who claimed they had been denied a time slot and grabbed a megaphone to denounce the project. Social media and local TV stations showed one man being hit with a stun gun while he was being handcuffed, as police and at least two protesters wrestled between the theater-style seats. Colorado Springs Police said on X.com they had “three people in custo...
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Colorado Supreme Court Pauses Mandatory Courtroom Livestreams Over Harassment and Jury Concerns
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Supreme Court Pauses Mandatory Courtroom Livestreams Over Harassment and Jury Concerns

By Justin George | The Colorado Sun Chief Justice Monica Márquez’s 90-day directive lets judges opt out of livestreaming by default, reversing a 2023 law amid rising social-media harassment and jury-tainting fears. For the next three months, it will be up to Colorado judges to decide whether to livestream proceedings in their courtrooms. A directive by Colorado’s Supreme Court chief justice Tuesday said the pause on livestreaming by default is necessary to ensure the integrity and fairness of the judicial system.  The order is in direct contrast to a Colorado law passed in 2023 that requires all criminal proceedings to be livestreamed, and judges to make certain findings if they are to limit or discontinue the stream.  Virtual proceedings, like joini...
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Colorado Voter Registration Is Underway Ahead of Nov. 3 Election
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Voter Registration Is Underway Ahead of Nov. 3 Election

By Justin George | The Colorado Sun Coloradans have until Oct. 26 to register for a mail ballot ahead of the Nov. 3 election, but same-day registration is available through Election Day. It’s National Voter Registration Day, and Colorado voters have multiple ways to register before Election Day on Nov. 3. How to register To register to vote in Colorado, people must provide their Colorado driver’s license number, the last four digits of their Social Security number or present another valid form of identification to their county clerk and recorder’s office or the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office. If the form of ID doesn’t confirm someone’s citizenship, a person must affirm under penalty of perjury that they are a U.S. citizen. To receive a ballot in t...
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Democrat Jessica Killin’s Attack Ads Mischaracterize Crank’s Wedding Gift Waiver
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Democrat Jessica Killin’s Attack Ads Mischaracterize Crank’s Wedding Gift Waiver

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun Democrat Jessica Killin is running to unseat Republican US Rep. Jeff Crank in the 5th Congressional District. She would be the first Democrat to represent the district. Democrat Jessica Killin, who is running to flip Colorado’s 5th Congressional District this year, launched her first attack ads against Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank, both of which feature a misleading claim about the Colorado Springs congressman. The narrator in the pair of 30-second spots claims that Crank asked for a special waiver “allowing him to take gifts from his lobbyist buddies behind closed doors” and “without disclosing them.”  There are some big asterisks behind those assertions.  Crank did apply for a gift...
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Colorado River Deal Adds Mexico to Growing List of Water Cuts
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, National

Colorado River Deal Adds Mexico to Growing List of Water Cuts

By Shannon Mullane | The Colorado Sun The deal, which comes on the heels of big water cuts for three Western states, includes more cuts for Mexico. Officials from the United States and Mexico announced Wednesday a Colorado River water-sharing deal for the next two years as the basin continues to be overstressed by prolonged drought. The short-term deal, formally known as Minute 334, calls for Mexico to cut 250,000 acre-feet, or more than 100,000 Olympic swimming pools’ worth of water, in both 2027 and 2028. It also establishes an environmental work group and a pilot program to manage the salinity of Colorado River water as it reaches Mexico. “This Minute makes sure water is shared fairly among our users and protects the health of the Colorado River during...
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Former Colorado Bureau of Investigation Scientist Sentenced to 10 Years After DNA Evidence Misconduct
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Former Colorado Bureau of Investigation Scientist Sentenced to 10 Years After DNA Evidence Misconduct

By Olivia Prentzel | The Colorado Sun Yvonne “Missy” Woods ordered to serve 10 years behind bars after pleading guilty to four felonies in June. Former state forensic scientist Yvonne “Missy” Woods was sentenced to 10 years in prison Tuesday, a milestone in a years-long scandal that cast doubt on DNA evidence in more than 1,000 criminal cases and continues to ripple through Colorado’s courts. Woods, who had worked for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation for 29 years, pleaded guilty to four felonies in June. In exchange, prosecutors dropped the remaining 100 charges against her.  “At its core, this case is about trust — the extraordinary trust placed in Ms. Woods, and her breach of that trust,” Jefferson County District Judge Andrew Poland said before del...
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Manny Rutinel Leaves Colorado Legislature to Focus on High-Stakes Race Against Gabe Evans
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Manny Rutinel Leaves Colorado Legislature to Focus on High-Stakes Race Against Gabe Evans

By Bente Birkeland | The Colorado Sun Rutinel is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans in the 8th Congressional District north of Denver. Manny Rutinel, a Democratic state representative from Commerce City who is running in Colorado’s most competitive congressional district this year, resigned from the state legislature Friday. Rutinel is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans in the 8th Congressional District north of Denver. Evans narrowly won the seat two years ago, defeating Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo. It’s considered a district that could swing and the race between Evans and Rutinel has garnered national attention. Rutinel’s campaign announced Friday that he was resigning from the statehouse effective immediately. READ THE FULL ...
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After 4.25 Million Gallon Sewage Spill Arkansas River Faces a Long Cleanup
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, Local

After 4.25 Million Gallon Sewage Spill Arkansas River Faces a Long Cleanup

By John Ingold and Michael Booth | The Colorado Sun Are cantaloupes and peppers safe to eat? How will the river get clean? Everything we know about what comes next after a 4.25 million gallon sewage spill. A massive spill of raw sewage and untreated wastewater into the Arkansas River in southeastern Colorado continues to wreak havoc on the region. Water in the river downstream of the spill, east of Pueblo, is still testing high for dangerous nasties like the bacteria E. coli. Colorado Parks and Wildlife on Wednesday issued advisories for people to stay away from the water in 10 state wildlife areas along the river, as well as the Las Animas State Fish Hatchery. And all of this is happening during one of the most agriculturally important times for the Lower Ark...
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Colorado Supreme Court Rejects Xcel Bid to Fast-Track Ranchland Dispute
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Supreme Court Rejects Xcel Bid to Fast-Track Ranchland Dispute

By Mark Jaffe | The Colorado Sun Xcel tried to condemn a 550-foot strip of Cheyenne County ranchland to connect two wind farms to a substation. The landowner objected to the route. Xcel Energy’s bid to have the state Supreme Court weigh in on a dispute with a Cheyenne County landowner over a 550-foot right-of-way to connect wind farms to the Goose Creek substation was rejected by the court Monday. In a brief unanimous decision, the court denied the utility’s attempt to have the state’s highest court overturn a Cheyenne County district judge’s ruling that Xcel Energy did not have the power to use eminent domain to acquire the right of way. Xcel Energy argued that the case raised serious statewide issues on the future of clean energy policy in Colorado...
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