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Supreme Court Sets Date for Colorado Religious Liberty Showdown
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THE HILL, Approved, State

Supreme Court Sets Date for Colorado Religious Liberty Showdown

By Zach Schonfeld | The Hill The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on Nov. 3 in its major case asking whether Colorado can force Catholic preschools to enroll children of same-sex couples to receive public funds.  The justices previously agreed to take up the case, which provides a pathway for the high court to narrow a major religious precedent.  On Tuesday, the court released its November argument calendar, setting the stage for the case to be heard on the same day as the midterm elections.  It’s the latest First Amendment challenge to Colorado’s LGBTQ protections to arrive at the Supreme Court.  READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT THE HILL
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He posted $250,000 in cash and fled. Colorado released him on a promise.
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

He posted $250,000 in cash and fled. Colorado released him on a promise.

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project Do Colorado courts ignore fugitive warrants for sex offenders just like they do ICE detainers? I wrote a bit back about Colorado’s sanctuary policy and ICE detainers. To see that earlier op ed, click the first link below. The second link below, a Cowboy State Daily (WY) article about a sex offender being released on a PR bond, struck me as a good follow up to the earlier one about ICE. Not so much because the sex offender was here illegally, but because it touches on some of the same things: being released on bond, confusion about detaining someone, and/or Colorado’s seeming unwillingness to honor some warrants/hold requests. Let’s talk the story first. In my earlier op ed, I outlined the process that happ...
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Judicial Performance Commissions Flag Three Colorado Judges Ahead of November Election
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Judicial Performance Commissions Flag Three Colorado Judges Ahead of November Election

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics Of the 123 Colorado judges standing for retention on the November ballot, citizen-led performance commissions found that three did not meet the required performance standards. However, in an unprecedented move, the commission charged with evaluating Supreme Court and Court of Appeals members stepped in to issue its own narrative after it concluded the local performance commission in northeastern Colorado violated the rules in a “serious” manner when it gave an unfavorable review to one judge. Under Colorado’s system of selecting judges, the governor appoints new judges from a short list created by citizen-led nominating commissions that screen and interview applicants. Judges serve for at least two years before voters dec...
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Former Weld County IT Worker Sentenced After Downloading Child Abuse Videos From Police
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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 ...
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Former Jeffco Schools Security Guard Faces Dozens of Child Sex Crime Charges
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Former Jeffco Schools Security Guard Faces Dozens of Child Sex Crime Charges

By Óscar Contreras | Denver7 JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — A former Jeffco Public Schools security guard arrested for child sex assault charges last month kept evidence of child sex abuse material for nearly 10 years before he was caught, according to an arrest affidavit in the case obtained by Denver7 over the weekend. Brian C. Richie, 67, was arrested June 22, 2026, by Longmont police on more than 30 charges, including felony sexual assault on a child from a position of trust, production and possession of child sexual abuse material, and invasion of privacy for sexual gratification. The investigation into Richie began in January of this year after a child disclosed “unsafe touching" by Richie to staff at Blue Sky Bridge child advocacy center following a school safety pre...
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Children’s Hospital Denies Violating Court Order In Colorado Gender Care Lawsuit
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Children’s Hospital Denies Violating Court Order In Colorado Gender Care Lawsuit

By: John Ingold | The Colorado Sun The hospital is accused of violating an order stemming from the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling that it resume prescriptions for transgender youth. Children’s Hospital Colorado on Monday pleaded not guilty to allegations it has violated a court order to resume gender-affirming care for transgender youth. The plea came during a brief hearing in Denver District Court, during which Judge Ericka F. H. Englert scheduled a multiday trial in mid-September to determine whether Children’s should be held in contempt. Children’s is being sued by four transgender youth and their families who say the hospital discriminated against them when it stopped writing prescriptions to patients under the age of 18 for the purposes of gender-affirmi...
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Montezuma County Judge Agrees to 90 Day Suspension After Misconduct Admissions
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Colorado Politics, Approved, Local

Montezuma County Judge Agrees to 90 Day Suspension After Misconduct Admissions

By: Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics A Montezuma County judge and the Colorado Commission on Judicial Discipline both agreed this month that a suspension and public censure are the appropriate consequences for his multiple instances of misconduct, including invoking his title when facing a citation from state officials and exhibiting bias against a criminal defendant. Under constitutional Amendment H, which voters adopted in November 2024, a three-member panel will formally administer discipline to County Court Judge Ian J. MacLaren. The commission originally sought MacLaren’s removal from the bench for actions that allegedly included lying to disciplinary officials. However, on July 11, the parties told the panel that a combination of a public censure, unpaid...
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Civil Lawsuit Claims Neglected Power Lines Sparked Aspen Acres Fire
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Civil Lawsuit Claims Neglected Power Lines Sparked Aspen Acres Fire

By: James Gavato | Denver7 RYE, Colo. — Four people have filed a civil lawsuit against the San Isabel Electric Association, claiming the company is allegedly responsible for the Aspen Acres Fire and the damage it caused. All four people who filed the lawsuit live in either Pueblo or Custer counties. The lawsuit alleges that on the morning the Aspen Acres Fire started, June 29, 2026, a witness reported seeing a large tree leaning on a power line in the area. It goes on to say another witness videotaped a fire burning near a power line in the Aspen Acres subdivision. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT DENVER7
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Federal Appeals Court Rejects Anonymous Lawsuit Against Colorado Judicial Branch
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Federal Appeals Court Rejects Anonymous Lawsuit Against Colorado Judicial Branch

By: Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics The Denver-based federal appeals court concluded last month that a former attorney cannot mask her identity while suing the Colorado Judicial Department for alleged improprieties in her disability and disbarment proceedings. “Jane Roe,” representing herself, sued the Judicial Department and attorney regulators in 2024. She accused the defendants of discrimination, defamation, and violations of her constitutional rights in the proceedings that culminated in her disbarment. Because Roe did not have an attorney, Colorado’s federal trial court routed her complaint through its screening process for self-represented litigants. U.S. Magistrate Judge Richard T. Gurley advised Roe that there need to be “exceptional” circumstances for plain...
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Second Amendment Lawsuit Targets Denver Gun Ban and State Magazine Limits
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Second Amendment Lawsuit Targets Denver Gun Ban and State Magazine Limits

By Deborah Grigsby | The Denver Gazette A lawsuit filed in federal court by three Denver residents and two gun rights groups aims to strike down the city’s “assault weapon” restrictions, along with bans on ammunition magazines holding 15 rounds or more. The complaint, filed on June 30 by Ray Elliott, Trevor Alley and Michael Vitco, along with the Firearms Policy Coalition and the Colorado State Shooting Association, an arm of the National Rifle Association, alleges Denver’s semiautomatic firearm ban is unconstitutional, as is its ban on 15-round or larger magazines. Naming the city government, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Director Armando Saldate III, Colorado State Patrol Chief Col. Matthew Packard and Denve...
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