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Teen pleads guilty to second degree murder in shooting at Longmont car rally
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Teen pleads guilty to second degree murder in shooting at Longmont car rally

By Christa Swanson | CBS Colorado A teen charged in a fatal shooting at a car rally in Longmont pleaded guilty to second-degree murder Friday. Christian Mendoza, 17, was charged as an adult after he fatally shot 16-year-old Robert Maldonado in the Longmont Hobby Lobby parking lot in March 2024. Officials said an altercation at the car rally between Mendoza and Maldonado turned physical. When Maldonado turned to head back towards the vehicle he arrived in, Mendoza shot him in the back right side. Maldonado fled the rally in his vehicle and crashed nearby. He later died from his injuries at the hospital. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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Lawsuit filed against town of Palmer Lake, officials over Buc-ee’s plan
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Approved, gazette.com, Local

Lawsuit filed against town of Palmer Lake, officials over Buc-ee’s plan

By BRETT FORREST | The Gazette, via KOAA Several nonprofit organizations are suing the town of Palmer Lake, its mayor and other city officials over a controversial plan to annex land to open a Buc-ee's convenience store. The lawsuit, filed Friday, alleges a multitude of complaints including improper land annexation agreements, restriction of free speech and violation of open meeting laws for matters surrounding the development of the popular Texas-based chain, which opened its first Colorado location near Johnstown in 2024. Nonprofit Integrity Matters filed the suit along with Westside Watch, TriLakes Preservation, Inc, United Congregational Church, and other individuals and business owners in the Palmer Lake area. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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Man who dragged Brighton officer with car sentenced to decades in prison
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Man who dragged Brighton officer with car sentenced to decades in prison

By Janet Oravetz  | Denver Gazette, via 9News A man who injured a Brighton Police Department officer when he attempted to drive away to avoid being arrested was sentenced Wednesday morning to 20 years in prison. Robert Trujillo, 51, pleaded guilty in September to first-degree assault related to the August 2023 incident at Overland Trail Middle School. On Aug. 16, 2023, officers responded to the school after learning that Trujillo, who was wanted on a felony domestic violence warrant was sitting in a car at the school. Officers arrived and one parked in front of Trujillo's vehicle and a second parked behind him. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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Colorado family hopes murder suspect will reveal location of man missing for 25 years
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Colorado family hopes murder suspect will reveal location of man missing for 25 years

By Logan Smith | CBS Colorado He played Santa Claus during the holidays and hand-delivered gifts to local children. He drove teenage royalty in the high school's homecoming parades with his rebuilt classic cars. He picked up broken down motorists and fixed their cars.  But his body has never been found.  Dale Williams was presumably murdered by a childhood friend 25 years ago.  His willingness to help others appears to have contributed to his disappearance. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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Judge denies Denver Public Schools’ wrongful termination lawsuit dismissal request
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Judge denies Denver Public Schools’ wrongful termination lawsuit dismissal request

By Sage Kelley | Denver Gazette Former McAuliffe International Principal Kurt Dennis' wrongful termination lawsuit against Denver Public Schools will continue, a judge decided, denying a request for dismissal the school district sought. United States District Court Judge John Kane denied the district's motion, based on arguments implicating student privacy and confidentiality laws, to dismiss Dennis' case. The court granted the district's motion to dismiss property interest claims based on a Fourteenth Amendment argument the former principal had raised in court.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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A Colorado Court Case that Strengthened Due Process Rights
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Approved, Law Week Colorado, State

A Colorado Court Case that Strengthened Due Process Rights

By Michael Rummel | Law Week Colorado In 1959, 14-year-old Bobby Gallegos was convicted of first-degree murder in Colorado. According to the U.S. Supreme Court opinion in Gallegos v. Colorado, the child and another juvenile tricked an elderly man into letting them into his hotel room, where they assaulted him, stole $13 from him and fled.  Less than 2 weeks later, Gallegos was caught by police and admitted to the assault and robbery. Just a few weeks after that, he was convicted in a juvenile court of “assault to injure.”  After his sentencing, the elderly man he assaulted died, which led to Gallegos being tried in state court—for first-degree murder.  READ THE FULL STORY AT LAW WEEK COLORADO
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Colorado justices reject media request for police officer records on narrow grounds
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State

Colorado justices reject media request for police officer records on narrow grounds

By Michael Karlik  | Colorado Politics At the same time the Colorado Supreme Court found that two media outlets were properly denied access to records bearing on police officers' misconduct, it declined to endorse an interpretation of state law that would have enabled non-law enforcement entities to shield their documents by labeling themselves "criminal justice agencies." Instead, the justices on Monday concluded that label applies to one particular licensing agency, the Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Board. As a result, POST's records certifying and decertifying law enforcement officers are subject to more stringent disclosure guidelines. Previously, the state's Court of Appeals concluded POST met the definition of a criminal justice agency. However, the appellate c...
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Senate Democrats use ethics investigation to target conservative Supreme Court justices
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Approved, National, Washington Examiner

Senate Democrats use ethics investigation to target conservative Supreme Court justices

By Gabrielle M. Etzel and Kaelan Deese | Washington Examiner Senate Democrats on Saturday morning concluded a nearly two-year-long investigation into the ethical practices of the Supreme Court, issuing a final report that focused on the court’s conservative members, accusing them of impropriety such as accepting lavish gifts and failing to recuse amidst conflicts of interests.  “Now more than ever before, as a result of information gathered by subpoenas, we know the extent to which the Supreme Court is mired in an ethical crisis of its own making,” Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee Dick Durbin (D-IL) said in a statement Saturday morning.  The 97-page staff report accuses Justice Clarence Thomas, who joined the court in 1991, of receiving millions of dollars...
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Court of Appeals vacates contempt conviction against Tina Peters in iPad recording case
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

Court of Appeals vacates contempt conviction against Tina Peters in iPad recording case

By Lindy Browning | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice In a court order filed Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024, the Court of Appeals ruled that the case against Tina Peters concerning a contempt of court conviction over an iPad recording in Mesa County be vacated. Her attorney John Case said in a written statement, “The Colorado Court of Appeals reversed Tina’s conviction for contempt and vacated the judgment, meaning that the contempt case is over and there will be no retrial. She had been found innocent of recording a judicial proceeding and innocent of lying to Judge Barrett.  The basis of the ruling was that [District Attorney] Dan Rubinstein failed to present sufficient evidence to sustain a conviction.” In response to Case's statement, Rubinstein wrote, “... there is no s...
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Colorado Springs family sues McDonald’s, Taylor Farms over E. coli exposure
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gazette.com, Local

Colorado Springs family sues McDonald’s, Taylor Farms over E. coli exposure

By Carol McKinley | The Gazette A Colorado Springs mother and her 10-year-old child are suing McDonald’s and Taylor Farms after each of them ate a Double Quarter Pounder hamburger in mid-October and were exposed to E coli. Geovanna Zambrano, whose name has not been public until now, and her daughter consumed the burgers immediately after buying them on Oct. 17 at the McDonald’s restaurant at 390 S. 8th St., according to the lawsuit. The next day they experienced nausea, stomach cramps, fatigue and diarrhea, which are symptoms associated with E. coli poisoning, according to the lawsuit.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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