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Tag: Crime & Safety

Colorado is charting a rise in potential money laundering. Could stopping it slow the fentanyl trade?
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Colorado is charting a rise in potential money laundering. Could stopping it slow the fentanyl trade?

By Ernesto Cabral | The Colorado Sun Colorado money service businesses, such as check-cashing businesses and money forwarding services, filed a record number of reports last year of possible money laundering by people using their services, official data shows. In 2023, money services businesses flagged more than 22,000 transactions in Colorado they suspected were intended to convert money from crimes into usable cash, according to data from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN. That’s a 40% increase from the previous year and a 1,009% surge since 2014. The increase comes as federal authorities are eyeing the role money services businesses play in allowing fentanyl dealers — many associated with the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels in Mexico — to...
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What’s behind Wheat Ridge’s 26% crime drop since 2021? Start with police staffing, mayor says.
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Approved, Commentary, Local

What’s behind Wheat Ridge’s 26% crime drop since 2021? Start with police staffing, mayor says.

By Mayor Bud Starker | Wheat Ridge Neighborhood Gazette Wheat Ridge has seen a significant drop in crime rates, returning to levels last observed before the pandemic. The Wheat Ridge Police Department reports a 26% overall decrease in crime since 2021, marking a substantial improvement from the spike experienced during the pandemic. A major factor in this reduction is the department’s success in recruiting high-quality candidates, even as law enforcement agencies nationwide struggle with recruitment and retention. After staffing levels dipped in 2021, WRPD is on track to add a dozen officers this year. Seven rookies graduated from the academy last December and completed over three months of field training before beginning independent patrols. Additionally, five more recruits are curr...
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Under Colorado’s ‘hands-free’ device law, it cannot be primary reason for law enforcement stop
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State

Under Colorado’s ‘hands-free’ device law, it cannot be primary reason for law enforcement stop

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Under a new "hands-free" law, Colorado drivers will be prohibited from using cellphones while driving, but it is a secondary offense, meaning it cannot be the primary reason to be pulled over. Next year, Colorado will join 27 other states in adopting a "hands-free" law, prohibiting the use of electronic devices like cellphones while driving.      Under Senate Bill 065, law enforcement officers can't stop a driver solely because they're using a phone while driving. Instead, using an electronic device while driving is classified as a secondary offense, meaning drivers can only be cited for it if they are pulled over for something else, such as reckless driving.  Drivers are permitted to use their phones while opera...
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Colorado ranks third in lightning-related deaths, with 25 since 2006. Here’s how to stay safe
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Colorado ranks third in lightning-related deaths, with 25 since 2006. Here’s how to stay safe

By Jennifer Brown | The Colorado Sun A thunderstorm that turned roads into rivers and basements into swimming pools lit up the sky over Greeley on Tuesday night with flashes of light as bright as daytime. Three days earlier, a single lightning strike killed a Jackson County rancher and more than 30 of his cattle. Last week, a storm that raged over Yuma, rumbling like a freight train, buried the plains town in knee-deep hail. It’s been an intense week, even for Colorado in the spring.  The state, known for its wild electrical storms that seem to come out of nowhere, is third-highest in the nation for lightning deaths. The fatal strike Saturday that killed a cattle rancher outside of Rand in northern Colorado was the 25th lightning death in Colorado since 2006, according to dat...
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Colorado’s (not yet signed) new law bans cellphone use while driving. When can it lead to a traffic stop?
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Colorado’s (not yet signed) new law bans cellphone use while driving. When can it lead to a traffic stop?

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun All drivers will be prohibited from talking on or otherwise using their cellphones while driving under a bill passed by the Colorado legislature this year that Gov. Jared Polis says he will sign into law.  Senate Bill 65 would create some exceptions, including for drivers using hands-free accessories. Senate Bill 65 says a driver can’t be cited for talking on or using their cellphone while driving unless a law enforcement officer sees them doing so in a “manner that caused the individual to drive in a careless and imprudent manner, without due regard for the width, grade, curves, corners, traffic and use of the streets and highways and all other attendant circumstances.” READ THE FULL STORY ON THE BILL AT THE COLORADO SUN
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Residents warned of black bear visiting historic downtown Golden
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Approved, Local, Out There Colorado

Residents warned of black bear visiting historic downtown Golden

By Spencer McKee | Out There Colorado The Golden Police Department is warning residents about a bear that's been frequenting the historic downtown area of the city in recent days. At the time of a May 14 announcement, the bear had been spotted in the area over the past two days, with an image included of the bear sitting in a tree. The bear appears to be between one and two years old and hasn't shown any signs of aggression toward people or pets. READ THE FULL STORY AT OUT THERE COLORADO
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Cole Finegan stepping down as U.S. Attorney for Colorado
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Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Cole Finegan stepping down as U.S. Attorney for Colorado

By Daniel Boniface | The Denver Gazette Cole Finegan on Wednesday announced he's stepping down as United States Attorney for the District of Colorado at the end of the month. Finegan, who was appointed by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, took the oath of office on Dec. 1, 2021. His last day on the job will be May 31. During his time as U.S. Attorney, Finegan's office represented the U.S. in criminal and civil court matters in Colorado and the in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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Colorado ranked as third most dangerous state in new U.S. crime study
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Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Colorado ranked as third most dangerous state in new U.S. crime study

By Daniel Boniface | Denver Gazette Colorado ranked as one of the "most dangerous" states in the U.S. in a new report and it's mostly because of a high rate of property crime. U.S. News and World Report last week released its 2024 Best States rankings and although Colorado finished in a respectable 16th place overall, it received poor marks for public safety, ranking No. 3 most dangerous. The rankings were determined by factoring both violent crime and property crime rates in each state using FBI data from 2022, the report said. "For its part, the FBI notes that numerous factors can affect the amount and type of crime in different areas, including population density, economic conditions, climate and family cohesiveness," the report said. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZ...
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Officials concerned with public safety, human waste at Auraria protest camp
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Approved, Downtown Denver, kdvr.com

Officials concerned with public safety, human waste at Auraria protest camp

By Rogelio Mares | KDVR DENVER (KDVR) — Auraria Campus officials raised concerns Thursday about safety and sanitary conditions at the ongoing encampment protests there. There was no word Thursday on plans to clear the encampment, but options appear to be running thin. Campus officials say they are concerned about nonstudents and possible criminal activity, while students said they are not the ones causing the issues. Auraria Campus officials report hazards to public safety and cleanliness at the encampment, which has been a weeks-long protest against the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza. “A lot of it has been our patrols and our folks who have been monitoring the quad,” said Devra Ashby, with Auraria Higher Education Center. READ FULL STORY AT KDVR.COM
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Denver Migrants Send List Of Demands To Mayor
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Approved, Downtown Denver, One America News (OAN)

Denver Migrants Send List Of Demands To Mayor

By Sophia Flores | One America News A group of illegal immigrants staying at an encampment in Denver, Colorado, have sent a list of demands to the mayor’s office. According to multiple reports that recently surfaced, the group submitted a list of 13 demands, which include access to free immigration lawyers, shower facilities, employment support, free visits by medical professionals, free transportation, and fresh cooking ingredients that will be “provided by the City.” Denver Illegal migrants sent Mayor Mike Johnston list of 13 demands as they refused to clear encampmentIncluding:Free lawyersFree transportationDoctor House CallsCulturally appropriate foodClaiming not criminals*though they entered the U.S. illegally 🤨*NGO demands?🤔 pic.twitter.com/EikQGjolOy— Lawyerforlaws (@...
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