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Tag: Victims rights

Justice on hold: Lawmakers race to fix Colorado’s rape kit backlog
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Top Stories, Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Justice on hold: Lawmakers race to fix Colorado’s rape kit backlog

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice A backlog of 1,369 untested sexual assault kits at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation delays justice and drives significant costs, per a June 2025 report from the Common Sense Institute. Authored by former Denver DA Mitch Morrissey and Senior Analyst Erik Gamm, the report estimates clearing this backlog could prevent 1,481 crimes—including 1,030 sexual assaults—and save Colorado $234.7 million.  The Yvonne “Missy” Woods scandal, involving manipulated DNA in over a thousand cases since 2014, worsened this crisis, exposing gaps in CBI’s processes.  Two bills, HB25-1275 and SB25-304, address these issues, as Rep. Matt Soper (R-Delta), co-sponsor of HB25-1275, detailed in a Rocky Mountain Voice interview. The Wo...
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10 months after killing Kaitlyn Weaver, ICE arrests illegal teen prosecutors let walk
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Approved, Fox News, Local

10 months after killing Kaitlyn Weaver, ICE arrests illegal teen prosecutors let walk

By Louis Casiano | Fox News The youth was sentenced to probation and community service in a plea deal for the July 2024 death of Kaitlyn Weaver An illegal immigrant teenager who was spared jail time after he was convicted of killing a Colorado woman in a high-speed crash has been arrested, along with his family, by immigration authorities.  The 16-year-old from Colombia was sentenced to probation and community service for the July 2024 death of Kaitlyn Weaver, 24, in Aurora after striking a plea deal with prosecutors.  The teen, who has not been publicly named because of state laws that shield the identity of underage criminal suspects, was arrested May 20 along with his family, who were also living in the United States illegally, U.S. Immigration and Custom...
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Teen in U.S. illegally gets probation after killing Colorado woman at 90 mph
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Teen in U.S. illegally gets probation after killing Colorado woman at 90 mph

By Shaun Boyd | CBS News The Arapahoe District Attorney's Office is defending its decision to give probation and community service to a teenager who was driving illegally and, in the country illegally, when he killed a woman.    The accident happened last July in Aurora. The victim, Kaitlyn Weaver, was headed home from work when a Jeep, barreling through a residential neighborhood, slammed into her car. The speed limit in the area was 45 mph. Investigators say the driver was doing more than 90 mph. "She didn't even see him coming," her dad, John Weaver, said. "That's how fast he was going. She was effectively killed instantly." He says he and his wife Michelle removed their daughter from life support 2 days later, "How do you fathom that loss?"   Weaver says h...
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