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Bill allowing communications intercepts in human trafficking cases heads to Colo. governor
DENVER – A bill that would authorize judges in Colorado to issue ex parte orders for law enforcement to intercept communications regarding human trafficking is headed to the governor’s desk.
The Senate unanimously passed House Bill 1040 Monday morning on its third reading. It passed the House Feb. 7 by a 64-0 vote, though one representative was not present for the vote.
Should Gov. John Hickenlooper sign the bill, human trafficking would be added to the list of possible crimes that a judge can authorize communications intercepts for, if a district attorney or attorney general shows probable cause.
The attorneys would have to prove they believe evidence would be obtained related to the possible crime by using a wiretap or other means of interception.
First- and second-degree murder, kidnapping, gambling, robbery, robbery and a handful of other crimes are already authorized under Colorado law.
According to the latest Colorado Human Trafficking Council report, which was released in December 2016, there were 802 human-trafficking investigations by the Justice Department in Colorado in 2015 – down from 835 in 2014.
Seventy-two victims were recovered in 2015 by the Rocky Mountain Innocence Lost Task Force – 10 men and 62 women. The Colorado Trafficking and Organized Crime Coalition made 17 arrests in 2015.
The fiscal impact report for the bill says it would lead to more case fillings and addition evidence in existing cases, but that the costs and revenue added would both be limited.
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Class-action suit certified for 60K+ detainees at Aurora ICE facility ‘forced’ to work for $1 a day
DENVER – A federal judge in Colorado will allow tens of thousands of people housed at an Aurora immigration center who were required to work, in some instances for $1 a day, to form a class to continue a lawsuit against the company that is contracted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to run the facility.
Nine people have filed lawsuits over the past two years against the GEO Group, which is contracted to run the ICE facility in Aurora. All were housed at the facility while awaiting deportation. Continue reading
Holly Moore’s death was a suicide and was properly investigated, CBI review and coroner say
DENVER – Castle Rock teenager Holly Moore’s 2015 death was correctly ruled as a suicide, according to a Colorado Bureau of Investigation peer review completed in February and obtained by Denver7.
The review was obtained through a records request to the Castle Rock Police Department that was returned Friday, the same day the forensic pathologist who performed Moore’s autopsy spoke for the first time about the case to Denver7.
Both the documents and interview unveiled new details into the controversial case days before the two-year anniversary of the young woman’s death. Continue reading
Bill that would require combination of THC, THCA levels in Colorado hemp heads to governor’s desk
DENVER – A bill that changes the way THC levels are calculated in Colorado’s industrial hemp has been sent to Gov. John Hickenlooper’s desk.
Senate Bill 90 passed its third reading in the House by a 58-3 vote Friday morning. Four representatives did not vote.
The bill will change the rules regarding industrial hemp so that the state agriculture commissioner will have to measure delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels combined with the levels of tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) in hemp crops.
Under Colorado Department of Agriculture rules, industrial hemp has to have THC levels of under 0.3 percent so as to not qualify as psychoactive marijuana.
THCA is the precursor to THC, but when decarboxylated by drying, turns to its psychoactive cousin. Research has shown that THCA has no psychoactive effects; it is not scheduled by the Drug Enforcement Agency as THC is.
THCA levels in medical and recreational marijuana typically bought in Colorado are most-often under the 2 percent level, compared to 15-29 percent THC levels for most of the cannabis.
The bill, if signed by the governor, would also establish a process for hemp growers to apply for a waiver that would exempt them from the concentration limits if certain conditions are met.
CDA has already certified three seeds for Colorado industrial hemp production that meet current requirements. The department says state farmers will be able to start buying and growing the seeds this year.
Congress approved hemp production in 2014, but a state certification like Colorado’s is necessary to raise the crop.
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Undocumented people would be able to use Social Security card to get license in Colo. under bill
DENVER – At least 20 state public health organizations have thrown their support behind a new bill in the state Legislature that would amend the Colorado law that allows undocumented people to obtain a driver’s license or ID card.
Under current law, people living in the state illegally are able to obtain a driver’s license or ID if they can present a government-issued taxpayer ID number at any of six specified DMV locations. The licenses are also more costly ($79) than licenses for residents ($25).
If passed, House Bill 1206 would allow undocumented people to also use a government-issued Social Security Card to both obtain and renew their license.
If undocumented people already have a license or ID under the current rules, they will be able to upgrade to the new card, should the bill pass the governor’s desk.
An estimated 120,000 people are eligible for the special licenses or ID cards, according to the I Drive Colorado campaign – an alliance between immigration and social justice groups in Colorado.
The bill comes at the same time that a report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a nonpartisan nonprofit based in Washington, that says Colorado has an estimated 163,000 undocumented immigrants who contributed $139.5 million to the state in income, property, sales and excise taxes in 2015.
The report says that nationwide, undocumented immigrants pay $11.7 billion in taxes each year, which the nonprofit says would increase by an additional $2.1 billion if they were granted legal status.
House Bill 1206 is set for its first hearing in the House Local Government Committee on March 15. It was introduced Feb. 24 and is sponsored by Rep. Jonathan Singer, D-Boulder, and Sen. Dominick Moreno, D-Adams Co.
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Jeffco Public Schools Superintendent Dan McMinimee steps down from daily ops early
JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. – Jeffco Public Schools Superintendent Dan McMinimee is out of his job early, as the district announced Thursday he was stepping down immediately.
The district announced in December that his three-year contract would not be renewed, and he was set to be out of a job as of June 30.
But the district said Thursday that McMinimee and the school board agreed to McMinimee’s early ouster.
He will remain with the district through June 30, Jeffco Public Schools Communications Office Diana Wilson said, but will not have day-to-day operations responsibilities.
Wilson said McMinimee will “be available to the board in an advisory capacity and will assist as needed in the transition to a new superintendent.”
Terry Elliott, who is currently the chief school effectiveness officer for the district, will serve as acting superintendent.
“The Board is committed to working closely with Terry to have a smooth transition and provide the stability our organization needs,” said Board of Education President Ron Mitchell in a news release. “It’s important we have continuity of leadership as we work with the community to find our next great leader who will fulfill our mission of providing a high-quality education for all Jeffco students.”
Mitchell’s statement also thanked McMinimee for his service and commitment to the district and wished him the best for his future.
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Colorado politicians sound off on AG Jeff Sessions’ recusal from Russia probe
DENVER – Two members of Colorado’s congressional delegation say U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions should recuse himself from the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation into Russian interference in last year’s election amid reports he misled or lied to the Senate about his contacts with the Russian ambassador in the months before the election.
By Thursday afternoon, Sessions had done just that. Continue reading
Man wanted in at least 1 Denver bank robbery captured in Massachusetts
DENVER – A man has been charged with robbing a Denver bank last March after he was picked up on unrelated charges in Massachusetts.
Paul Brennan, 58, faces one count of aggravated robbery with a gun for allegedly robbing the 1st Bank, located at 275 S. Federal Boulevard, on March 26, 2016.
Brennan fled the bank after the robbery, but a teller at the bank believed he was the same man who robbed the same bank in December 2015.
The Denver Police Department obtained a warrant for Brennan’s arrest for the robbery in April, but he disappeared.
On Feb. 24, Brennan was picked up on unrelated charges by Weston (Mass.) police, and notified DPD and the Denver District Attorney’s Office.
Brennan is still currently being Middlesex County jail, but is expected to be returned to Denver to face charges “within the month,” according to a spokesman for the district attorney’s office.
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Larimer County jail employee resigns amid investigation into accessing of victim database
LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. – A Larimer County Sheriff’s Office worker assigned to the jail resigned Monday amid an internal investigation into allegations she revealed a victim’s information to the suspect in their case.
Bethanie Williamson, 37, resigned from the sheriff’s office on Monday and faces a class 2 misdemeanor of committing a “computer crime.”
The alleged incident happened Jan. 25 during a disturbance in the jail’s day room.
The sheriff’s office says inmates from separate housing areas were in the same day room, which is against jail policy. The sheriff’s office says it found one of the jail employees had violated inmate movement procedure, and it launched an internal investigation.
The guard in question, later found to be Williamson, had gone onto the Colorado courts website and found the contact information of a victim of one of the inmates, whom the sheriff’s office says was in the room while Williamson allegedly accessed the database.
“The employee had no legitimate business reason to access the information,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
But the office also said that investigators contacted the victim whose information was accessed and found that it was not used for any malfeasance.
Williamson resigned Monday and was issued a criminal summons for her charge. She started working as the jail as a non-certified deputy in February 2007.
“When it comes to maintaining records, deputies have access to sensitive information they are not authorized to release to the general public even if that information can be obtained from other sources. If a deputy violates internal policies or certainly the law, they will be held accountable,” Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith said in a news release.
He added that Williamson’s alleged actions “do not reflect the values and principles” of the rest of the sheriff’s office.
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Ballot selfie bill in Colorado one vote from governor’s desk
DENVER – A bill that would eliminate the penalty for Coloradans who take a “ballot selfie” could be among the first bills in the 2017 General Assembly to reach the governor’s desk.
House Bill 1014 passed its second Senate floor reading on Wednesday without further amendments. It will have one more floor review before a final vote. The bill passed the House on Jan. 31.
The issue was taken to court ahead of November’s election, and a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction that kept the state attorney general and district attorneys from prosecuting people who took or posted a picture of their completed ballot.
The Colorado rule was first written in the 1890s and has been reinterpreted over the past century.
The new bill changes one of those modifications, created by the Uniform Election Code of 1965 and Election Code of 1992, by eliminating language that prohibits voters from showing their completed ballot to anyone.
But it would still still give county clerks and polling center workers the ability to restrict photography at polling centers. Inducing any voter to show someone how they voted would still be against the law, should the bill pass.
The bill, as modified by the House during its second reading, would create a new offense that would penalize people for trading votes or offering such. They would face a misdemeanor charge.
The third Senate floor session has yet to be scheduled.
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