The Colorado Springs Gazette

Police: Colorado Springs man robbed people he knew at gunpoint

Police said a man is on the run after he robbed his companions at gunpoint Tuesday night at an apartment complex in east Colorado Springs. An unidentified man and a group of people he knew went to an apartment on the 1400 block of Alvarado Drive, off East Fountain Boulevard, about 10:30 p.m., according to police reports. Once inside the...
Trial underway for Colorado Springs murder suspect; man accused in death after Fourth of July brawl

Opening statements began Tuesday in the murder trial of 22-year-old Damian Martez Evans, accused of gunning down a man during a brawl at a Fourth of July house party in Colorado Springs last year. Christopher Vazquez, 21, was found dead in the early hours of July 5 outside a home on the 4500 block of Jetwing Circle, off East Fountain...
Gunnison police seek woman in infant's death

MONTROSE — Gunnison police are looking for a 39-year-old woman who has been indicted in the death of her 5-month-old son. The Montrose Daily Press reported Tuesday (http://tinyurl.com/kl5so7p ) Corrina Denham faces charges of criminally negligent homicide and fatal child abuse in the May 2013 death of Jacob Klein. Police say they don't...
Colorado lawmakers trying to restrict solitary confinement

DENVER — A year after a Colorado inmate held in solitary confinement allegedly gunned down the state prisons chief upon being released, lawmakers are moving to restrict use of the punishment for the mentally ill. The bill continues the efforts that Colorado Department of Corrections Director Tom Clements had been working on, and highlights...
Traffic stop in Colorado Springs leads to drug bust

A March traffic stop in Colorado Springs where police say they found cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine led to a larger drug bust in the city on Monday. Four people, including the driver in the traffic stop, were jailed and more than seven pounds of drugs were seized, according to a Colorado Springs police news release. A warrant was...
Georgia offender arrested in Denver-area sex sting

DENVER — Authorities say a convicted child molester from Georgia has been arrested in suburban Denver for trying to lure a teenage girl to have sex with him. The Jefferson County District Attorney's Office charged 51-year-old James Lee Pierce on Tuesday with crimes including attempted sexual assault on a child and Internet luring....
Preliminary hearing held for two men accused in Colorado Springs kidnapping, shooting

Two men accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman before allegedly shooting her in the head and leaving her to die had been at an apartment party with her hours before she was found alive on Dec. 28 near Old Colorado City, according to investigators. At a preliminary hearing for Hamilton Lee Sullivan and Jorge Luis Hernandez, the...
Colorado Springs victim: Good deed turned into assault

A man suspected of kidnapping and sexually assaulting another man on April 14 allegedly forced his victim to take drugs and drink alcohol while they drove around and sat in a car together for more than 12 hours, according to court documents. The victim, a convenience store employee, was leaving work on Garden of the Gods Road when he ran into...
Only 3 seek restitution in tainted Colorado cantaloupe case

Prosecutors say only three people have submitted restitution claims totaling $13,000 from two Colorado cantaloupe farmers linked to a deadly listeria outbreak. KRDO-TV reported Monday (http://tinyurl.com/kham3o2 ) the requests included doctor bills, attorney fees and funeral expenses. Eric and Ryan Jensen were ordered to pay up to $150,000...
8 arrested in Pueblo drive-by shootings

PUEBLO — Pueblo police say they have arrested eight people in an investigation into a string of drive-by shootings and an arson fire, but they refused to identify the suspects. The Pueblo Chieftain reported Monday (http://tinyurl.com/lcm2nf3 ) the arrests came over the weekend. Police Chief Luis Velez says identifying the people in...
Arrest warrants issued in southern Colorado llama killing

Arrest warrants were issued Monday for three teenagers after a llama was killed in the Las Animas county community of Trinidad in southern Colorado. According to police, an post-mortem examination of the animal is what led to criminal charges. 18-year-old Cody Kissman is accused of slitting the throat of the animal last week. A 17-year-old...
Colorado Springs man subdued with stun gun after allegedly impersonating police officer

A Colorado Springs man was accused of trying to impersonate a police officer and with driving under the influence, police said. Willie Greene III, 40, was arrested on suspicion of impersonating a police officer, obstructing a peace officer and driving under the influence, then booked into the El Paso County jail, records show. Police got a...
Woman accused in of killing six of her babies and storing their bodies in her garage appears in court

PROVO, Utah — Prosecutors have been granted more time to determine what charges to file against a Utah woman accused of killing six of her babies and storing their bodies in her garage. Megan Huntsman, 39, was in court Monday wearing a baggy prison jumpsuit, her hands and ankles shackled. She mostly stared at the ground as prosecutors asked...
Mugshot Monday: Crime Stoppers' Most Wanted in the Pikes Peak region

Wanted: Pikes Peak Area Crime Stoppers is asking for the public's help finding the following people for whom felony arrest warrants have been issued. Christopher Barns, 31, is described as a 200-pound man, 5 feet 9 inches tall, with brown hair and brown eyes. Barns is being sought on suspicion of attempted distribution, manufacturing and...
Colorado Springs man accused of throwing rocks at cars, kicking officer

Colorado Springs police arrested a man accused of throwing rocks at vehicles and assaulting an officer Monday, according to police reports. Zachary Walter Fay, 23, was arrested on suspicion of second-degree assault on a police officer and booked into the El Paso County jail, records show. Witnesses told police that a man, later identified as...
Public smoke-out marks marijuana holiday in Colorado; dozens of citations issued in Denver

DENVER — Tens of thousands of revelers raised joints, pipes and vaporizer devices to the sky Sunday at a central Denver park in a defiant toast to the April 20 pot holiday, a once-underground celebration that stepped into the mainstream in the first state in the nation to legalize recreational marijuana. The 4:20 p.m. smoke-out in the...
Fountain police investigate large rocks placed on Powers Boulevard

Large rocks deliberately placed on a main road in Fountain since last summer have caused enough wrecks and damage to warrant felony charges, prompting police to ask for the public's help to find the culprits. More than a dozen vehicles have been damaged or totaled in several incidents since June, when someone put large rocks in the middle of...
Driver cited after car crashes into Colorado Springs house

Alcohol was not a factor when a car crashed into a house in northeast Colorado Springs Sunday, but the driver was cited by police. Melissa Huntley was cited for careless driving and taken to the hospital, along with a female passenger, for minor injuries, Colorado Springs police said. Someone called 911 about 11:45 p.m. and said a car had...
Single-car rollover shuts down Woodmen Road

Colorado Springs police said alcohol was not a factor in a single-vehicle rollover crash that shut down a portion of Woodmen Road east of Academy Boulevard Saturday night. The driver of a four-door Saturn was traveling eastbound of E. Woodmen Road about 11 p.m. and drifted off the right side of the road, police said. The driver tried to steer...
More defendants in Colorado tested for competency

DENVER — Colorado has seen a steady rise in the past decade in the number of defendants being referred for mental exams to ensure they are competent to stand trial, The Denver Post reported Sunday, saying the increase mirrors national trends and highlights a lack of treatment for the mentally ill. From 2004 to 2013, the number of competency...