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COLORADO SPRINGS — A man was killed in a shooting Thursday morning outside of the El Paso County courthouse in downtown Colorado Springs.

Ira Cronin, a spokesman for the Colorado Springs Police Department, said Thursday morning police received a call about the shooting just after 10 a.m. and found man dead outside of the courthouse who had been shot.

The police department sent an update about 5:15 p.m. to say a suspect was immediately detained by El Paso County Courthouse personnel “without incident.” The person’s name has not been released.

“CSPD’s investigation has determined there was a previous relationship between the shooter and the victim. The context of that relationship is still under investigation currently,” the department posted Thursday evening on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.

Cronin said during a news conference the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting alongside Colorado Springs police.

Cronin said the shooting “appeared to be an isolated incident” and that there was no danger to the public.

A photo obtained by The Sun showed a man’s body lying on the walkway to the main entrance of the courthouse. The body was surrounded by police evidence tape. 

Heather Baug had just entered the courthouse at about 10:05 a.m. for a hearing when she saw people rushing through the security checkpoint near the building’s main entrance. Security guards yelled for everyone to run to the south side of the building and get away from the doors.

“Everything went fairly chaotic,” Baug said.

People banged on the glass doors on the outside the courthouse yelling, “There’s a shooter. Let us in!”

Baug said she got on an elevator and went to the fourth floor of the building where staff locked her and others inside. She said she didn’t hear any gunshots.

“I didn’t really know what the heck was going on or who was shooting,” she said. After the lockdown was lifted, she was told to leave the courthouse. On the sidewalk, she saw two black pieces of plastic on the ground.

The courthouse was closed for the rest of the day Thursday.

Olivia Prentzel covers breaking news and a wide range of other important issues impacting Coloradans for The Colorado Sun, where she has been a staff writer since 2021. At The Sun, she has covered wildfires, criminal justice, the environment,...