Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government, Social Services

Moffat County caseworker accused of fabricating child abuse, neglect investigations has been charged with forgery

A Moffat County caseworker accused of fabricating reports to make it seem as if she checked on children who were the subject of abuse and neglect claims is now facing charges of forgery and abuse of public records.  Hester Renee Nelms, 43, was under investigation for more than a year by the district attorney’s office […]

Posted inNews

Child abuse victims can now avoid police stations, reduce trauma at first-of-its-kind center in Colorado Springs

Warning: This article contains content related to child abuse, sexual assault and neglect. COLORADO SPRINGS —The carpet leading down the hall toward a row of interview rooms looks like green grass, and outside the forensic medical exam room, friendly owls and stuffed bears line the walls.  The entire building, the first of its kind in […]

Posted inCrime and Courts, News

Colorado mom who fatally abused 7-year-old daughter sentenced to 16 years

By Patty Nieberg, The Associated Press/Report for America A Colorado mother who fatally abused her 7-year-old daughter and lied about her health to get handouts from charities worth at least $100,000 was sentenced Wednesday to 16 years in prison. Judge Patricia Herron issued the sentence to Kelly Turner after she pleaded guilty last month to […]

Posted inCrime and Courts, News

Mark Redwine sentenced to 48 years in prison for killing his 13-year-old son

DURANGO — A Colorado father has been sentenced to a maximum 48 years in prison after being convicted of second-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death in the disappearance of his 13-year-old son nearly a decade ago. Sixty-year-old Mark Redwine was sentenced Friday by La Plata County District Court Chief Judge Jeffrey Wilson, The Durango […]

Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns

Opinion: A Colorado judge’s censure demonstrates how racial bias permeates our child protection system

For the past year, parents and family members complained that a judge in Arapahoe County was biased against them because they were Black. I know this because they complained to my office – the Office of Colorado’s Child Protection Ombudsman. I would learn in time that the judge in question was entrusted with overseeing the […]

Posted inCrime and Courts, News

Colorado’s review of Catholic Church sex abuse named priests, but not those who covered up their crimes

Warning: This story contains explicit descriptions of sexual assault. A pair of explosive reports on decades of child sex abuse in Colorado’s three Catholic dioceses named 52 priests but kept confidential the identities of numerous church officials — from administrators to bishops — who covered up or ignored allegations of misconduct and transferred known child […]