When Norm Early entered a room, people took notice. Norm was tall, with broad shoulders, a powerful chest and solid arms. Norm’s full head of hair framed a handsome, mustachioed face that lit up any venue when he smiled, which happened frequently. Rooms reverberated with Norm’s infectious booming laugh, now silenced forever at age 76. […]
district attorney
Posted inCrime and Courts, News
District attorney in northeast Colorado pleads guilty to drug charge, misconduct
A district attorney who serves a large area of northeastern Colorado pleaded guilty Monday to a drug charge stemming from an investigation by the state’s attorney general. Brittny Lewton, who serves Colorado’s 13th Judicial District, struck a deal with prosecutors in the attorney general’s office and pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance, unlawful […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Child abuse reports are down, but is abuse just going unseen during the pandemic?
Among the many things that keep me awake at night is how our family will manage the coming start of the school year. Like so many families across Colorado, my wife and I are stuck in limbo. We’re wondering what the school year will look like for our children – remote, in-person or hybrid – and […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Nicolais: Jefferson County’s Democratic DA’s race gets ugly — again
My mail ballot arrived on Wednesday as it always has, safe and sound and free from roving gangs out to commit voter fraud. That left me to ponder the primary races and for whom to cast my vote. And one race in particular jumped off the paper. The Democratic primary for First Judicial District Attorney. […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Colorado Democrats unveil sweeping police accountability bill in response to George Floyd’s death
Democratic state lawmakers on Tuesday began to unveil a sweeping bill aimed at increasing law enforcement accountability in Colorado by collecting racial profiling data, ensuring officers hold each other accountable and making it easier for the public to file lawsuits against police. The measure, which could be introduced as soon as Wednesday, also would beef […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Colorado has had 201 police-related deaths since 2014. Lawmakers want a better way to investigate them.
From 2014 to 2019, Colorado law enforcement officers shot 309 people, 189 of them fatally, and all but two of those shootings were deemed justified by prosecutors or grand juries. So far in 2020, officers have shot and killed 12 people. That placed the state fifth in the nation for the highest rate of fatal […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
DA on Colorado’s Eastern Plains indicted on drug, misconduct charges
By Colleen Slevin, The Associated Press An elected prosecutor for Colorado’s northeastern rural plains was indicted by a grand jury on drug charges on Thursday following an investigation by the state’s attorney general. Brittny Lewton, 40, was charged with three drug felonies, including conspiracy and possession, as well as official misconduct, a misdemeanor, according to […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
A new Colorado law makes possessing thousands of fatal fentanyl doses a misdemeanor. Prosecutors are worried.
Colorado’s top federal prosecutor is sounding the alarm over a new state law that potentially makes possessing thousands of fatal doses of synthetic opioids a misdemeanor, saying it sends the wrong message as law enforcement and health officials are warning the public about the substances’ danger. State lawmakers earlier this year passed a bill that […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Gov. Polis orders investigation into district attorney on Colorado’s Eastern Plains
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has ordered the attorney general to investigate unspecified allegations of “potential criminal activity” by an elected prosecutor in the northeastern corner of the state. The Aug. 15 order doesn’t say what District Attorney Brittny Lewton is accused of doing. Lewton’s attorney, Stan Garnett, said Friday Lewton denies any wrongdoing in her […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Colorado prosecutors warn DUI-testing mess could have impacts far beyond drunken driving cases
Two district attorneys representing some of Colorado’s largest counties are warning that problems with the state’s ability to conduct blood testing in driving under the influence cases could have much broader impacts across the criminal justice system if they aren’t quickly resolved. That includes placing in jeopardy cases ranging from vehicular homicide to murder, where […]