The recent protests across the country over the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky, at the hands of police officers have revived the conversation around how best to investigate police-involved deaths in Colorado. State lawmakers were planning to try to make changes in the wake of the fatal Colorado […]
Jovan Melton
Posted inCOVID, Health, Politics and Government
“It feels like my back is up against a wall”: Why a handful of Colorado lawmakers are afraid to come to the Capitol
As House Speaker KC Becker, a Boulder Democrat, called the roll on Tuesday for the first time since Colorado’s legislative session went into recess due to the coronavirus pandemic, Rep. Janet Buckner waited patiently to hear her name. A lawmaker since 2015 and the speaker pro tempore, she knew what to expect. Except instead of […]
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 inNews, Politics and Government
Colorado’s 2019 legislative session was a doozy, from Democrats’ growing pains to a blabbermouth GOP strategy
Colorado Democrats may control the state Capitol, but the story in the final days of the 2019 legislative session was the Republican stranglehold on their calendar. That’s mainly because of the Colorado Senate, where the GOP ground work to a halt in the waning weeks of the lawmaking term, forcing Democrats to consider what measures […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Republicans, anti-gun control group sue to toss Colorado’s red flag gun law citing broken legislative procedure
Colorado House Republicans joined anti-gun control group Rocky Mountain Gun Owners on Thursday to announce a lawsuit aiming to undo the state’s new red flag law, arguing that Democrats failed to follow proper legislative procedure and therefore the policy should be tossed. “Democrats used illegal and unconstitutional tactics and methods to push a bill that […]
Posted inBusiness, Culture, Energy, Environment, Growth, News, Politics and Government, Technology, Transportation
ICEholes beware: Colorado is considering parking fines for blocking electric-vehicle charging stations
As any thoughtful electric-vehicle driver needs to do, Sean Mitchell plotted the stops on his road trip to Los Angeles before leaving home last month. He didn’t want to run out of fuel for his Tesla. Driving west was fine. But on his return to Denver, he pulled into a critical stop at a hotel […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Colorado teens won’t get to vote in school board elections after all
By Sandra Fish, Chalkbeat Colorado Colorado high school juniors and seniors won’t get to vote in school board elections, after lawmakers expressed concerns over constitutional and transparency issues. The House State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee voted 8-1 Wednesday to postpone House Bill 1243 indefinitely, effectively killing the bill. It would have allowed 16- and 17-year-olds to vote […]
Posted inBusiness, Education, News, Politics and Government
Colorado employers, colleges could soon be prevented from asking about criminal histories on their applications
Just weeks ago, Majid Mohammad was released from incarceration after six years behind bars for a robbery he committed at age 17. The 24-year-old left prison with big plans to pursue a doctorate in astrophysics. But first he wanted a job, so Mohammad went to a department store seeking work while he pursued his studies. […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Abortion is a key issue in Colorado’s 2018 campaigns — but it sounds different this time
In front of a pink banner emblazoned with Planned Parenthood logos, Jared Polis blasted his Republican opponent for opposing abortion and nominating a lieutenant governor who supports personhood. A moment later, he added an exclamation point about the Republican candidate for governor: “If Walker Stapleton was elected, mortality for women would likely go up under […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Colorado Democrats launched a #MeToo commission this year, but so far there is little to show
In January, as the #MeToo movement burned at the state Capitol, Colorado Democrats made a big statement: The creation a new commission to examine and improve the party’s policies on gender equity and workplace harassment. The move put the Democrats in front of a major controversy and made the party appear responsive to women and men […]