DENVER – Denver police are asking the public’s help in locating a missing 12-year-old girl.
Addie Williford was last seen near E. Florida Avenue and S. Birch Street on Friday.
According to DPD, she was wearing an unknown style of shirt, green pants and cowboy boots.
Williford has blonde hair, hazel eyes and stands at 5’ weighing around 100 lbs.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 720-913-2000.
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DENVER — Authorities on Tuesday identified the victim of a fatal teen shooting Saturday night during a Denver parking lot celebration of Nicolás Maduro’s capture.
Police said 16-year-old William Rodriguez Salas was shot and killed, and three others — all adults — were wounded in a shopping center parking lot at S. Galena Street and E. Hampden Avenue around 11 p.m.
The Denver Police Department said a second victim likely will not survive their injuries.
Police said their initial investigation determined that an argument followed a large gathering to celebrate the Venezuelan president’s capture. They have not released any suspect information.
Officers arrived at the scene after the shooting and found one injured person, who was transported to a local hospital.
After transporting the first injured person, officers learned about three additional victims connected to the incident.
Police reported that Salas was taken by private vehicle to E. Iliff Avenue and S. Havana Street, where he was pronounced dead.
The other two victims were also transported to local hospitals by private vehicles.
A police spokesperson said that, aside from the critical patient, doctors have listed one person in serious condition and released the third, who received treatment for a graze wound.
Officers continue to investigate at the scene as they work to determine what led to the shooting.
Anyone with information, photos, and/or video of this shooting is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.
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DENVER — One person has died and three others are injured following a shooting in southeast Denver Saturday night.
The shooting happened in a parking lot of a shopping center located at South Galena Street and East Hampden Avenue around 11 p.m., according to the Denver Police Department.
Officers arrived to the scene and located one injured person, who was transported to a local hospital.
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Officers and investigators with the Denver Police Department remained on scene Sunday morning.
Officers later learned about three additional victims. One victim was transported by private vehicle to the area of East Iliff Avenue and South Havana Street, where they were pronounced dead, according to police.
Two other victims were also taken to local hospitals by private vehicles.
One victim is in critical condition, another is in serious condition and the third was treated for a graze wound and released, according to a police spokesperson.
Police said their initial investigation found an argument took place following a large gathering in the parking lot. No suspect information has been released.
Officers remained on scene Sunday morning to investigate. The shopping center is closed off to the public, according to Denver7’s Sophia Villalba.
Denver7 will update this story as additional information is released.
DENVER – A pedestrian died following a crash on Interstate 25 near Yale Avenue early Saturday morning, according to the Denver Police Department.
The Denver Police Department first reported the crash around 4 a.m. Saturday, tweeting that a pedestrian had serious injuries. The pedestrian was later pronounced deceased, police said.
The driver stayed on scene and cooperated with officers, police said.
Officers closed the southbound lanes of I-25 starting at University Boulevard until about 7:30 a.m.
The pedestrian’s identity has not yet been released.
DPD Major Crimes Division Commander Matt Clark, at the Denver Police Headquarters on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025, shows the metal kitchen sharpening steel that Joseph Suddreth held during the encounter with police officers.
Ava Kian/CPR News
By Ava Kian, CPR News
Denver police on Friday identified the person fatally shot by police last week after officers responded to a call of a break-in at a residence near Interstate 225.
Thirty-seven-year-old Joseph Suddreth was shot after a back-and-forth with police officers. Officers believed he was armed with a knife, but a DPD investigation so far shows that he had a metal rod in his hands.
At about 1:50 a.m., police got a call from a person who said she saw someone on her camera breaking into her shed, according to Major Crimes Division Commander Matt Clark.
Clark said that when the two officers arrived, they saw someone moving in the shed.
After they told the individual to come out, he exited with what they believed to be a knife, Clark said. DPD said Friday that Suddreth did not have a knife but instead was holding a metal kitchen sharpening steel — a metal rod about 12 inches long with a wooden handle.
Officers ordered him to drop the object, and he placed it on a brick wall next to him, Clark said. He then moved his hands toward his jacket pocket and was immediately ordered to remove his hands, but instead grabbed the metal object and walked in the direction of one of the officers, Clark said.
They then shot Suddreth multiple times, discharging 11 rounds, Clark said. Suddreth was taken to a hospital in an ambulance and pronounced dead.
DPD Chief Ron Thomas said that while it’s up to the district attorney to decide if the use of force was necessary, he feels the weapon not being a knife won’t change the investigation.
“There is reason to believe the weapon could have caused death or injury had it been used in the manner it was being threatened,” Thomas said. “I think that someone moving toward you with an object like that looks very much like a knife and actually could provide lethal results … I would expect an officer to defend himself in that situation.”
The shooting remains under investigation by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado State Patrol, the DPD homicide unit and the District Attorney’s office.
Both officers involved in the shooting joined DPD in 2024, Clark said. He added that one of them has previously been involved in a shooting incident, while the other has not.
“After a thorough review of the evidence in the case, I believe that the use of force by Officer Whaylen Phares was justified based on Colorado law regarding use of force in self-defense and in defense of others,” Walsh said in a pess release.
Phares and two other officers responded to a call made just after 4 a.m. of eight shots fired on the third floor of an apartment at 4901 E. Donald Ave. After arriving, the officers received a second report of a domestic violence assault in the same building. They then saw a woman running down the stairs with Nava-Carbajal in pursuit.
Nava-Carbajal refused police orders to stop and then attempted to leave on a bike and then on foot. The officers pursued him and failed in repeated attempts to arrest him after he resisted.
The officers saw a weapon in Nava-Carbajal’s hand, which he told them wasn’t real. But he also refused to let go of it. Officer Christopher Palmisanoattempted to wrest the revolver from his hand as the two wrestled on the ground. It was then that Nava-Carbajal allegedly grabbed at Palmisano’s holster.
As Nava-Carbajal stood up, Phares, fired his weapon and hit Nava-Carbajal near his left clavicle, killing him. Phares said he feared Palmisano, who was still on the ground and vulnerable, would be shot.
The Denver Crime Lab determined that Nava-Carbajal was holding a CO2 pellet gun that he had loaded with six live 9 millimeter rounds visible from the outside. The gun couldn’t fire live rounds, but it was a realistic replica. Nava-Carbajal likely was not behind the original call of shots fired.
DENVER — Along what is arguably the most famous street in Denver lies a pervasive crime with a long history in the city. Now, law enforcement is trying out a new kind of operation meant to combat a crime that requires a nuanced approach.
On Aug. 27, the Denver Police Department (DPD) launched its three-part operation meant to curb sex work and sex trafficking on East Colfax. The distinct phases build upon decades of understanding how coercion and exploitation often accompany sex work.
“There’s a lot of sex workers that come into Denver that are not doing this because they want to, but because they’re either under pimp control or they’re being trafficked by a pimp,” explained Lieutenant Ryan Harris, who works with the Vice Narcotics Section in DPD. “We really come at it from a victim-centered approach. We work with a lot of non-government organizations, and our own victim services in-house, really trying to find services and options for those that are involved in sex work.”
Denver7 got an exclusive look at DPD’s three-pronged operation, something the department had never tried before this summer.
“While it is a brand new approach to do all three of those things at the same time on the same night, we’ve been doing a little bit of those things for a long time,” Harris said. “I’ve been involved in this type of work for the last 13 years, and really, even back 13 years ago, we started taking small baby steps towards that.”
First, police conducted an undercover investigation, looking to see who was trying to buy sex in the area of East Colfax. Then, sex workers were offered support and resources from the organizations and victim advocates on scene. Finally, law enforcement conducted strategic enforcement in the area.
That night, Harris said eight people were arrested in connection with accusations of soliciting sex. Their cars were also impounded as a result.
“It’s very important that people understand that if you’re buying sex in Denver, we’re going to find you, you’re going to get arrested, and we’re going to impound your vehicle,” said Harris.
Denver Police Department
As part of DPD’s first three-tiered operation on Aug. 27, eight people who allegedly tried to purchase sex along East Colfax were arrested.
Meanwhile, Harris said in an operation like that, the sex workers are not penalized. Still, sex work is not decriminalized in Denver, and he acknowledged there are times when sex workers are cited.
“But we do that from an empathetic perspective, and we first triage to see if there’s any trafficking,” Harris said.
Chris Richardson, the director of the Crisis Service Bureau at DPD, was on scene alongside officers that night. As a social worker, Richardson has a deep understanding of mental health struggles.
“We’ve grown a lot, just in general, in our knowledge of what this population needs, what they look like, how they present,” Richardson said. “[In the past] a lot of it was blaming the individual for putting themselves out there. And I think what we’ve really come to realize is that a lot of these individuals are forced. They’re coerced. They are manipulated into doing this kind of work.”
Richardson said the focus is on the perpetrators — people purchasing sex — and not on the sex workers attached to it, who are often victimized.
“From my standpoint, it was a double-edged approach. It was getting the bad guys off the street and being able to actually support the individuals that may not want to be in this lifestyle, or maybe are tired of it and just want a way out, and they just don’t know who to reach out to,” said Richardson. “That’s what I love the most about it, is trying to make an impact on someone, and not really having an agenda other than kindness and caring and showing support.”
Denver Police Department
When Denver police arrest someone accused of soliciting sex, their car is impounded.
Also on the ground on the first night of this three-part operation was Jenelle Goodrich, the founder and executive director of the non-governmental organization From Silenced to Saved (FSTS). The group supports survivors of human trafficking.
As Goodrich looked around the area of East Colfax where the enforcement was conducted, she called it “The Blade.”
“The Blade is a stretch of street or real estate in certain cities that are on the circuit — major cities in the nation, where commercial sex workers are put out by their pimps and traffickers to work The Blade and engage in sexual acts,” Goodrich explained. “When we’re only seeing one side of the problem, which is what historically it has been, then we tend to go after girls and penalize them for being victimized.”
Goodrich described the shift in DPD’s approach to sex work and trafficking victims as “drastic,” saying the department understands the nuances of the crime.
“I trust DPD implicitly, especially their human trafficking unit, when it comes time to speak to a potential victim, survivor, that they will be trauma-informed, that they will be non-judgmental, and that they will really give them the care and focus that’s needed for their case,” Goodrich said.
While Goodrich was out on East Colfax with DPD, she informed sex workers about their rights to report the crime.
“We were able to get a lot of amazing feedback that night from girls being shocked that that was their right,” said Goodrich. “From girls taking resource cards, from one individual giving us a hug, that she thought it was so great that we were out here, to a minor that came forward days later to get off of the street — and to be able for the victim services to assist and help with that, to get her home.”
Still, the psychological cycle behind sex work and trafficking can be incredibly difficult to break.
“When there’s a trauma bond with these individuals and these victims, survivors, then it’s really hard to get them out,” Goodrich said. “We have to consistently be going back, be doing this, showing up and telling them that we’re here, and hopefully at some point they will take it and be able to live a better life outside of the control of another individual.”
Crime
Understanding human trafficking and its prevalence in Colorado
According to Goodrich, the issue stretches beyond just the immediate surroundings of East Colfax.
“The spider web that it has affects every single person in the state of Colorado,” Goodrich said. “Statistically, especially with this type of operation — which is going after the demand in one of the pieces of that operation — statistically, buyers are middle-aged Caucasian men, married with two children, with pretty high income, or at least decent income. And so most of that type of man does not necessarily live in this block. He lives all over the Denver metro area.”
Goodrich sent a handful of people who were formerly sex trafficked a few questions from Denver7 related to this story.
One of the women said, “I can not personally call it sex work. It was not consensual, and I had no choice in what was happening to me. I was 17 and still in high school, and a man in his 40s began grooming and coercing me, eventually taking me across the country away from my family and trafficked me. It seemed to be in a blink of an eye. Things were okay, and then suddenly I was trapped in this world, being taken advantage of, and I could not escape it.”
Another woman explained what ultimately broke the cycle for her.
“Well-trained officers, investigators and my advocates rescued me,” she said. “They took me at my lowest moment and supported and guided me through the initial rescue, reuniting with my family through the whole legal process and beyond. I’m grateful to From Silenced to Saved and everyone and their knowledge and training for saving my life.”
When asked how important support and resources were while being sex trafficked, one woman emphasized how difficult the situation is to escape.
“Having the knowledge that there are people out there who can and will help others stuck in the same situation is comforting,” she said. “Education and training for law enforcement on the subject is so crucial for getting people out of these situations. It is a much more common issue than people realize. Everyone who helped me knew exactly what to do, and I am now thriving and have a better life than I ever thought possible. From Silenced to Saved and everyone involved in my case saved my life and continues to help me thrive.”
Denver PD said there are plans for more three-part operations to combat sex work and trafficking in the future, alongside other enforcement practices.
If you or someone you know needs help, you are not alone. You can call Colorado’s Human Trafficking Hotline at 866-455-5075 or text 720-999-9724.
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Police officers shoot pepper balls and throw chemical canisters into a small group of protesters who refused to disperse from 20th and Wewatta Streets in Denver after the main No Kings rally ended. Oct. 18, 2025.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Updated at 5:55 p.m. on Saturday, October 18, 2025.
Denver’s “No Kings” rally on Saturday was peaceful until a small group splintered off and started marching toward I-25.
About 100 protesters left the Capitol after the main event ended, marching down 16th Street into LoDo and toward the I-25 onramp at 20th Street. Police were waiting for them, blaring an announcement that they would use chemical munitions and all force necessary to stop the group from walking onto the highway.
Police officers stop a small group of protesters from advancing towards I-25 after the main No Kings rally ended on Oct. 18, 2025.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Most of the crowd dispersed at the warning, but a few dozen continued on, meeting a line of police in riot gear who were blocking the entrance to the highway. After about a half an hour, police announced that they would use force to disperse the group, giving them a 10-minute warning.
After time was up, and nobody had left, police used pepper balls and smoke canisters to push the protesters away, following them across downtown to 15th and Wynkoop streets.
Denver police announced on the social media platform X that it had made “several arrests.”
Police officers stop a small group of protesters from advancing towards I-25 after the main No Kings rally ended on Oct. 18, 2025.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
DENVER — Brother Jeff’s Cultural Center in Five Points was filled with community members on Saturday as people wanted to address Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas over his proposal to change the department’s disciplinary policy. The push is for an education-based development model for certain low-level policy violations and would be an ‘alternative to traditional discipline.’
“I think it’s very unsatisfying to give someone a written or an oral reprimand a year after they have committed an infraction,” said Thomas. “I think it’s insufficient for the officer, and I think it’s insufficient for the community.”
Denver7 first spoke with Thomas last month about his push for this alternative approach and how it would move from oral or written reprimands to ‘individualized education and training to improve employee performance.’ Thomas explained to Denver7 how a citizen could wait months after filing a complaint against an officer for a low-level violation.
“I want this policy because I want a much more solution-oriented outcome for lower-level forms of discipline because I think that the time it takes to complete these cases in and of itself erodes trust because I think the people are allowed to think the police department has forgotten and then if the outcome in the case is not sustained then you waited a year to tell me, well how serious did you really take that case and so I think that if we can provide those resolutions much more quickly, I think that we can continue to maintain community trust,” Thomas said.
Caleb Foreman
Members of the audience directly asked Thomas questions, with Brother Jeff Fard facilitating the conversation and asking questions from the livestream. Topics of conversation revolved around community involvement, accountability, and specific examples of low-level policy violations.
“We covered all of those questions that were submitted. We also said you have an opportunity to not just ask a question, but sit and dialog with the chief, and that means follow-up questions. Now, you may not agree with what he’s saying. He may not agree with what you’re saying, but you’re communicating,” Fard explained.
Lisabeth Pérez Castle, Denver’s independent monitor, previously spoke with Denver7 about her concerns and the lack of engagement from the community. She says there is no research evidence to support this new model and is worried about how it will impact oversight.
Caleb Foreman
“For the past 17 years, training could have been used in conjunction with discipline, which is the accountability portion,” said Castle. “So this model was something completely different. This is eliminating accountability, eliminating sustained findings, and instead only doing training. That is a completely different thing than doing training in addition to accountability.”
The independent monitor’s annual report showed 94 of 156 officers were disciplined for violating policy and given a written or oral reprimand. Following the meeting, Castle shared that her biggest takeaway was the community wanting their voices heard and to be involved with any future policy changes.
“I think the community is clear. They want to know more. They want to be engaged. They expect to be engaged. They demand to be engaged. I hope that the chief hears that message and involves the community further. Specifically, hopefully in the same model in which the original discipline system was adopted with significant community engagement, academic engagement, research, bringing all parties to the table to discuss what exactly this policy is going to say,” Castle said.
The Denver Police Department is accepting feedback through September 30. Thomas said he has ‘provided considerable community input’ and has received over 800 responses from the community.
Caleb Foreman
While the conversation was focused on the education-based discipline model, there were also conversations ranging from nonviolent concerns surrounding expired tags to a student showing up at Denver East High School with a gun this week. Lanier Deruso and Mckiya Johnson, with the Struggle of Love Foundation, asked questions about school safety and how officers confronted the individual with the gun at school.
“The youth is the upcoming generation, so of course we want to put more information in them so they can [be]come better human beings,” Johnson said.
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DENVER — It was a violent weekend in the city of Denver after seven people were wounded in three separate shootings and one stabbing incident.
The first incident was reported on the Denver Police Department’s X feed at 4:37 a.m. Saturday. Police said one person was shot and wounded in the 3100 block of N. Downing Street.
The victim in the Downing Street shooting was transported to the hospital with unknown extent of injuries. No arrests were made, and police said officers are working to develop suspect information.
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Around 11 p.m. Saturday, police were called to the 3300 block of N. York Street on report of a double shooting. Two people were shot and transported to the hospital. Their conditions are not known. Police have not reported any arrests in the case.
About three hours later, a third shooting occurred early Sunday morning in the 2300 block of Champa Street. One person was shot and wounded. Police later reported a suspect, identified as Jerry Jones, was arrested and is facing an attempted murder charge.
The fourth incident was reported at 4:37 a.m. Sunday and involved a stabbing in the 3900 block of N. Pecos Street. Three people were taken to the hospital with what police said appeared to be non-life-threatening injuries. Police are working to develop suspect information in the case.
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Leilani Johnson, owner of RJ’s Tacowich, a food truck owner, who stopped doing business in LoDo after the first ban in the area back in 2022.
Why we’re bringing you this story: Denver7 continues its commitment to hold your public officials accountable by bringing you the voices of people affected by decisions made by the city. For this story, we bring you the perspective of a food truck owner who had to look elsewhere to sustain their business after DPD banned food trucks in the area, and why they said bans won’t address the underlying issue of safety.
Owner of RJ’s Tacowich Leilani Johnson said after the first ban was put in place, she never went back to LoDo because it was so detrimental to her business. Instead, she found new places to operate.
“To see it again to the people who are working so hard… what are you doing about the actual problem?” asked Johnson in response to the latest food truck ban, announced by Denver police last week.
Between the hours of 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. Fridays through Sundays, food trucks aren’t allowed in the highly-trafficked area on Blake, Market or Larimer Streets between 18th and 21 streets, as well as 21st St. between Market and Larimer.
They are only allowed in a new designated zone.
Click on the video below to see which areas will be affected by the new food truck ban:
Here’s where DPD is banning food trucks in LoDo starting Sept. 6, 2024
DPD officials said the goal is to reduce the number of fights and incidents that occur after bars and clubs let out, which they said could lead to gun violence.
Denver7 requested an interview with someone from the police department to find out how crime is trending in that area, but a spokesperson only referred us to their Crime Map and other dashboards.
DPD’s Crime Map only offers the last six months of data and shows as few as two violent crimes in a four-week period in that area and a maximum of seven in that same time frame.
“There is a lack of accountability,” said Johnson.
While Johnson has taken her business elsewhere, she believes food truck operators like herself are being unfairly targeted.
“The actual problem is that people are going and being over-served,” said Johnson.
She wants law enforcement to consider other factors that might be to blame, rather than punishing small businesses.
“How much enforcement is present? How much lighting is available?” asked Johnson.
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Here’s what you need to know about the police action that will make it harder to find a burrito after you leave the bars.
Food trucks outside of Improper City during the soft opening of their new RiNo location. Five Points, July 9, 2018. (Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)
Burrito? Gyro? Burger? Nope.
Over the weekend, food truck operators learned the police would be banning their food trucks from parking in parts of Lower Downtown from Friday through Sunday, 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.
The effort is one of several police experiments meant to curb late-night gun violence in the entertainment district.
In recent years, downtown Denver has suffered from a reputation as a violent place. Violent crime spiked for the city with the pandemic. Late nights have been marked by some of the worst violence — with both police officers and others opening fire. And while overall crime rates have been trending back down for downtown and elsewhere, businesses have been hurting.
“Protecting the public safety of residents and visitors is a critical priority for the administration,” explained Jordan Fuja, a spokesperson for Mayor Mike Johnston. “This new policy is aimed at dispersing food trucks around the area to prevent large crowds and potential violence.”
But why would food trucks be related to gun crimes? Here’s how the police explain it.
Lately, officers have been roaming LoDo on weekend nights. They’ve learned that violence erupts when crowds are leaving nightclubs and bars, head to the food trucks for a bite, and then bump into each other.
“The restricted area of operation is intended to help reduce the number of ‘bump into’ fights and incidents that escalate to gun violence … and to encourage people to leave the LoDo area soon after the bars and nightclubs shut down,” explained a department spokesperson.
Some food truck owners, who rely on those late night crowds, are scrambling for another place to set up, KDVR reported. DPD says that it “recognizes” those concerns and has tried to minimize the affected area.
The police are launching a pilot program to create a few zones around LoDo where food trucks will definitely be allowed to congregate. The details are still being worked out.
The business booster group, the Downtown Denver Partnership, supports the policy as a violence prevention effort, stressing that it just covers a three-block area.
What, besides food truck bans, are the Denver police doing?
The city is also increasing officer staffing beyond the higher levels that already patrol LoDo on Friday and Saturday nights; improving lighting; and talking more often with the managers of bars and nightclubs in the area.
The agency also created rideshare pickup zones in July, instead of allowing people to hail rides from anywhere in the area. Putting those into action has shaved off more than 30 minutes from the time people typically stay in LoDo after leaving the bars and clubs, according to police.
The hope is that adding these safety measures will make downtown feel accessible and safe to more people.
Food trucks will still have a place downtown. And the move to block them from certain areas of LoDo is experimental.
“Food trucks are an integral part of Denver’s food scene and culture,” Fuja said. “We will work closely with the business owners to ensure that they continue to see success and can adapt to this pilot program.”
DENVER — Police in Denver are investigating a suspected road rage shooting that left one person dead Thursday afternoon.
The victim was shot and transported to hospital following the shooting around 2 p.m. Thursday in the area of W. Byers Place and S. Kalamath Street, according to the Denver Police Department.
On Friday, police posted on social media that the victim was pronounced deceased. Their identity has not been released.
Police said they are now investigating the shooting as a homicide and are working to develop suspect information.
However, no arrests have been reported, and suspect information remains unavailable as of Saturday.
If you have information on this case, you can call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.
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Men pray on the Tivoli Quad lawn on the Auraria Campus as activists begin a planned occupation there, protesting Israel’s war in Gaza and demanding the University of Colorado divest from corportations that invest in Israel and end their study abroad program in the country, among other things. April 25, 2024.
In late April, several dozen students who attended the Auraria campus’ three universities — the University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver and the Community College of Denver — set up camp on the Tivoli Quad. Alongside some local community members, the protesters joined a nationwide movement of college students protesting the war in Gaza, which began in October when Hamas killed more than 1,000 Israelis and abducted more than 200 others. Tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have been killed by Israel’s counterattack.
Auraria Police officers arrest protesters advocating for the end of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, after they occupied the Tivoli Quad and refused to leave. April 26, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Students and professors are facing disciplinary actions
Alex Boodrookas, a professor who teaches Middle Eastern history, was one of the people police arrested. He was leaving a faculty meeting when he and other professors saw police at the camp.
“We freaked out. We were extremely concerned about student safety just because anytime you call the police to a peaceful situation, you risk escalation, you risk violence,” Boodrookas told Denverite. “So we were afraid for the safety of our students and three of us sat down with them and we were eventually arrested and we’re currently charged.”
Boodrookas, whose jury trial begins Wednesday, said prosecutors later added one charge of failure to obey a police officer. If found guilty, he may face up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $100,000.
“I’m baffled by being charged with trespassing when I was on my own campus in the middle of the day, on a school day, about a minute’s walk from my office,” he said.
Boodrookas did not join the protest full time, like many students and community members did. As a professor of modern history in the Middle East, he felt compelled to defend students seeking to raise awareness about the conditions in Gaza. He said he’s spent his career pushing back on misconceptions surrounding conflicts in the Middle East and the suppression of student protests only makes his job harder.
While Boodrookas said he isn’t facing repercussions from his current employer, but worries a criminal record would impact the future of his career.
“It’s been a McCarthy-esque environment in the Middle East studies [industry] the past 10 months,” he said.
Auraria Police carry an arrested protester, who refused to walk, to a bus as he and others advocate for the end of Israel’s offensive in Gaza are cleared from the Tivoli Quad. April 26, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Auraria campus officials have said that they support free speech, but they have maintained the anti-war camp and those arrested were in violation of its longstanding camping ban, which was introduced shortly after a similar anti-war camp in 2003. A total of 80 individuals were arrested or issued summons for trespassing through the camp’s timeline.
“During the April and May 2024 encampment, protestors’ tactics escalated several times beyond peaceful protests with evidence of trespassing, biohazard threats, blocking city roads, and vandalism on the Auraria Campus,” a campus spokesperson said via email.
Khalid Hamu, a CU Denver student who was one of the primary organizers of the camp, is facing similar charges. He said in addition to facing similar charges as Boodrookas, his participation in the protest also triggered a “student disciplinary process,” which resulted in being put on probation.
“I think it’s a punishment for standing on the side of justice,” Hamu said. “I think it’s a punishment for being disgusted at the actions of university administration and stuff like that, and then clamping down on just the easiest targets and whatnot.”
Future protests at Auraria are possible, and are kicking off once again nationwide
Protesters demanded that university administrators from all three campuses and the University of Colorado system take several actions in relation to the ongoing war in Gaza, including issuing statements in opposition to violence against Palestinian people and severing financial ties to military contractors operating in Israel.
Protesters march from the Auraria Campus to publicly oppose the Jewish National Fund’s annual Global Conference for Israel at the Colorado Convention Center. Nov. 30, 2023.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Those demands went largely unmet. Protesters received minor concessions from MSU Denver, in the form of the university agreeing to disclose its investments, but the group’s largest demands were never acknowledged by governing bodies.
That lack of action from campus officials has some students feeling antsy. Auraria’s Students for a Democratic organized one pre-semester march last week, and more protests are planned.
“We have a rally [Wednesday], probably more rallies to come and stuff like that, but yeah, [we] still have a campaign ongoing and we’ll be taking positive actions to see change,” Hamu said.
After being shot in the arm by Denver Police, a 24-year-old man said “sorry” 12 times in half a minute, according to body-worn camera footage released by police on Friday.
It started around 2 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 3, as bars were closing in Lower Downtown. Officers responded to a gunshot, where a witness directed them to a man with a firearm in a parking lot at 19th and Market.
Officers contacted the man, who DPD declined to identify, at his car. They directed him to show his hands. He brought up a Glock pistol with the barrel pointed down at the ground, and officers ordered him to drop the gun.
But as the man moved to drop the gun, he appears to have accidentally pointed it directly at an officer, who then fired a single round hitting the man in the arm.
A screenshot from body-worn camera footage shows a man holding a Glock pistol with the barrel pointed down at the ground shortly before an officer shot him in the arm.Denver Police Department
The man slumps against the side of his car as police move in, handcuff him and begin to render aid. At that moment another, unrelated gunfight breaks out nearby and officers ducked, yelling, “Get down, get down.”
(The unrelated shooting resulted in a different man being shot in the abdomen before fleeing in a car and crashing a few blocks away. He’s expected to survive. Police have identified the people involved, but no arrests have been made, and the incident is still under investigation.)
The man shot in the arm by officers, meanwhile, can be heard on the police body-worn camera saying, “I’m not a criminal, please.”
“You just pointed your f— gun at me, dude!” the officer shouts back. The suspect replies, “No, no, no, I put it down. Sorry. Sorry about that.”
As the officer is applying a tourniquet, the suspect says, “Please, bro. I’m not a criminal, bro. I was trying to save myself. Sorry brother, sorry.”
The man was not arrested, and DPD is not releasing the name of the officer who shot him.
Matt Clark, DPD’s commander of major crimes, said at a press briefing on Friday that when the man said “I was trying to save myself” he could have been referring to protecting himself from original shot fired that drew police to the area. The man was not arrested, but Clark said that is still under investigation.
That’s two or three different shootings within minutes in a small area that created a chaotic environment. Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said at the briefing that, thankfully, no one was killed.
“The tremendous number of guns in the metro area is a significant challenge, and one that we deal with every day,” Thomas said.
Reports of unlawful discharge of a weapon have more than doubled in Denver since 2019, according to a review of DPD data. The increase in illegal gunshot reports is partly due to an increase in the number of gunshot sensors in the city.
Data Source: Denver Police Department
DPD did not name the officer who shot the man in the arm, but Clark said that the officer has been on the force since 2017 and is assigned to the anti-crime team in District 6, which includes downtown.
The officer is on modified duty while the shooting is under investigation by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado State Patrol, DPD’s homicide unit and the Denver District Attorney.
Crime in Lower Downtown, especially as bars close at 2 a.m., has long been a problem and has only escalated since the pandemic.
“That area has been chosen as one of our persistently violent hotspots,” Thomas said.
Thomas added that the department has focused efforts to reduce crime after bars let out. He said DPD has added officers to the area, improved lighting and moved rideshare locations away from the busiest areas.
“We recognize that when these crowds come out of these entertainment establishments and they congregate, the likelihood of violence erupting is quite likely, and so we work to try to disperse those crowds as quickly as possible,” Thomas said.
The last executive director of the Denver Civil Service Commission was fired after claiming political interference.
Denver Police officer Ismael Lopez pins a badge to his brother, Ivan lopez’s, lapel as he graduates from the Denver Police Academy. March 31, 2023.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Gracie Perez will be the new Executive Director of the Denver Civil Service Commission, the independent body that oversees police and fire department hiring.
Murray’s firing came after she went public with claims that the Mayor’s Office was pushing the board to lower hiring standards and ignore applicant red flags so they could quickly staff up the police and fire departments.
The Mayor’s office, department leadership and fellow commissioners denied the claims. Miller said the board had been deliberating about letting Murray go for weeks before she spoke out about alleged political interference.
Perez will take the lead in screening, testing and hiring police and fire department recruits.
It’s a key job, especially now as the city tries to staff up a police department that has struggled with understaffing and recruiting in recent years.
In September, Mayor Mike Johnston pledged to add 167 new police officers. But the city hasn’t been able to completely fill its budgeted positions.
Perez most recently worked as State & Regional Operations Director for Access & Eligibility Services with the Texas Health & Human Services, overseeing more than 6,000 employees.
“Ms. Perez is a solutions-driven, organized leader who brings a wealth of experience in strategic planning, policy development, process improvement and decision-making in public service to the Commission,” wrote commission member Amber Miller in a statement announcing the decision. “Her extensive background in managing teams and complex operations will be invaluable as she steps into this crucial role.”
A Denver Police Department flag at Denver Police Department headquarters. Jan. 25, 2024.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
By Colleen Slevin/Associated Press
A police recruit who had to have both of his legs amputated after losing consciousness and repeatedly collapsing during fight training at Denver’s police academy is suing those who allegedly forced him to continue the “barbaric hazing ritual” after paramedics ignored warning signs.
Victor Moses, 29, alleges in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that aggressive officers knocked him down multiple times in the second round of “fight day” last year, with one of them shoving him off the mat and causing him to hit his head on the floor. He said he was pressured to continue, with officers picking him up and setting him back on his feet, before paramedics standing by were asked to check him out, the lawsuit said.
Moses told them he had the sickle cell trait, which puts him at an increased risk of medical complications from high-intensity exercise. He also said he had very low blood pressure and complained that his legs were cramping, according to the lawsuit. The symptoms are danger signs for people with his condition.
Neverthelsss, paramedics cleared Moses to return to training, which the suit alleges was a decision made to support the police.
The type of training described in the lawsuit is common in the United States and helps prepare recruits for scenarios they could face on patrol, said Ian Adams, an assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of South Carolina. Minor injuries are common and occasionally recruits die, often because of an underlying medical condition, he said.
The Denver Police Department declined to comment on the allegations, saying it does not speak about pending litigation. Telephone calls and emails seeking comment were also left with the city attorney’s office; and Denver Health, the hospital the paramedics worked for.
All recruits must complete the training to prepare them physically and mentally for fights they could encounter on the street. It includes having recruits punch and kick a dummy or a trainer holding pads, using a padded baton to fight trainers, wrestling and practicing to arrest a suspect who assaults them, according to the lawsuit.
The legal action alleges the practice is an unnecessarily violent rite of passage that recruits have to endure to be accepted into the police “fraternity.” It notes that other recruits suffered injuries before Moses started his drills, including one person whose nose was broken.
The lawsuit also claims that training teaches recruits that excessive force is “officially tolerated, and indeed culturally expected.”
Moses’ lawyers, John Holland and Darold Killmer, say that mindset has nurtured a violent police force and led to lawsuits costing Denver millions of dollars.
“Fight Day both encourages Denver police to engage in brutality and to be indifferent to the injuries they inflict,” Holland said.
The lawsuit claims paramedics cleared Moses to continue the training on Jan. 6, 2023, even though he was not able to stand or walk to the next round — wrestling. Instead, a trainer came to Moses and got on top of him. The recruit soon said he could not breathe, became unresponsive and was taken to the hospital, according to the lawsuit.
“If this had been a football game or boxing match, the head injury and losses of consciousness would have ended any continued participation or fighting immediately,” Moses’ lawyers argue.
The lawsuit alleges that Moses was essentially in police custody after becoming incapacitated and the victim of excessive force as the training continued without him being able to consent.
Moses used to spend his free time going to breweries and hiking with friends, but now he is largely confined to his apartment in Denver. He is learning to walk again with prosthetics, but cannot electronically charge them himself because of damage also done to his hands. Despite taking powerful opioids, he lives with constant phantom pain from the limbs he no longer has.
The former rental car manager wanted to be a police officer because he thought it would be a more interesting and meaningful career for someone who enjoys connecting with people.
When Moses was eventually taken to the hospital, his lawyers say police misled doctors by not revealing that he had hit his head on the floor, compromising the care doctors were able to provide.
Moses remained in the hospital for over four months, had both of his legs amputated below the knee and underwent surgery in July to try to restore his grip in one hand.
Now he wonders what would have happened if police had just stopped the training.
“I more than likely could still have my legs. I more than likely could still have my sanity. I could have been a police officer had you just not hazed us,” he told The Associated Press.
The city of Denver is paying $75,000 to a man who was beaten and arrested by Denver police officers even though he wasn’t suspected of a crime, according to a 2021 lawsuit.
City Council approved the settlement on Monday.
The case dates back to 2019 when Aaron Hernandez, then 60 years old, was sitting in his car with his son. Police ran the car’s plates and found that his son had a warrant out for arrest. Hernandez was not suspected of committing any crime.
According to the lawsuit, the officers punched, kicked and elbowed Hernandez, breaking a bone in his eye socket as he exited the car. The police officers jailed Hernandez and charged him with assault, claiming he hit the officers first.
But according to reporting from the Denver Post, body camera footage disputed the officers’ account, and the assault charges were later dropped.
The Denver Police Department declined Denverite’s request for comment.
The settlement is the latest in a string of payments over claims of misconduct involving the Denver Police Department.
Denverite has reached out to lawyers for Hernandez.
Editor’s note: This article was updated to reflect the Denver Police Department’s response.
The change could help Denver staff civil service roles like the Police Department.
With a mock structure fire burning above them, Denver Fire Department recruits pull a hose into the building during “Hell Night” at the Denver Fire Training Center, Oct. 7, 2023.
Hart Van Denburg/CPR News
Denver voters will decide in November if the city will remove its citizenship requirement for police and fire department jobs.
The change would allow non-citizens who meet certain work and residency requirements to apply for roles in those departments, bringing Denver into compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws.
City Council voted unanimously on Monday to pass the question on to voters this fall.
If passed, applicants would still need to meet a number of physical, mental, age and education requirements that apply to all police and fire recruits. Applications without U.S. citizenship would apply to people with valid work authorization, people with legal permanent residency and those with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status who arrived in the country as children.
In 2016, the city settled a lawsuit with the U.S. Justice Department over citizenship requirements for the Sheriff Department, which violated the federal Immigration and Nationality Act.
This new bill aims to bring Denver’s Police and Fire Departments in line.
A 2023 state bill lifted a ban on certain non-citizens carrying firearms, a requirement for some of those jobs.
Councilmember Jamie Torres is cosponsoring the bill with Council President Amanda Sandoval.
“We absolutely are standing right in the face of employment discrimination, and I don’t want to see that in our charter, in any of our code, and for us to just look like we can ignore it until the Department of Justice comes knocking at our door,” Torres said. “I think it’s responsible for us to make sure that we lift that barrier and that issue proactively. And that I think is one thing, but the other is it’s the right thing to do.”
Qualified applicants without citizenship can already serve in the Denver Sheriff Department and several other city roles.
Many other cities including Aurora already allow non-citizens to serve in police and fire departments. Denver’s Civil Service Commission, a few nonprofits that work with immigrants and leadership from both Fire and Police departments wrote letters in support of the change.
Torres emphasized that the proposal is not in response to the influx of new immigrants in Denver. That group of newcomers would not be eligible for these jobs until they received legal permanent residency or work authorization.
But the potential change does come as Denver struggles with staffing in civil service roles like the Police Department.
“I saw a lot of the misinformation headlines out there tying this to quote-unquote ‘illegal immigrants,’ which I hate, but it isn’t for undocumented residents,” she said. “I think people needed to be reminded that we still have rules and laws and vetting in place for any job, not just our safety jobs.”
Pedicab drivers wait in line to pick up people leaving Opening Day at Coors Field. April 1, 2021.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
The Denver Police Department is implementing a new safety plan in Lower Downtown and the Ballpark District in response to concerns over pedestrian safety, heavy traffic and gun violence.
A key part of the plan is specific rideshare pickup locations that DPD is creating in the two neighborhoods beginning Friday.
Uber and Lyft drivers will not be permitted to pick up or drop off riders along Blake and Larimer Streets between 18th and 21st streets from the hours of 10 p.m. and 3 a.m.
Instead, rideshares can pick up and drop off passengers at one of the designated zones. DPD said those zone’s aren’t set.
“Our goal is to have some consistency with the location of the pickup zones, but the locations can vary depending upon whether there is a late event at Coors Field,” said a DPD spokesperson. “For this reason, we did not announce specific locations. The rideshare apps will let the rider know where to meet the driver.”
The goals of the plan are to decrease vehicle traffic and better disperse crowds during peak bar hours, times that DPD said can lead to fights and other violence.
Editor’s note: This article was updated with comment from DPD.
