Cop faces discipline after traffic incident
Aurora police officer Mark Asmussen faces disciplinary action as a result of an off-duty road-rage incident.
Parker Bell and his fiancée, Ashley Meadows, told 9News that Asmussen pulled a gun on them because the officer was upset that he was cut off in traffic along Interstate 225.
The couple were in a car with their 2-year-old son when they say the officer began yelling and gesturing at them. Bell said he gestured back, not knowing Asmussen was an officer.
When the couple came to the Alameda exit, the officer got out of his car with his gun drawn, Bell and Meadows said, and Meadows called 911.
The officer has disputed that account and said he showed his badge as soon as he got out of his car, according to the station’s report.
Asmussen is facing disciplinary action, not for pulling his gun but for writing Bell a ticket while off-duty. Police policy says an officer must call for an on-duty officer to issue a ticket for a violation witnessed in the officer’s presence.
Aurora’s interim police chief told 9News that Bell made an improper lane change and that the ticket will not be dismissed.
Puppeteer faces sex-assault charges
A puppeteer who also paints children’s portraits was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of taking nude pictures of a 4-year-old and touching her inappropriately.
John P. Wagner, 62, of Salida faces felony charges of sexual exploitation of a child, sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust and unlawful sexual contact.
The girl was reportedly dropped off at his home May 5 to be photographed and sketched for a portrait.
On May 18, the girl reportedly told her mother that Wagner had touched her buttocks, put something on her buttocks, photographed her in the nude and then showed her the pictures.
The girl’s mother notified authorities, and on May 27 investigators obtained a warrant to search Wagner’s home.
They reportedly argued with Wagner about whether photos of nude children are sexually explicit or, in Wagner’s opinion, “forms of art.”
Police reported finding other pictures of nude children on Wagner’s computers.
Porn industry, feds OK delay in new rule
Representatives of the multibillion-dollar pornography industry announced a deal Thursday with the federal government to temporarily avoid records inspections under new child-porn regulations until a judge decides whether they are constitutional.
The Woodland Hills, Calif.- based Free Speech Coalition, which represents about 750 actors, producers and others involved in the adult entertainment industry, had asked a federal judge in Denver to temporarily block the new rules, which took effect Thursday and require producers to verify each performer’s identity and age.
Under the agreement, the government will not inspect records held by members of the coalition until at least 30 days after U.S. District Judge Walker Miller holds an Aug. 8 hearing on the group’s request.
