DENVER
Man pleads not guilty in impersonation case
A 46-year-old man accused of impersonating a Denver police officer and sexually assaulting two women in separate incidents pleaded not guilty Thursday. Trial for the defendant, Michael Ricks, was scheduled for Jan. 17. Investigators say the assaults took place in January and February and involved a 17-year-old woman in one case and a 26-year-old woman in the second incident.
Ricks is charged with two counts of second-degree kidnapping, two counts of sexual assault and three counts of impersonating a peace officer. Earlier this month, Ricks was sentenced to 20 years to life for assaulting numerous women in the south suburban area of Denver, where he masqueraded as a doctor and chiropractor.
COLORADO
Referendum trekkers reach halfway point
State Sen. Ken Gordon, D-Denver, and his crew of fellow travelers reached the halfway point on their walk across the state on Thursday as they crossed into Colorado Springs. Since setting out from the Wyoming border on Sept. 3, Gordon said, the group has met more than 1,000 Coloradans in their quest to call attention to Referendums C and D, the measures that would let the state keep and spend as much as $3.7 billion in extra tax revenues over the next five years.
DENVER
Probation for figure in state license scam
A middleman who cooperated with federal authorities investigating a driver’s license scam was sentenced in federal court to three years’ probation Thursday. Juan Pablo Beltran was the intermediary for people looking to illegally buy driver’s licenses and a state clerk who sold them in exchange for cash, according to court records.
A federal investigation, which remains active, has resulted in the arrests of two driver’s license clerks accused of selling the coveted documents to people otherwise ineligible to get them, the suspension of dozens of suspect driver’s licenses, and reforms within the state Division of Motor Vehicles.
LOVELAND
Firefighter killed, another hurt in crash
A Mountain View firefighter was killed and another injured in a motorcycle accident on Interstate 25 near Loveland on Wednesday.
The firefighters were off-duty at the time of the crash, which occurred on the southbound side of the interstate about 5 p.m..
Firefighter/engineer Jeff Gold died at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins. Firefighter Mike Stratton has shoulder, rib and chest injuries.
Both men were wearing helmets.
The accident happened when the motorcyclists slowed for traffic.
Trent Nichols, 23, of Greeley was driving a Ford F-250 truck and rear-ended Gold’s motorcycle, sending it into the guardrail, said Colorado State Patrol Trooper Eric Wynn. The Ford rolled over.
Stratton lost control of his motorcycle and was struck by debris, Wynn said.
AURORA
Police identify victim of Sunday car crash
Aurora police identified the victim of a fatal car accident that occurred Sunday morning as 23-year-old Julio C. Castro-Diaz.
A witness told police that a 1991 red GMC SUV was swerving while traveling eastbound in the 16700 block of East Hampden Avenue.
The GMC went over a raised center median and rolled.
AURORA
Stairwell fire rousts condo residents
Seven residents were forced out of a burning condominium complex Thursday morning after a fire was detected on a stairwell, Aurora fire officials said.
The fire started at 2:33 a.m. in the 13700 block of East Lehigh Avenue.
A resident returning home saw the fire on the stairwell landing outside a unit across from her. She called 911 and tried to throw water on the flames, but they were spreading into a vacant unit and the attic.
Aurora firefighters put the blaze out about 45 minutes later. The seven residents had to relocate temporarily.
BRECKENRIDGE
County appeals ruling on mining regulation
Summit County officials have appealed a state court decision that overturned a county ban on cyanide-leach mining.
County Attorney Jeff Huntley filed the appeal Monday, claiming that the state Mined Land Reclamation Board cannot overrule the county’s land-use regulation authority.
In 2004, the Colorado Mining Association filed the lawsuit to overturn the new county ordinance.
“The Mined Land Reclamation Act expressly provides that mining operations are subject to local land-use regulations,” said County Commissioner Bob French.
COLORADO
Udall seeks hearing on disaster planning
Democratic U.S. Rep. Mark Udall of Eldorado Springs on Thursday called on Democratic leaders in the statehouse to convene legislative hearings on emergency-response planning in Colorado after Gov. Bill Owens’ office rejected a similar request from him.
In a letter released by Udall’s office, the congressman wrote, “While I have no reason to believe that state and federal emergency responders are ill-equipped to handle these potential disasters, I believe that we have a responsibility to carefully examine how government at all levels is planning to respond.”
