New Colorado law prohibits use of sex assault victims’ clothing, hairstyle

Defendants in Colorado sexual assault cases soon will be prohibited from using what a victim was wearing or a victim’s hairstyle as evidence of consent. Lt. Gov. Dianne Primavera, who is the acting governor this week, signed House Bill 1072 Wednesday afternoon. The bipartisan legislation is aimed at strengthening protections for sex assault victims in … Read more

East Colfax communities in Denver and Aurora seek help staying in area

Photographs line the walls, plants sit on windowsills and a Buddhist altar is arranged atop a dresser. Nearly every surface of the living room is covered by an item or memento collected by Thin Soe, Ye Ye Thin and their five children over the years in their three-bedroom apartment in Denver’s East Colfax neighborhood. Since … Read more

Number of migrants in Denver shelters dips below 1,000

The number of migrants staying in Denver shelters dipped below 1,000 for the first time in six months this week, leading city officials to consolidate hotel shelters amid a period of respite. Sarah Plastino, Denver’s recently hired newcomer program manager, called the dip in numbers a “turning point for the city” during a lull in … Read more

Colorado lawmakers target HOAs, metro districts with more regulation

Homeowners associations’ foreclosure filings on thousands of Coloradans’ houses over unpaid fines and fees have spurred fresh attempts by lawmakers to better regulate HOAs and metropolitan districts with the hope of preventing more people from losing their homes. Lawmakers have introduced several reform bills that would restrict foreclosures from delinquent fees and require HOAs and … Read more

Nikki Haley rallies hundreds at Colorado stop to vote in GOP primary

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley told Colorado voters at a rally Tuesday that this year’s presidential election is about getting the country “back on track” — from securing the border and focusing on the basics in education to preventing wars. The Republican hopeful characterized herself as the best chance to do that during her … Read more

ICE arrests 19 in Colorado during national sex offender operation targeting immigrants for deportation

Early on a mid-February morning, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in unmarked vehicles gathered in an empty parking lot in Denver, nearly a quarter mile from the workplace of a man they had been tracking. In a briefing, the officers described how they planned to arrest the 25-year-old, who was born in Mexico, as … Read more

Pressure from Denver migrant crisis shows up in City Council funding bills

The Denver City Council on Monday approved a $25 million agreement with a company that provides hotel rooms for migrants who have arrived in the city from the southern border. Most of that money — around $17.5 million — has already been spent, according to the city’s Department of Finance. The agreement modified an existing … Read more

Aurora City Council approves purchase of Crowne Plaza Hotel property for homeless navigation campus

The city of Aurora plans to buy the Crowne Plaza Hotel and turn it into a “regional navigation center” that provides temporary housing and services for people who are homeless. Aurora City Council members approved the purchase Monday night 7-3 for the 255-room hotel and convention center at 15500 E. 40th Ave. near the airport … Read more

Aurora community greenhouses plan aims to fill gaps in food system

For more than a decade, two city-owned greenhouses in Aurora largely have sat empty. A community group wants to put them to use, with plans to turn the greenhouses into spaces for urban agriculture. A partnership between the city and Food Justice NW Aurora soon could launch an operation that supplies food-producing plant starts and … Read more

Denver begins cleanup of Zuni Street migrant encampment

A fence enclosed the hundreds of tents lining the blocks around Zuni Street and Speer Boulevard on Wednesday morning as Denver police guarded the area and outreach workers helped the migrants who have been living there get ready to leave. The city of Denver on Wednesday began the process of shutting down the makeshift campsite … Read more