MAN CHARGED in KIDNAPPING: Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey has formally charged a 37-year-old man accused of kidnapping a young woman last Sunday. Yugondra Hudson is charged with one count of second-degree kidnapping and one count of attempted sexual assault. The charges allege that, on Aug. 2 at about 11 a.m., Hudson grabbed the 18-year-old victim in the 1500 block of 17th Street while she was walking to meet a friend. She was able to get away briefly but was grabbed again while trying to run across the street. The suspect fled after being confronted by a witness but was arrested nearby by Denver police officers. Hudson is a registered sex offender out of Michigan. Hudson remains in custody in the Denver County Jail; his bond is set at $500,000. He is scheduled to appear in Denver County Court, room 12T, Friday at 9 a.m. to be advised of the charges.
STUDENTS SENTENCED IN FLAG DESECRATION CASE: All four students involved with defacing an American flag in February have now been sentenced in connection with the case. Wade Sternberg, 18, pleaded guilty earlier to one count of false reporting and one count of disorderly conduct. He was sentenced to 12 months supervised probation, 100 hours of community service and must take a cultural sensitivity course. Jesus Flores-Ramos, 19, pleaded guilty earlier to one count of false reporting and one count of disorderly conduct. He was sentenced to 12 months of supervised probation, 100 hours of community service and must take a cultural sensitivity course. Briawna Lewis, 18, pleaded guilty to one count of false reporting. She has been sentenced to 12 months deferred judgment probation, 48 hours of community service and must take a cultural sensitivity course. A fourth juvenile co-defendant pleaded guilty earlier to one count of defacing property of another and was sentenced to two years probation and 100 hours of community service. On Feb. 9, police were notified that a defaced American flag was found hanging upside down at Thomas Jefferson High School. Flores-Ramos, Sternberg, and the juvenile were responsible for defacing the flag with crude drawings and racist language. The four co-defendants attempted to cover up their wrongdoings by reporting a false story to investigators.
HOMICIDE IN OGDEN/EMERSON ALLEY: Denver Police responded to a call of a shooting in the 1400 block of the Ogden/Emerson alley yesterday morning around 2:45. They found one male victim with a single gunshot wound who was transported to Denver Health Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead. His identity is not being released pending positive identification and notification of next of kin. Police contacted the suspect at Colfax and Delaware. Charles Garlick, 26, is being held for investigation of first-degree murder.
WATCH THOSE RED LIGHTS: The Denver Police Department wants to remind the community that this week has been designated National Stop on Red Week. Law enforcement agencies across the country will be focusing on reducing the number of red light violations and accidents caused by red light runners. Denver Police said they have issued 120 red light violations during the first two days of National Stop on Red Week, which began Monday.
VET CLINIC SEEKING DONATIONS FOR RAT-TAIL COMB: Animal Health Care Specialists is seeking donations for a four-month-old boxer named Tyson, who swallowed a rat-tail comb that caused some expensive vet expenses. Tyson has been sick repeatedly since swallowing the comb, which punctured his esophagus, entered his stomach and punctured his back muscles. He is recovering well after surgery, but his family needs help with the vet bills. Donations are being accepted directly through Animal Health Care Specialists, located at 6701 N. Washington St. Visit animalhealthcarespecialists.com or call 303-288-6800 for more information.
BUESCHER HALTS AMENDMENT 54 RULEMAKING: Secretary of State Bernie Buescher yesterday terminated the rulemaking process aimed at clarifying provisions of Amendment 54, which was passed by voters last November. The proposed rule would have clarified the amendment pertaining to sole source contracts. Amendment 54 sought to prevent persons with sole source contracts and their family members from contributing to candidates. A Denver District court judge, amid a court challenge, last month ruled that the amendment was unconstitutional, except for one of the sections of the amendment that required a list of sole source contracts be maintained by the Department of Personnel and Administration. Visit sos.state.co.us for more information.
INDICTMENT IN MULTI-STATE COCAINE-DISTRIBUTION NETWORK: A statewide grand jury yesterday indicted 15 individuals on suspicion of running a cocaine ring that extended throughout the Denver metro area, northern Colorado and southern Wyoming. The indictment is focused on conduct occurring between March and June. The members were indicted on 44 felonies, including 12 of the suspects that were indicted on suspicion of violating the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act, a class-two felony.
GRANTS FOR HOMELESS YOUTH: The Colorado Department of Education yesterday announced 17 grants to support homeless children and youth through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grants, which will provide nearly $925,000 over the next two years to school districts throughout the state, are designed to provide tutoring, academic enrichment programs, professional development for teachers and others who work with homeless populations, early childhood education programs, and more. During the 2007-08 school year, the CDE reported that over 12,000 students in Colorado were identified as homeless.
UDALL, BENNET BACK FARM AID BILL: U.S. Sens. Mark Udall and Michael Bennet, both Colorado Democrats, joined the Senate Tuesday evening to pass a bill that increases access to credit for farmers and ranchers. The senators worked to ensure the bill included support for Colorado’s farmers, who are struggling as a result of low commodity prices and the credit crunch. The bill also funds important agricultural and public health research programs in Colorado, which the senators fought to include. The Senate approved the Fiscal Year 2010 Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA Appropriations bill, which provides funding for food programs, rural development, and agricultural research. The bill passed with significant bipartisan support, by a vote of 80-17. A final version must now be worked out with the House of Representatives. A critical provision in the bill increases funding for direct farm operating loans starting in Fiscal Year 2010, which begins on Oct. 1. The provision will be a big help to Colorado farmers and ranchers.
Rep. Primavera Honored: Rep. Dianne Primavera, D-Broomfield, a cancer survivor, yesterday was granted the Legislative Leadership Award from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACSCAN) for her commitment and advocacy on behalf of cancer survivors and in search of a cure. A four-time cancer survivor herself, Primavera has dedicated much of her life and legislative career to expanding cancer research and treatment, and to saving lives. This past session, Primavera sponsored two bills aimed at preventing cancer-related deaths. One law will help cancer patients who choose to participate in clinical trials of new medications or therapies. House Bill 1059 requires insurance companies to cover the cost of routine primary care for clients even while they are enrolled in a trial of a cutting-edge therapy. Basic care during clinical trials will bring new hope to cancer patients. House Bill 1164 will create a fund to expand eligibility for the Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act, which provides treatment for low- to moderate-income women who are uninsured or underinsured. Consumers who choose to support the fund will pay an extra $25 on all new or renewed breast cancer license plates. Also, Primavera was recently granted for the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition 2009 Legislative Award. The Colorado Cross-Disability (CCDC) is Colorado’s only statewide organization run by and for those with disabilities. The coalition consists of both the disabled and their non-disabled allies working to promote social justice and support disability rights. Primavera has been working in the fields of disability, employment and health care for more than 40 years and has a long history of community service and volunteer work.
RITTER CONGRATULATES FIRM FOR LANDING $45M GRANT: Gov. Bill Ritter yesterday congratulated Frederick-based UQM Technologies for securing a $45.1 million Recovery Act grant to advance the research and production of the company’s electric and hybrid-electric vehicle propulsion systems. UQM was the only Colorado company to land any of the $2.4 billion in competitive grants awarded yesterday by the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the Recovery Act’s Advanced Battery Manufacturing Initiative. The awards are going to 48 companies and research institutions working on the manufacturing and deployment of electric vehicles, batteries and components.
POLIS IN BOULDER FRIDAY: U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., will discuss issues of the day at Vic’s Coffee, 2680 Broadway St., at 8 a.m. Friday. A previous press release by the Polis office had the address incorrect.
BENNET BILL PASSES: U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo, yesterday announced Senate passage of legislation to protect military families from being cut out of child and maternal nutrition programs. Currently, military families can be removed from nutritional programs — such as free and reduced price school lunches — because combat pay increases their income above eligibility thresholds for the programs. In an effort to ensure military families have access to nutritional programs, the Military Family Protection Act will permanently exempt combat pay from being counted as income for federal child nutrition programs and WIC. The bill, which Bennet introduced in March, passed the Senate yesterday as part of the Appropriations Committee’s Agriculture Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2010.
MAYOR TO SPEAK TODAY: Mayor John Hickenlooper will provide the keynote address at the Seventh Annual State of the City luncheon, hosted by the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce at the Sheraton Downtown Denver hotel. The event is presented by BBVA Compass Bank. The cost for this event is $55 for Chamber members AND $65 for non-Chamber members. To register, go to www.denverchamber.org/sotc2009. This event provides the business community and the citizens of the region a unique view of the metro area from four different perspectives: Hickenlooper, University of Colorado Leeds School of Business economist Richard Wobbekind, a non-profit organization’s perspective from Dorothy Horrell (executive director of the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation and chair of the Colorado Association of Funders), and a picture of local government from Lakewood Mayor Bob Murphy.
SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL: As part of the national “Safe Routes to School” program, the Colorado Department of Transportation is now accepting applications for Colorado’s 2010 Safe Routes to School funding. CDOT will be awarding up to $1.8 million in non-infrastructure (education) projects and infrastructure (capital) in order to help communities educate their students about safely walking or biking to school and improve their pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. Applications are available online at www.dot.state.co.us/bikeped/SafeRoutesToSchool.htm. The application deadline for receiving an application at CDOT is 4 p.m. on Dec. 4.
UFO SYMPOSIUM: The 40th anniversary of the International UFO Symposium will be held in Denver beginning today and running through Sunday at the Marriott Denver Tech Center. The symposium is an annual gathering of some of the top speakers in their respective fields presenting evidence and research concerning new UFO sightings in the U.S. and Canada, the scientific search for extraterrestrial life and UFO photo analysis. For tickets to the four day symposium, visit www.MUFON.com, or call 888-817-2220.
