Controversy and leaning into multiple crises and conundrums led Aurora news headlines again this year.
Police remained in the spotlight after the shooting of 16-year-old Jor’Dell Richardson and further news investigations into whether the police department is successfully making changes in how it treats and handles when encountering people of color. The mandates for change are part of a state-enforced “consent decree,” which continues to focus on public safety in Aurora.
Elsewhere in the city, Aurora Public Schools has a new school board and a new superintendent, and a political shift to the right on the city council two years ago has resulted in a city council even further right after the last election.
Here are the highlights from 2024.
Aurora City Manager Jim Twombly retired, ending almost 5 years with city
Jim Twombly wrapped up his four-and-a-half-year tenure as Aurora’s city manager in April, citing a desire to spend more time with his family.
“I’ve got two grandkids in St. Louis, one in Tulsa and three in Oklahoma City, and it’s really feeling like I can retire and, I’m kind of missing out on some of the things that I’d like to do with them,” he said. “Most of my friends are retired. And I’ve got my health.”
When asked what he would remember most fondly about his tenure in Aurora, which he called the “capstone” of his career, Twombly praised the staff of the city of Aurora and their commitment to residents.
“I’ve said many times that this has been my favorite job in my 40-plus years of public service. This has been the most fun,” he said. “I just felt like we have such a positive group that’s so dedicated to their work and to the community.”
Twombly’s time in Aurora was also marked by upheaval, both locally and across the state and nation. Less than a year after Twombly’s appointment, Aurora police and paramedics caused the death of Elijah McClain, igniting more than a year of intense protests and laying the groundwork for a historic reform agreement between Aurora’s public safety agencies and the Colorado Attorney General’s Office.
In a city news release, Twombly was praised for maintaining city services during the pandemic; establishing the city’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; and championing water conservation measures alongside the mayor and city council.
“Jim has done an extraordinary job during a very difficult chapter in the history of our city, and he will be missed,” Mayor Mike Coffman said in the release. Other council members also acknowledged the contributions of Twombly in their own statements.
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
Former Aurora Public Schools superintendent accused of not being “Black Enough”
An investigation by an outside investigator determined that racial bias played a role in the Aurora Public School board of education not renewing former superintendent Rico Munn’s contract last year.
According to an investigation published by the Sentinel in June, at least two board directors, Stephanie Mason and Tramaine Duncan, said that Munn “was not Black enough” to serve as the superintendent.
Mason did not run for re-election this year. Duncan’s term ends in 2025.
Reportedly, Munn had enjoyed a “good working relationship” with the board until the fall of 2021, after which he began to clash significantly with Mason and Duncan for “refusing to exclusively focus on the advancement of Black people but rather focusing his attention more broadly on the Board’s written policy of the advancement of People of Color.”
Munn was the district’s first Black superintendent, and he spoke regularly throughout his tenure about the importance of providing a quality education for all of the district’s 38,000 students, over half of whom are Hispanic and about 18% of whom are Black.
— Sentinel Staff Writers
Mourners march from Aurora city hall with body of boy killed by police
Police reform activists marched down Alameda Avenue and demanded the resignation of interim police chief Art Acevedo on June 16, preceded by a hearse transporting the body of Jor’Dell Richardson, who two weeks earlier was shot and killed by an Aurora officer.
The march began with a somber series of speeches on the west steps of city hall as a light rain fell — “Clearly the sky is crying today,” said Richardson family attorney Siddhartha Rathod.
Richardson, 14, was killed after police say the boy fled the scene of an armed robbery while in possession of a pellet gun that looked like a handgun. Once he was tackled by officer James Snapp, a struggle ensued, and Richardson was fatally shot by a second officer, Roch Gruszeczka.
Following the June 1 shooting, Acevedo painted a picture of a chaotic arrest, where police rushed into the aftermath of an armed robbery. Activists later criticized the chief for describing the item in Richardson’s possession as a firearm rather than a pellet gun, a statement that he acknowledged was inaccurate eight days after the shooting.
Activists accused the chief of lying to deflect criticism from officers and negatively characterize Richardson. Acevedo said in an interview that he would have had “nothing to gain” by lying to the public.
Rathod told those gathered on the steps of city hall June 16 that the best outcome would have been Jor’Dell surviving his encounter with police but that the next best thing would be holding police accountable for the shooting.
“What we can get is accountability,” Rathod said. “(Acevedo) misled you. He lied to you. He lied to this family.”
Laurie Littlejohn, the boy’s mother, criticized Acevedo for characterizing Jor’Dell as a “thug” and said she was still struggling with the knowledge that she would never see her son go to prom, graduate from high school or start a family.
“I loved my baby with everything in me,” she said. “I have to live with an empty room.”
Jor’Dell’s older brother, Anton, also spoke and called Jor’Dell a “beautiful soul,” saying that he didn’t think police were justified in firing at him, regardless of what the 14 year old had been doing.
The crowd of about 200 people chanted Jor’Dell’s name and other slogans — including “Black lives matter,” “jail all killer cops” and “up with the people, down with the police” — as they marched west from City Hall to Abilene Street, before turning around and marching back the way they came.
A hearse carrying Jor’Dell’s body and a pickup truck full of protest organizers led the procession down Alameda, while police vehicles shadowed the march and blocked traffic to accommodate the procession.
The march capped off a week of questions from community members and the media concerning the shooting and how it was initially described by Acevedo.
In September, the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s office declined to file charges against the officers involved in the shooting of Richardson, and internal affairs investigators found in October that Gruszeczka did not violate the department’s policy on the use of lethal force.
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
New superintendent leads Aurora Public Schools
APS hired Michael Giles to lead the district after former superintendent Rico Munn resigned. Munn announced in December 2022 that he would not be seeking to renew his current contract, which expired at the end of June.
After working as a juvenile corrections counselor in Grand Junction and the Denver area, Giles joined the Cherry Creek School District in 2002. He began as a counselor at Falcon Creek Middle School and moved through myriad roles in the district throughout the years.
He became an administrator in 2014, and in 2018 joined the cabinet as assistant superintendent of performance. He assumed his previous role as assistant superintendent of diversity, equity, culture and community engagement in 2021.
At Cherry Creek, Giles has been at the forefront of the district’s attempts to boost achievement for students of color, a priority he signaled would continue at APS. During interviews last week, he also highlighted the importance of rebuilding trust, improving teacher recruitment and retention and making sure the district has an effective safety plan.
“I believe there is great potential for the Cherry Creek School District and the Aurora Public School District to enhance partnerships that strengthen and expand opportunities and outcomes for all students in the city of Aurora,” he said in a statement from Cherry Creek schools. ” I look forward to exploring those partnerships once I assume the new role.”
He also said the move enhances possibilities for cooperation between the neighboring districts.
Giles was born in Queens, N.Y. and moved around frequently as a child while his father was in the military. The family moved to Colorado when he was in high school and he has lived in Aurora for the last 25 years.
— Kristin Oh,
Sentinel Staff writer
Coffman, proponents end 2023 campaign to empower Aurora’s mayor
Saying challenges from opponents caused them to miss a procedural deadline, supporters of a proposal to empower Aurora’s mayor announced Aug. 25 that they were ending their 2023 campaign but want to try again in 2025.
The campaign to empower Aurora’s mayor was dogged by controversy, with opponents criticizing alleged deception on the part of signature collectors, who they say downplayed or failed to mention the significance of the part of the proposal that would empower the mayor, giving that person the ability to veto legislation and unilaterally hire and fire city employees.
Mayor Mike Coffman’s behind-the-scenes support for the measure and his refusal to discuss his involvement until July was another source of contention, with city council members on both sides of the aisle accusing Coffman of trying to wrest power.
“This is a gross power grab designed to consolidate power behind one person, which will lead to cronyism and worse,” Councilmember Curtis Gardner said in May.
“Our system works because accountability is built into the process, requiring six votes to get anything done. Giving absolute power for contracts, appointments and more to one person is a sure-fire way to ensure voices are excluded from the process.”
Aurora City Clerk Kadee Rodriguez found in her initial determination of sufficiency in July that strong-mayor advocates had collected 12,198 valid signatures from voters, 181 more than needed to put the question on the 2023 ballot.
After this initial finding was announced, Coffman said in a statement that changing the city’s form of government would promote accountability and a cohesive vision for Aurora.
He argued that the “urban challenges of race, poverty and crime” could best be addressed by an empowered mayor, who would be “responsible for the operations of the government to include everything from the conduct of our police officers to providing the leadership necessary to achieve an aspirational vision for our city.”
However, despite Rodriguez’s initial finding, supporters said legal challenges caused them to miss a deadline for bringing the item before voters in 2023. Coffman said he was “disappointed” by the outcome but hopeful for 2025.
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
Cherry Creek’s mental health facility opens to families
Traverse Academy, the highly anticipated multi-million dollar facility, officially opened to district families in October.
Principal Kimberly Avalos said she’s seen many mental health facilities close during her decades-long career, making the opening of this one more critical than ever.
District students from 10-18 years-old will be able to access intensive mental health support at the unique school.
The district will be partnering with CU Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry to serve students.
Students attending Traverse Academy will receive individualized therapy while general education teachers help them continue with their education. Students will receive nine hours each week engaging in therapeutic programming at the school, which could include individual or group therapy.
Students in need of help must be referred by their school’s mental health provider such as a social worker or psychiatrist before undergoing an intake process with a mental health team.
— Kristin Oh,
Sentinel Staff writer
Aurora’s renegade pig finds new home with rural high school’s farming program
A stray hog that went on a rooting rampage through the city of Aurora in September has found a new home as the boar-in-residence for Eads High School’s Future Farmers of America program.
Nicknamed “Fred” by the Aurora Animal Shelter employees who looked after the animal after he was wrangled in central Aurora, the pig will be used to teach high schoolers about animal husbandry and the proper care of livestock.
“I feel bad for whoever let him go or lost him,” said Justin Lenox, the FFA advisor and an agricultural education teacher at Eads High School. “He’s got a really cool personality for a pig, that’s for sure. He’s a big old pet. The kids have gotten to go out, and meet him, and feed him. And he gets treats. He’s doing great.”
The City of Aurora began receiving calls about a pig wandering near traffic and digging up landscaping on Sept. 24. Aurora Animal Services field supervisor Augusta Allen said that, comparing the locations of the calls, Fred hoofed it at least 10 miles before he was captured near Alameda Parkway and Chambers Road three days later.
The shelter tried in vain to find Fred’s owner before seeking out rescues and other facilities capable of providing a safe home for a pig of Fred’s size. Shelter employees estimated the animal weighed between 400 and 600 pounds at the time he was caught.
Based on Fred’s friendly temperament and the lack of markings that might flag him as part of a commercial livestock operation, Allen and others have speculated that Fred was someone’s pet before he broke loose or was abandoned in the Aurora area.
“Where he came from is still a big mystery, but they obviously gave him a lot of attention,” Allen said. “I grew up on a pig farm, and they’re not always the friendliest creatures, but he was literally like a roll-over-and-scratch-my-belly kind of dog.”
Lenox — who started helping out on his grandfather’s farm as a young child and today works at the high school serving about 46 students in rural eastern Colorado — said he was on his way home from a livestock sale when his father shared a news story with him about Fred.
Lenox emailed the Aurora shelter, who sent a representative to tour the facilities at Eads High School. Finally, on Oct. 13, Lenox and one of his students drove to Aurora to transport Fred to his new home.
The Eads High School teacher said one of Fred’s jobs will be helping identify when the program’s seven female pigs are in heat. Boars grunt and show other characteristic behaviors when they sense a fertile female. Besides taking care of pigs, Eads FFA students also have the opportunity to raise crops in a garden and get experience working with a small commercial herd of goats.
“It’s a lot of hands-on learning,” Lenox said. “And we try to teach our kids life skills. We know not every kid is going to go into production agriculture, but if they get to experience it, they’ll at least know if they like it or not. That’s part of what our job is, to give them those experiences outside of the classroom so they can get an idea of what they want to do in their future.”
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
BACK IN THE SADDLE: Second Chance bikes rides again
In late 2022, the sudden death of Ernie Clark left his nonprofit, Second Chance Bicycle Shop, both leaderless and homeless.
The redevelopment of Aurora’s East Bank Shopping Center forced the nonprofit project to relocate, but at the time of his passing, Ernie was struggling to find a new spot for the shop that offered free bikes to children, homeless people and others in need.
Ernie was the public face of Second Chance, which he ran with the help of a team of volunteers. But his heavy involvement in the day-to-day operations of the shop also meant his death plunged its future into uncertainty.
After Ernie’s death, his daughter Betty told the Sentinel how she promised her father that she would help carry on his legacy “come hell or high water.”
Now, she’s made good on her promise and says Second Chance is gearing up to reopen out of a new storefront in Centennial.
“It was fabulous. I couldn’t have asked for a better timing,” Betty said. “We’re grateful, and we’re excited to be moving in the right direction, and we look forward to helping people more in the future.”
A local roofing company, Artisan Construction, allowed Second Chance to sublease the space at 6920 S. Jordan Road rent-free, she said. Betty said the company reached out after seeing a Facebook post about the nonprofit needing help moving items out of the East Bank location and into storage units.
“They have helped us continue the legacy,” Betty wrote in a text message. “Without them, none of this would be possible.”
While slightly smaller than their last space, Betty says the new location is heated and includes a warehouse for the nonprofit’s large inventory of bicycles. Volunteers have been working for several weeks to move bicycles and set them up in the new space, she said.
Although Second Chance has left Aurora for the city’s southern neighbor, Betty confirmed that they will continue to partner with organizations that they worked with previously in Aurora, including local schools and the police department.
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
Colorado Parent Advocacy Network wants LGBTQ+ books off school bookshelves
A local parental rights advocacy group, led by a Cherry Creek parent, has gotten involved in local politics while spreading misinformation and complaints centered around the LGBTQ+ community.
Lori Gimelshteyn, the executive director of Colorado Parent Advocacy Network said that they are not an anti-LGBTQ organization and has often said that they are not associated with a particular political party.
The organization has questioned the presence of multiple books in Cherry Creek School District libraries, and said that the district should take the books off library shelves. Most of the books they complained about were the same books that Libs of TikTok also complained about in the blog post that led to a bomb threat being sent to the district. Those books were written by LGBTQ+ authors.
Tensions flared as hundreds of people flooded a Cherry Creek board of education meeting in October.
Gimelshteyn, and other people in the organization, claimed that the books are pornographic because they include sexually explicit content, and that they are inappropriate for children. local school officials, national experts in library sciences and a variety of schools of academics staunchly deny.
She also said that her organization has not done anything that was anti-LGBTQ and that they support all students. She also questioned why it was considered hateful to the LGBTQ community to protect them from porn.
Critics have labeled some of the materials as pornographic, which Drew Paterson erroneously claimed the memoir “Gender Queer,” written and illustrated by Maia Kobabe, depicts a child performing oral sex on an adult.
The book is a “graphic novel,” using drawn caricatures in the style of a comic book. While Kobabe does include a scene addressing oral sex, it is between two consenting adults, depicting inanimate objects, not genitalia.
Critics of the organization calling out the materials say the activist groups not only spread disinformation about the character, content and locations of the books, but are anti-LGBTQ in their tactics.
Gimelshteyn said that the book “All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M. Johnson, which critics claim is sexually explicit, was available in elementary schools.
The Sentinel has previously reported that the school district does not carry Kobabe’s or Johnson’s book in local elementary schools. They are, however, available in some middle school and high school libraries, which carry a variety of books about biology, psychology, human sexuality and development.
Many others, including parents and teachers, opposed the organization’s claims and attended the October board meeting showing support for the board and the LGBTQ+
community.
— Kristin Oh,
Sentinel Staff writer
Systemic discrimination in Cherry Creek middle schools; Parents demand action
Cherry Creek middle schools have been embroiled in multiple incidents of “systemic” discrimination against minority populations.
Each time, parents spoke up during public comment at the monthly board of education meetings. They wanted more action from district leadership and testified about their own children’s experiences with discrimination.
The district also said that students involved in the incidents were disciplined, but did not reveal details about it.
In April, multiple news outlets reported that students at Campus Middle School drew swastikas on their arms following a presentation on the Holocaust. According to a letter sent to parents from the principal, the school was planning a “No Place for Hate Awareness Week” and have connected with the Anti-Defamation League
During the May board of education meeting, Parent Rikki Mor said that since news of the incident broke, she has heard from a number of other Jewish families about antisemitic comments that their children have been on the receiving end of at school.
In September, a student at West Middle School posted a video on social media using a racial slur and said Black people should “not be alive right now.” The boy said that he hates the color of their skin.
The Rocky Mountain NAACP responded to the video two months later in November, saying that concerned parents have reached out because they were concerned about their childrens’ safety.
Cherry Creek responded on Nov. 15, the same day as the press conference. The district said that it was first made aware of the racist video in September and that it was created outside of a school setting by the student and shared in a group text.
Weeks after the press conference, a second video showing anti-Black rhetoric surfaced. This time, two Campus Middle School students repeatedly said the n-word. The students were allegedly drinking alcohol in the video.
Multiple parents spoke during the December board of education meeting to say that there is systemic racism in the district, and demanded that district leaders be more transparent about these incidents.
— Kristin Oh,
Sentinel Staff writer
Bomb threat made against Cherry Creek elementary schools and admin buildings
Law enforcement searched three elementary schools and two administrative buildings after someone claimed to have placed bombs there.
Sheriff deputies worked with other local police agencies to search the buildings. District personnel searched the interior of the buildings while the sheriff’s offices’ explosive detection canines searched the exterior. No explosives were found and the threat was determined to be unfounded.
The threats came a day after Libs of TikTok, which the Anti-Defamation League states is a popular anti-LGBTQ+ twitter account, published a blog post detailing their attempts to contact district leaders about “pornographic” books in elementary school libraries. The books named in the blog post are: “Gender Queer,” “This Book is Gay,” “Flame,” “Me, Earl and the Dying Girl,” “It’s Perfectly Normal,” “Blankets,” and “Fun Home.”
Lauren Snell, district spokesperson, said none of the books are in the district’s elementary school libraries.
The books “Me, Earl and the Dying Girl” and “It’s Perfectly Normal” are available in middle school libraries while the other books are available in high school libraries, school officials said.
— Kristin Oh,
Sentinel Staff writer
Israeli-Gaza war resolution conflict erupts at Aurora City Hall as hundreds protest
At a meeting marked by passionate outbursts from a crowd of hundreds as well as friction among city lawmakers, a majority of Aurora’s City Council passed a resolution Oct. 23 condemning Hamas’ recent attack on Israel.
Repeatedly, Mayor Mike Coffman used his gavel to try to drown out the raucous crowd that filled the council chambers to capacity. During one particularly heated exchange with other council members, the mayor pounded his gavel to interrupt progressive Councilmember Juan Marcano as Marcano was criticizing the resolution after being recognized to speak.
The resolution sponsored by conservative Councilmember Francoise Bergan denounced the invasion of Israel that Hamas launched from the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, during which Israeli civilians were massacred and kidnapped. Bergan’s resolution was silent, however, on the Palestinian death toll that has climbed since Israel began its bombing campaign targeting Gaza in response to Hamas’ attack.
On Oct. 23 — after listening to more than three hours of remarks from members of the public, most of whom accused the majority of council members of ignoring the grief of Aurora’s Palestinian community — progressives sharply criticized and conservatives defended the resolution condemning Hamas and expressing the city’s support for Israel.
“If you read the resolution, it has nothing negative about any Palestinian people,” Bergan said. “It was not about Muslim people, and it was not about Palestinian people. It was about a terrorist organization.”
She amended her resolution following public comment to include the statement that “the city recognizes and mourns the loss of all innocent lives caught in the fighting between the (Israeli Defense Forces) and Hamas,” an addition that the crowd heckled.
Marcano tried to bring forward an alternative resolution that would have acknowledged prejudice and violence against Jews as well as Palestinians and expressed the city’s support for both populations, but the conservative majority voted to keep the resolution off the Oct. 23 agenda.
After public comment, Marcano apologized to the crowd from the dais and said the council would have been better off voting on his resolution, since it was “the inclusive one that was developed with the input of directly-impacted community members.”
“The actions of an unrepresentative majority on this council have divided our city when they should be bringing us closer together, especially now,” Marcano said.
The council ultimately approved Bergan’s resolution amended to reference “all innocent lives caught in the fighting” by a vote of 6-4, with Alison Coombs, Marcano, Ruben Medina and Crystal Murillo opposed.
Supporters of Israel and Palestine spent hours addressing the council, explaining how the conflict in Gaza had touched their lives. Most of the speakers railed against Israel’s bombing of civilian targets in Gaza as well as the historical mistreatment of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Many wore Palestinian keffiyeh scarves and traditional Muslim clothing.
“I hope you feel our collective sorrow and anger, and sear it into your minds forever,” said Khalid Mhareb, a Palestinian-American resident of Aurora. “This resolution without a mention of Palestine will only contribute to the genocide of Palestinians, lead to a rise in Islamophobia and antisemitism alike, and alienate the Palestinian community who resides here in Aurora.”
Many Jews also spoke about how supporting Israel and condemning the violence perpetrated by Hamas were not equivalent to prejudice against Palestinians.
During the remarks by Scott Levin — the Anti-Defamation League’s regional director for the area including Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming — some in the crowd held up an Israeli flag and posters featuring pictures of kidnapped Israeli children.
“There is no one who’s come up with an answer of how to be able to get back those hostages, how to ensure that the death, the destruction, the barbaric activities don’t happen again. So on behalf of my community, I’d just say that, while we feel that pain, we also appreciate being recognized,” Levin said.
Supporters of Israel and Palestine mingled in the council chambers throughout the night, sometimes conversing and arguing about the Gaza conflict. While generally civil, the meeting was paused when a physical altercation broke out between Palestinian advocates and a man wearing an Israeli flag. Members of the crowd joined by Jurinsky separated the two groups.
A security officer outside of the council chambers also warned that bags would not be allowed in the meeting due to safety concerns. Several police vehicles were also parked around the Great Lawn outside of city hall with their red-and-blue lights activated by the conclusion of the public comment period.
Following the council’s vote in favor of Bergan’s resolution, most of the crowd left, chanting “shame on you” and “vote them out” in apparent reference to council members who supported the resolution.
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
Robin Niceta found guilty of fabricating child sex abuse allegation against Aurora council member
The ex-girlfriend of Aurora’s ex-police chief left an Arapahoe County courtroom in handcuffs Nov. 7 after being found guilty of framing an Aurora City Council member for child sex abuse.
It took a jury just over an hour to return their verdict that Robin Niceta was guilty of attempting to influence a public servant and making a false report of child abuse.
Prosecutors made the case that Niceta called an Arapahoe County hotline in January 2022 to falsely accuse Councilmember Danielle Jurinsky of molesting her own son as a way of punishing Jurinsky for criticizing then-police chief Vanessa Wilson on a talk radio show. Niceta and Wilson were in an intimate relationship at the time.
Niceta’s attorney, Frank Moya, insisted Wilson contacted the hotline herself using Niceta’s phone but called no witnesses and presented no evidence to support this claim.
Jurinsky said the guilty verdict was “a long time coming” and marked the end of an ordeal that she described as “nerve-wracking.”
“The woman is an absolute liar. And I’ve known from Day One that she was guilty. So this is amazing. I feel amazing,” Jurinsky said.
Prosecutors called additional witnesses on Nov. 7 to bolster their case that Niceta wanted revenge against Jurinsky and took steps to cover her tracks both before and after the crime.
Michael Garnsey, an Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office investigator, testified about digital evidence recovered from Niceta’s cell phones and laptop that pointed to her placing the call to the county’s child abuse hotline on Jan. 28, 2022, one day after Jurinsky went on a radio show to criticize Wilson.
Prosecutors also described an alleged plot by Niceta and her mother, Janice Dudley, to convince the court that Niceta was suffering from a brain tumor, with her defense attorneys arguing earlier this year that Niceta was too sick to travel for court appearances to Colorado from New Mexico, where her parents live.
The attorneys withdrew from her case once the authenticity of medical records describing Niceta’s cancer diagnosis were called into question. Niceta and Dudley were indicted in July for their roles in the brain cancer scheme.
“Robin Niceta knew how to get back at Danielle Jurinsky. She knew how to make her life miserable,” prosecutor Alma Staub said during closing arguments. “She went far too far, and her act of retaliation broke not one but two laws.”
Moya insisted that prosecutors had presented nothing beyond circumstantial evidence that Niceta made the call herself, saying it was a “real possibility” that Wilson called the hotline instead.
“What evidence do you have that it was (Niceta) who was on the phone, that it was her voice that was on the recording? Well, you have one witness, basically,” Moya said.
Niceta did not appear to react as the verdict was read, while Jurinsky clasped her hands in front of her face. Nov. 7 was the second and final day of the trial, which took place at the Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial.
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
Education association backed directors win seats in school board elections
All candidates who were endorsed and supported by the education associations won their election and re-election campaigns on the board of education.
In Cherry Creek School District, five people campaigned for three available seats.
Incumbent directors Anne Egan and Angela Garland won their re-election campaigns. During the district-held candidate forums, both indicated that they had the support of the Cherry Creek Education Association. Their competitors, Steve McKenna and Scott Graves, indicated that they were supported by the Colorado Parent Advocacy Network.
Ruthie Knowles, who ran unopposed and was elected to the board, was also endorsed by the Cherry Creek Education Association as well as her predecessor, Janice McDonald.
In Aurora Public Schools, five people campaigned for three at-large seats. Director Reinhard was the only candidate that ran for re-election.
She was joined by four other community members: Max Garcia, Maria Saucedo, Danielle Tomwing and Tiffany Tasker.
Reinhard, Tomwing and Tasker were supported by the Aurora Education Association. They were eventually elected to serve on the board.
— Kristin Oh,
Sentinel Staff writer
AURORA VOTES 2023: Democrats dwindle on city council as Coffman locks in second term
Democrat Juan Marcano conceded the race for Aurora mayor to incumbent Republican Mike Coffman on Nov. 9, joining the majority of this year’s progressive city council slate in defeat.
Nov. 7 was a banner day for Aurora Republicans, who cheered Colorado voters’ rejection of Proposition HH, and a bleak one for Democrats, who now risk becoming further marginalized on the council, as their minority shrinks from four seats on the legislative body to three.
Four current council members were on track to be re-elected, including Republicans Francoise Bergan and Curtis Gardner, filling the Ward VI seat and an at-large seat respectively; unaffiliated conservative Angela Lawson, representing Ward V; and Democrat Alison Coombs, who won the other at-large seat.
Marcano’s Ward IV council seat is set to be filled by incoming Republican Stephanie Hancock, while Coffman earned himself another four-year term.
The new majority will provide security as well as some additional powers to Republicans. A supermajority of seven council members and the mayor acting in concert can act unilaterally in ways that a simple majority can’t, such as by dismissing members of the Aurora Civil Service Commission or moving the city’s planning and annexation boundaries.
As for the four ballot questions that the city council sent to voters, Ballot Question 3A, sponsored by Coombs, is also failing, meaning instances of gendered language in the Aurora City Charter will likely be preserved. Meanwhile, 3B, 3C and 3D, which propose various modifications to police and fire personnel rules, are on track to pass.
Aurora’s step toward conservatism means the council will likely double down on work-first and sweep-based approaches to reducing homelessness, punitive strategies for discouraging crime, and tax cuts and regulatory rollbacks designed to benefit businesses.
Coffman has said his priorities for his second term as mayor will include improving public safety by investing in the city’s police department and continuing to support tougher criminal penalties. He has also spoken about wanting to encourage the development of affordable housing, particularly in lower-income neighborhoods.
By the evening of Nov. 9, all but one Democrat had announced the conclusion of their campaigns, with Jon Gray in Ward IV saying he would wait to speak with his campaign manager. Gray conceded the next day.
Marcano and Ward V candidate Chris Rhodes both said the local Democratic Party will need to evaluate what may drive progressive Aurorans to the polls before the next council election in 2025.
“Republicans have figured out that they can just keep fearmongering on crime, and that turns their people out. But we haven’t figured out what turns out our people. We need to figure out what Democratic voters actually care about so they show up and vote,” Rhodes said.
Coombs’ re-election was the one bright spot for Democrats emerging from this electoral cycle — she traded her Ward V seat for an at-large seat and had claimed more votes than any other candidate with the exception of Coffman by the end of the day Nov. 9.
For Republicans, the latest election was a sign that Aurora voters trust the council’s current conservative leadership and their approach to social issues such as public safety and homelessness.
Gardner, who beat out Democrat Thomas Mayes and fellow Republican Jono Scott for an at-large seat, said the vast majority of voters who he spoke with during his campaign expressed concern about crime.
“I think most people want the same things. They want safe schools, and they want to feel safe when they go to church, or when they go to work,” Gardner said. “For me and some of the other candidates, the focus was really on public safety. Certainly, both sides worked hard. But that difference in the messaging probably won out.”
Yard signs for Coffman advertised the mayor as “tough on crime,” and other conservative candidates also ran on platforms that included tougher penalties for criminals as part of their approach to public safety.
Hancock credited her own victory to having honest conversations with voters and letting people know that she plans on representing constituents regardless of their political background.
“When people get away from the partisan politics of these things, and look at the bread and butter issues that we face, it’s common across the board,” she said.
“I’m very gratified by the fact that I had support from Republicans, Democrats and unaffiliateds, which tells me that people want to see real change happen in our city. And I want to earn their trust by doing exactly what I said, which is to attack the issues that face our beloved city.”
— Max Levy,
Sentinel Staff writer
BRAINSTORM: ‘Invisible’ brain disorder patients finding solutions at Aurora institute
Growing up, Allison Reed thought the shooting pain she experienced whenever she laughed, coughed or sneezed was nothing to worry about.
The pain raced down her neck and back. Since no one could explain the symptoms, she tried her best to shrug them off.
“You kind of think to yourself, maybe it’s normal,” Reed said. “Maybe everybody feels this level of pain when they’re coughing or laughing.”
In 2013, the Longmont mother of three suffered a head injury, and began experiencing migraine headaches that were not as easy to ignore.
An MRI of her injury showed that she also had a Chiari malformation — a developmental disorder that causes part of the brain to protrude out of the gap between the skull and the spine — but since her doctors were unfamiliar with the problems caused by the condition, they did not draw a connection at the time between Reed’s headaches and her Chiari.
Then, in 2022, Reed experienced two concussions back-to-back, and the once-occasional migraines turned into a nonstop barrage of debilitating neurological symptoms.
She said it was ultimately social media that led her to information about the effects of Chiari malformations and the Aurora practice of neurosurgeon Colin Buchanan, who leads the Colorado Chiari Institute at the Medical Center of Aurora.
Buchanan is one of a small number of surgeons in the region who specializes in treating Chiari malformations, and the Colorado Chiari Institute is similarly unique for its focus on a brain disorder that is widely known but not well understood by many medical practitioners.
Buchanan operated on Reed in February, removing one of her spinal vertebrae and inserting a metal plate in a procedure known as Chiari decompression surgery. Since then, Reed said her headaches and other symptoms have only improved.
“It’s completely changed my life. I’m able to go back out and be active again. I’m able to go hiking. I’m able to keep up with my kids. And that’s all because he knew how to treat this,” Reed said.
Buchanan, who was on track to perform between 50 and 75 decompression surgeries this year, said the Aurora institute is one of a small handful of facilities of its kind in the United States.
“What we’re trying to do is offer expertise in a condition that affects more people than we think,” he said. “And we’re trying to take an approach that’s comprehensive and not just ruling people in or out for surgery. We’re trying to help guide people through this process, and educate them, and help them determine a treatment plan that makes sense for them.”
He said the treatment options presented to patients depend on the presence of fluid-filled cysts called syrinxes on the spinal cord, which are caused by the blockage of spinal fluid. For patients with a syrinx, Buchanan said he believes there “isn’t an acceptable alternative” to surgery.
After years of dealing with symptoms that had forced her to quit her job and impacted her ability to be present with her children, Reed said she was relieved when Buchanan recommended decompression surgery.
“I felt like I won the lotto when he told me that I got to have brain surgery, which I know sounds crazy, but that’s where I was at,” Reed said.
Another Colorado Chiari Institute patient, Hannah Jane, first went to the emergency room in 2018 when she began experiencing symptoms of vertigo. The doctors there discharged her, but she said her illness only progressed, growing to encompass “pretty much every single symptom Chiari has to offer.”
The symptoms also impacted her ability to work as a fashion designer. Jane learned to sew at age 8 and turned her love of clothing and fashion into a career and artistic outlet as an adult. She said Chiari turned the work that she was passionate about into an uphill battle.
“I was so fed up with my life. I had no
life,” she said. “I was doing something I loved, but I didn’t feel good doing it.”
In 2020, a physician finally suggested she seek care through the Colorado Chiari Institute. Since her surgery in June 2021, Jane’s symptoms have improved.
“And I felt like I had a space that was safe,” Jane said. “One of the hardest things in the medical industry, especially with an invisible illness, is trying to find people who understand exactly what you’re going through.”
Buchanan said he sees the Colorado Chiari Institute as a vehicle for supporting Chiari patients, not only by offering treatment but also by providing a tangible explanation for symptoms that can change the course of patients’ lives.
“It’s often quite a relief for them to hear that there’s a diagnosis that explains what they’ve been going through,” he said. “It’s pretty powerful. They feel validated.”
Aurora paramedics were convicted in Elijah McClain’s death
Two Aurora paramedics were convicted Dec. 22 for giving a fatal overdose of the sedative ketamine to Elijah McClain in 2019 — a jury verdict that experts said could have a chilling effect on first responders around the country.
The case involving the 23-year-old Black man’s death was the first among several recent criminal prosecutions against medical first responders to reach trial, potentially setting the bar for prosecutors for future cases.
It also was the last of three trials against police and paramedics charged in the death of McClain, whom officers stopped following a suspicious person complaint. He was injected with the sedative after being forcibly restrained. The case received little attention until protests over the 2020 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
An Aurora police officer was convicted of homicide and third degree assault earlier this year, while two other officers were acquitted.
The jury last week found Aurora Fire Rescue paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec guilty of criminally negligent homicide following a weekslong trial in state district court. They could face years in prison at sentencing.
The jury also found Cichuniec guilty on one of two second-degree assault charges, which brings the possibility of an enhanced prison sentence and required that he be taken into immediate custody. Cooper was found not guilty on the assault charges and was not taken into custody.
McClain’s mother, Sheneen, raised her fist in the air following the verdict. “We did it! We did it! We did it!” she said as she walked away from the courthouse.
Cichuniec’s wife had her head bowed as deputies handcuffed him. Cooper’s wife sobbed alongside her.
Neither the paramedics nor their attorneys spoke outside court. They did not immediately respond to emails and telephone messages from The Associated Press seeking comment.
The outcome could set a precedent for how emergency personnel respond to situations with people in police custody, said University of Miami criminologist Alex Piquero.
“Imagine if you’re a paramedic,” Piquero said. “They could be hesitant. They could say, ‘I’m not going to do anything’ or ‘I’m going to do less. I don’t want to be found guilty.'”
The International Association of Fire Fighters said in a statement that in pursuing the charges, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser had criminalized split-second medical decisions and set “a dangerous, chilling precedent for pre-hospital care.”
Weiser, who convened the grand jury that indicted the first responders, said he was satisfied with the verdict.
“We remain confident that bringing these cases forward was the right thing to do for justice for Elijah McClain and for healing in the Aurora community,” he said outside court.
The city of Aurora said after the verdict that the two paramedics were fired following their convictions.
The verdict was announced after two days of deliberations. When jurors told the judge that afternoon they were stuck on one of the charges, the judge told them to keep trying to reach a verdict.
Police stopped McClain while he was walking home from a convenience store on Aug. 24, 2019, following a suspicious person complaint. After an officer said McClain reached for an officer’s gun — a claim disputed by prosecutors — another officer put him in a neck hold that rendered him temporarily unconscious. Officers also pinned down McClain before Cooper injected him with an overdose of ketamine. Cichuniec was the senior officer and said it was his decision to use ketamine.
Prosecutors said the paramedics did not conduct basic medical checks of McClain, such as taking his pulse, before giving him the ketamine. The dose was too much for someone of his size — 140 pounds, experts testified. Prosecutors say they also did not monitor McClain immediately after giving him the sedative but instead left him lying on the ground, making it harder to breathe.
McClain’s pleading words captured on police body camera video, “I’m an introvert and I’m different,” struck a chord with protesters and people around the country.
In a statement released prior to the verdict, McClain’s mother said that everyone present during the police stop of her son displayed a lack of humanity.
“They can not blame their job training for their indifference to evil or their participation in an evil action,” McClain wrote. “That is completely on them. May all of their souls rot in hell when their time comes.”
Defense attorneys argued that the paramedics followed their training in giving ketamine to McClain after diagnosing him with ” excited delirium,” a disputed condition some say is unscientific and has been used to justify excessive force.
In the Colorado case, the prosecution said Cooper lied to investigators to try to cover up his actions, telling detectives that McClain was actively resisting when he decided to inject McClain with ketamine, even though the body camera showed McClain lying on the ground unconscious. It also disputed Cooper’s claim that McClain tried to get away from police holding him down — and that he took McClain’s pulse as he bent down to give him the shot of ketamine, which others testified they did not see.
“He’s trying to cover up the recklessness of his conduct,” Senior Assistant Attorney General Jason Slothouber told jurors in closing statements.
Cichuniec, who testified along with Cooper this week, said paramedics were trained that they had to work quickly to treat excited delirium with ketamine and said they were told numerous times that it was a safe, effective drug and were not warned about the possibility of it killing anyone.
Colorado now tells paramedics not to give ketamine to people suspected of having the controversial condition, which has symptoms including increased strength and has been associated with racial bias against Black men.
When the police stopped McClain, a massage therapist, he was listening to music and wearing a mask that covered most of his face because he had a blood circulation disorder. The police stop quickly became physical after McClain, seemingly caught off guard, asked to be left alone. He had not been accused of committing any crime.
The case’s prominence means the specter of criminal charges and accompanying lawsuits over emergency care will be a concern for paramedics going forward, said Arizona State University law professor James G. Hodge, Jr.
It could prompt them to better document what police tell them about people needing treatment and to ask doctors to sign off before paramedics use life-saving but potentially harmful treatments on patients, he said.
“The national coverage of the cases against these paramedics unquestionably influences practices in real-time,” Hodge said.
— Sentinel and Associated Press writers