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Colorado State Patrol vehicles hit four times during weekend by motorists in wintry conditions
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gazette.com, State

Colorado State Patrol vehicles hit four times during weekend by motorists in wintry conditions

By O’Dell Isaac | The Gazette Following a series of weekend crashes involving Colorado State Patrol troopers, the state law enforcement agency is cautioning motorists to drive more carefully, particularly in slick, icy road conditions. Only one person was injured, but multiple CSP vehicles sustained extensive damage, and officials say the motorists involved were driving too fast for the wintry conditions. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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Marijuana repeal off Colorado Springs’ ballot after state Supreme Court stays out of the weeds
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gazette.com, Local

Marijuana repeal off Colorado Springs’ ballot after state Supreme Court stays out of the weeds

By Brennen Kauffman | The Gazette Colorado Springs has agreed to remove the ballot question asking voters to repeal the city's new recreational marijuana ordinance, leaving the industry in place within the city limits for the first time. El Paso County District Court Judge Hilary Gurney issued an order Thursday afternoon that the city "take all actions necessary to ensure that the Referred Ballot Question does not appear on ballots to avoid disenfranchising and confusing the electorate." READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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Colorado Springs approves long-debated City Council e-bike policy
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gazette.com, Local

Colorado Springs approves long-debated City Council e-bike policy

By Seth Boster | The Gazette The Colorado Springs City Council on Tuesday voted 6-3 to expand electric bike access across parks and open spaces after another long discussion that represented the culmination of a yearslong debate. After hearing dozens of residents supporting and opposing the move, Parks Department Director Britt Haley told council members: "We've been working on a policy since 2018 because we need this in some format." READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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‘There’s lots and lots of flu’ cases, hospitalizations in Colorado
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gazette.com, Local

‘There’s lots and lots of flu’ cases, hospitalizations in Colorado

By Debbie Kelley | The Gazette If you’ve heard something’s going around, it’s not just a rumor. Influenza A, also known as the flu, is “everywhere,” says Dr. Michelle Barron, senior medical director of infection prevention and control for UCHealth, one of Colorado’s major hospital and health systems. “Flu is definitely the predominant pathogen we’re seeing in terms of hospitalizations and numbers of cases overall,” she said. “There’s lots and lots of flu.” READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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Brauchler: Probation for child rape in Colorado? Yes, really
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Commentary, gazette.com

Brauchler: Probation for child rape in Colorado? Yes, really

By George Brauchler | Commentary, The Gazette In Colorado, a man who rapes a child — as long as it is just once — can get probation. As in, walk right out of the courtroom after conviction. But it is much worse than that. If that same man goes on to rape nine other children, as long as he only rapes them each once, that child rapist is also eligible for probation. That statement remains true even if the child rapist is a teacher, member of clergy, sports coach or any other person in a position of trust in relation to those children. That outcome should never happen again. Colorado’s offender-friendly Legislature has shown no interest in providing the promise of prison for child rapists. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in commentary ...
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Speed cameras coming to Colorado roadways amid doubling of construction-zone deaths in 2024
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Speed cameras coming to Colorado roadways amid doubling of construction-zone deaths in 2024

By Mackenzie Bodell | The Gazette The state’s latest effort to crack down on speeding and reduce traffic fatalities comes amid an alarming increase in construction-zone deaths, which nearly doubled in 2024. The Colorado Department of Transportation released preliminary data from 2024 that reflects a roughly 5% decrease in traffic fatalities overall compared to 2023. Continued efforts by CDOT and the Colorado State Patrol hope to further reduce the number of traffic-related fatalities and serious injuries by 22.5% by 2027, as part of Gov. Jared Polis’ overall safety goal for Colorado. Statewide construction-zone deaths totaled 31 in 2024, up 94% from the previous year, which saw 16. In El Paso County alone, 13 construction-zone deaths were reported. Four of those fatalities were in...
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Sandhill cranes making much-anticipated return to San Luis Valley
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gazette.com, Local

Sandhill cranes making much-anticipated return to San Luis Valley

By Seth Boster | The Gazette One of Colorado's most anticipated natural phenomena is about to get underway. Sandhill cranes start flying into the San Luis Valley this month for their annual stopover. The majestic birds — long-legged with 6-foot wingspans, guttural songs and dances beloved by legions of admirers — arrive from wintering nests in the southwest U.S. and Mexico. En route to the northern Rockies and plains, tens of thousands of cranes are known to "spring break" in the barley fields and wetlands spanning this southern Colorado valley framed by the Sangre de Cristo peaks. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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So. Colorado sheriffs, officials support SB047, allowing law enforcement to work with ICE
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gazette.com, Local

So. Colorado sheriffs, officials support SB047, allowing law enforcement to work with ICE

By O’Dell Isaac | The Gazette A group of Colorado law enforcement and elected officials on Monday spoke in support of upcoming legislation that would increase their ability to work with the Department of Immigration Control and Enforcement in the prosecution of violent criminals living in the U.S. illegally. El Paso County Sheriff Joe Roybal, Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell and U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank held a news conference at the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office as part of an effort to galvanize public support for Senate Bill 25-047, Enforcement of Federal Immigration Law, which would repeal existing Colorado immigration laws that Roybal called “anti-public safety.” READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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Apartment construction in Colorado Springs slowed to lowest in a decade in 2024
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gazette.com, Local

Apartment construction in Colorado Springs slowed to lowest in a decade in 2024

By WAYNE HEILMAN  | The Gazette The red-hot pace of Colorado Springs-area apartment construction turned ice cold last year. From 2019 to 2023, multifamily developers pulled permits to build just over 14,000 apartments in the Springs and surrounding El Paso County — one of the hottest stretches of local apartment construction in recent memory that averaged a little more than 2,800 units a year, according to recent and historical Pikes Peak Regional Building Department figures. Developers, however, did an about-face in 2024 and took out permits to build just 838 apartments — a nearly two-thirds drop when compared with the previous year and the fewest since 2015. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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New El Paso County coroner taking a ‘behind the scenes’ role in contrast to predecessor
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gazette.com, Local

New El Paso County coroner taking a ‘behind the scenes’ role in contrast to predecessor

By Savannah Eller | The Gazette Dr. Emily Russell-Kinsley didn’t always want to be a forensic pathologist, but unlike most middle schoolers, she did know what the title meant. Growing up in an Oklahoma family of physicians, she was a grade-school fan of the popular series of crime novels by Patricia Cornwell following Virginia medical examiner Kay Scarpetta. Scarpetta, victim of her main-character status, is constantly in the crosshairs of fictional bad guys. That kind of attention, even more than the duties entailed by the job, put Russell-Kinsley off the profession as a child. She has always been a self-described behind-the-scenes person. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE
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