Officers might have received exactly what they wanted with the decision to name Pete Carey as the interim chief of the Colorado Springs Police Department.

While Pete Tomitsch, president of the Police Protective Association, talked about the 2012 budget for a recent article, he offered a few thoughts on the mayor’s decision to name Carey head of the PD.

In short, the decision went over well.

“I think he was a very popular choice as far as the rank and file,” Tomitsch said. “I think both DC’s (deputy chiefs) would have been a very good choice.”

“What we need right now is just someone to stabilize things,” he continued. “There’s a lot of angst and nervousness… and in the time being I think Pete Carey is a great choice because he’s very supportive of the officers.”

Carey was named the interim police chief roughly a week after outgoing Chief Richard Myers announced his retirement on Oct. 3.

Carey started his law enforcement career with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in 1982, but switched to the Police Department two years later. He’s stayed with the department ever since, and was named its deputy chief in 2008. Read more about him here.

It’s anyone’s guess, though, as to who will be the next police chief. A nation-wide search is underway, but that could take a few months.

For his part, Tomitsch said Carey and fellow deputy chief Rod Walker should be in the running. But he also said he’d be open to someone from outside the department being named to the top post.

“He’s (Carey) very well trusted throughout the ranks,” Carey said. “And he’s a cop’s cop that came up through the ranks — as well as Rod Walker — and I hope both of them are considered for the permanent position.

Ever wonder what was said during Monday’s meeting between Colorado Springs police and the Occupy Colorado Springs protesters?

Here you go.

One of the protesters posted a video of Monday’s meeting on YouTube and Colorado Springs police have released an audio recording, offering a glimpse of where each side stands on the legality of the protests.

Occupy Colorado Springs protesters began two weeks ago, but they’ve recently attracted the attention of police, who claim the protesters could face arrest for violating the city’s ordinance banning camping on public property, along with violating city park hours.

Jason Warf, of Manitou Springs, did most of the talking — at one point rehashing an argument repeated often by protesters.

“We’re fighting for 99 percent of our population,” Warf said. “We’re all here in the same economy, we all see what’s happening. I don’t know what else to say other than we want to work with you.”

Warf also argued that the law banning camping didn’t apply to the protesters.

“It’s an occupation, it’s not camping and it’s not living there — it’s cut and dry.”

But police said they have to enforce city ordinances fairly among all residents — meaning that Occupy Colorado Springs participants could face arrest for putting up tents and violating park hours.

“They (the city attorneys) do not, in their opinion, differentiate between an expression of your First Amendment rights in order to basically occupy that area any different than it would be for somebody just going down — a homeless person — and camping in the park,” said Colorado Springs police Lt. Pat Rigdon. “They do not make that distinction.”

“What their recommendation to us is that we equally enforce the law to all people.”

The protesters are: Manitou Springs resident Jason Warf, who is shown with brown hair and a goatee, does most of the talking for the protesters. He’s joined by Kristie Wheeler and Hossein Forouzandeh, both of whom live in Colorado Springs.

Representing the Colorado Springs Police Department were Sgt. Steve Noblitt, police spokesman, as well as Commander Tish Olszewski, Lt. Brian Ritz, Rigdon, and Barbara Miller, the department’s incoming spokeswoman.

Ever wonder how often firefighters are asked to tend to a heart attack patient or rush into burning buildings?

Now you’ll be able to find out.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department on Monday began offering a new set of statistics by tweeting out what types of calls firefighters responded to the previous day.

On Sunday, for example, Colorado Springs firefighters were called out of their stations 152 times.

Of those calls:

• 67 percent were medical calls
• 8 percent were traffic crashes that required medical attention or freeing someone who was trapped
• 7 percent were fire-related
• 1 of the calls was to tend to a hazardous material
• 17 percent were for other service calls

Want to follow along yourself? Just go to Twitter (www.twitter.com) and search for @CSFDPIO.

Jury deliberations have begun in a wrongful death lawsuit filed on behalf of a 3-year-old girl whose meth-addicted father was fatally shot through the heart while trespassing at a Colorado Springs auto lot.

The weeklong trial concluded Wednesday morning, with attorneys framing the predawn shooting of Robert J. Fox either as a tragic accident or a conspiracy by three men to ambush and kill in defense of property.

Fox, 20, was slain in the early morning hours of April 19, 2009, after he and an accomplice scaled a fence to get inside Southwest Auto Sales, 2444 Platte Place, in the city’s Knob Hill neighborhood.

In his closing argument, defense attorney John P. Craver said attorneys suing on behalf of Fox’s daughter, Sidney, failed to prove that his clients intentionally killed anyone.

Craver said auto lot owner Jovan Milanovic only wanted to recover keys to client’s automobiles that had been stolen from the business amid a string of burglaries in which someone also took keys to buildings on the property and stole car stereos.

According to his testimony, Milanovic, 32, tripped and dropped his Heckler & Koch rifle, which went off and hit Fox, who was standing in a small shed. An accomplice took off running, scrambled over a car and jumped a fence and got away.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this was not willful and deliberate,” Craver said. “This was an effort to protect themselves and what was theirs.”

Craver added: “Not even Annie Oakley, in the middle of the night, could shoot inside a 6-by-9-foot shed and shoot somebody through the heart.”

Plaintiffs’ attorneys dismissed the defense as a “ruse” designed to throw jurors off the scent of a conspiracy in which Milanovic, his father Ljuban Milanovic, and his brother-in-law Srdjan Novak lay in wait and attacked at their first opportunity.

Fox, Rector said, was hiding and never posed a threat. After lifting the semiautomatic rifle from an evidence box, Rector raised the weapon to his shoulder and aimed at an unoccupied witness stand, saying, “That’s not a shed — it’s a box, and he’s caught in the position where he can’t move.”

Later, Rector turned toward Milanovic and boomed: “How good does the stereo have to be, huh, to take the life of a man?”

Milanovic and both his relatives are named in the suit, which seeks compensation for Fox’s daughter, including punitive damages.

Fox was denied the chance to kick his methamphetamine habit, and could have earned between $500,000 and $800,000 during the course of his lifetime, either as a diesel mechanic or a recruiter for his adoptive father’s insurance brokerage, according to Rector and attorney Jennifer Stock of Colorado Springs.

The two-year-old case revolves around the fuzzy limits of self-defense laws in Colorado, which allow deadly force only under a “reasonable belief” that someone faces the imminent risk of serious injury or death.

Colorado’s so-called Make My Day law, which offers a lower standard, applies to someone’s dwelling, not a business, and the judge overseeing the trial has instructed the jury that property rights are not a valid defense.

Milanovic and his father each told a Colorado Springs police officer a week before Fox’s death they would shoot any burglars who returned, police testified. Police said the men handed over a pistol to officers who responded to the shooting but concealed the rifle behind a pile of tools in the trunk of a car.

Fox’s accomplice, Brian Corbin, told the jury that he saw two men charge out of a building shouting, “We’re gonna get you,” and that someone fired four shots, one of which passed Corbin’s body as he fled.

Despite those circumstances, the 4^th Judicial District Attorney’s Office declined to file charges and instead sent the case to a grand jury, which essentially cleared the men of wrongdoing when it declined to return an indictment.

District Attorney Dan May said grand jurors were well-suited to apply a “community conscience” to the case.

UPDATE:  Court officials say Nozolino will be transported in time for the hearing.

“We just got the final word maybe an hour ago,” said Kathy Livornese, court operations specialist in the 4th Judicial District.

The original, and for our purposes, irrelevant, blog item is below

A chicken pox quarantine at the El Paso County jail will keep Bruce Nozolino from making a Friday appearance in 4th Judicial District Court, said defense attorney Josh Tolini.

Nozolino was due to appear at a 9 a.m. preliminary hearing on a charge of perjury, a relatively minor count against a man accused of murder and two attempted murders that grew out of a divorce case billed as one of the biggest and nastiest in El Paso County history.

According to Tolini, Nozolino will be locked down with the rest of his unit at the jail to prevent the pox from spreading.

It’s unclear whether Nozolino has the illness.

El Paso County sheriff’s spokeswoman Lt. Lari Sevene said in an e-mail she is preparing a statement about the quarantine. The scale of the outbreak is unclear.

Fourth Judicial District Administrator Mary Perry said she wasn’t aware of any cancellations Friday afternoon. Jeff Lindsey, the prosecutor overseeing the Nozolino case, said he hadn’t been notified, either.

Details of the perjury charge against Nozolino have been sealed in an arrest affidavit. Tolini is representing Nozolino on the the perjury count and charges related to witness tampering and a jail fight. The Colorado Public Defender’s Office is overseeing charges related to the slaying and attempted killings of a divorce lawyer and judge.

Check here for more on this story.

-

Lance Benzel

The Gazette

Colorado Springs

lance.benzel@gazette.com

Joshua Carrier

Online commentors and others have been wondering why Colorado Springs police officer Joshua Carrier is on paid leave instead of unpaid leave since he was arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting several children.

Police spokesman Sgt. Steve Noblitt said in a press release Thursday, “If formal charges are filed by the El Paso County District Attorney’s Office, CSPD will closely follow Civil Service rules and will begin the process to suspend Carrier without pay.”

Noblitt references Rule 8 of the Civil Service manual for further explanation.

Click here for a link to the Civil Service manual. Rule 8 can be found on Page 19 of the PDF document.

Carrier was rearrested Thursday on the sexual assault charges. (Click here for The Gazette’s report).

The seven-year police veteran had been arrested May 11 when police suspected Carrier of buying child pornography.

Carrier is being held in the El Paso County jail on $500,000 bond. He had his first appearance in court Tuesday and will appear again May 31 at 8:30 a.m.

TELLER COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT
WEEKLY INCIDENT REPORT

APRIL 3, 2011

Stacey Camille Martinez, date of birth May 30, 1974 of Florissant, Colorado was arrested for driving under restraint. Bond of $1,000.

APRIL 4, 2011

Millicent Jean Mann-Harding, date of birth June 29, 1954 of Florissant, Colorado was served and released on the charge of driving under restraint (denied) and speeding.

APRIL 5, 2011

Gregory Lee Howell, date of birth March 29, 1959 of Florissant, Colorado was arrested for driving under restraint (revocation) and compulsory insurance. Bond $13,000.

APRIL 6, 2011

Mary Louise Fagan, date of birth October 7, 1943 of Florissant, Colorado was served and released on the charge of driving under the influence of drugs and careless driving.

Gregory James Bricker, date of birth October 22, 1962 of Valrico, Florida was arrested for driving under the influence, driving with excessive alcohol content and speed regulations. Bond was set at $1,000.

Ryan Michael Harris, date of birth May 15, 1983 of Cripple Creek, Colorado was served and released on the charge of driving while ability impaired by alcohol and traffic control device (failure to stop at a posted stop sign).

Ruth Ellen Grainger, date of birth August 12, 1986 of Victor, Colorado was arrested for driving while ability impaired and speeding. Bond $800.

APRIL 7, 2011

Richard E. Saffold, date of birth April 8, 1959 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of speeding and reckless driving. Bond $100.

Justin Andrew Lutton, date of birth December 13, 1987 of Cripple Creek, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to comply on an original charge of indecent exposure. Bond set at $10,000.

Alejandro Arroyo Gonzalez, date of birth April 25, 1961 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to comply on an original charge of driving under the influence. Bond set at $5,000.

APRIL 9, 2011

Brian Lee Wilcox, date of birth December 3, 1990 of Woodland Park, Colorado was summoned and released for driving under the influence of alcohol, eluding a police officer, reckless driving, speeding, illegal possession or consumption of ethyl alcohol by an underage person, safety belt and driving with excessive alcohol content.

Larry E. Bentley, date of birth September 3, 1975 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving while ability impaired. Bond set at $1,000.

Rosmelvin Garcia-Hernandez, date of birth March 8, 1968 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving under restraint, expired license plates and registration violation (fictitious plate). Bond $800.

APRIL 10, 2011

Johnathan Charles Read, date of birth April 4, 1982 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of possession of less than one ounce of marijuana. Bond $100.

APRIL 11, 2011

Danny Ellis, date of birth August 1, 1976 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for theft. Bond was set at $50,000.

APRIL 12, 2011

Suzanne Renee Vasquez, date of birth June 6, 1969 of Golden, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving without a driver’s license. Bond $800.

Julie R. Webb, date of birth May 18, 1978 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of speeding and driving under restraint. Bond was $800.

APRIL 15, 2011

Karla Lynn Peterson, date of birth July 20, 1971 of Woodland Park, Colorado was arrested for third degree assault and crimes against an at-risk adult. Bond set at $1,000.

Victorio Talamantes-Espino, date of birth November 21, 1986 of Florissant, Colorado was arrested for domestic violence, violation of a protection order and harassment. Bond of $2,000.

Jesse L.Tabron, date of birth May 3, 1937 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested for failure to appear on original charges of speeding and driving under restraint. Bond of $800.

Christopher William Hubbard, date of birth July 22, 1983 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear for a scheduled court date. Bond of $1,000.

APRIL 16, 2011

Karla Lynn Peterson, date of birth July 20, 1971 of Woodland Park, Colorado was arrested for criminal mischief and false reporting to authorities. Bond of $500.

Amy Lee Bell, date of birth November 1, 1982 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was served and released on the charge of driving under revocation (suspended) and speeding.

APRIL 17, 2011

Andrew Aguirre, date of birth April 26, 1984 of Pueblo, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving under the influence, driving under the influence per se and turning without signaling. Bond $2,000.

APRIL 18, 2011

Alexandria Krystal Vigil, date of birth January 22, 1986 of Pueblo, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to comply on an original charge of possession of a schedule 3 controlled substance. Bond $1,000.

APRIL 19, 2011

Jerry W. Young, date of birth May 25, 1964 of Fountain, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving without a driver’s license. Bond of $500.

Dennis Lee Griffin, date of birth July 14, 1989 of Woodland Park, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to comply on an original charge of false information to a pawnbroker. Bond was set at $1,000.

APRIL 20, 2011

David A. Stanton, date of birth August 15, 1966 of Colorado Springs, Colorado, while incarcerated, was served with a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of operating a vehicle without insurance. Bond $300.

Maria Irene Atencio, date of birth December 18, 1986 of Cripple Creek, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of domestic violence and harassment. Bond was $1,000.

Luke Vallejos was a bit surprised Sunday evening when he walked up on a man laying by the side of his train.

The man had just been hit by the lumbering locomotive. And he was talking.

“He was actually on his cell phone calling 911,” Vallejos said.

Colorado Springs police are investigating how the man was hit shortly before 8 p.m. Sunday just east of the intersection of Sierra Madre Street and Fountain Boulevard.

Vallejos said he saw the man walking across the train tracks when he rounded the corner with his black and orange train. The man then turned his back to the train and kept walking along the tracks.

Vallejos “honked a few times thinking he’d get out of the way and heard the thump,” he said. He slammed on the brakes and stepped out of the train to find the man laying in bushes to the south of the tracks.

The man, whose name was not released, was taken to a nearby hospital. The man’s condition is not known, though he had no visible injuries, said Colorado Springs police Sgt. Tim Hogan.

Liquid was found spattered across the front left side of the train, and a bottle of alcohol was found in the man’s backpack, Hogan said.

Vallejos said he hit a car before, but never a person.

“Usually people mess around with us,” Vallejos said. “I thought he would step off at the last second.”

Every week, we receive a rundown of crimes in Teller County.  Barking dogs.  Minor drug busts.  Drunken fights. You know: the usual. Generally, we review them for potential stories, and forget them if there’s nothing that looks out of the ordinary.  But, hey, why not share?

TELLER COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT

WEEKLY INCIDENT REPORT

Date of Submission: Thursday, April 7, 2011

MARCH 25, 2011

Sierra Christian Wiedman, date of birth January 23, 1991 of Cripple Creek, Colorado was served and released on the charge of assault in the third degree.

MARCH 27, 2011

Alfredo Monjaraz-Lugo, date of birth September 11, 1979 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was served and released on the charge of driving without a valid driver’s license and impeding traffic.

MARCH 29, 2011

Adelia Oliva, date of birth October 25, 1962 of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina was arrested on a failure to appear warrant.  Bond was set at $250.

MARCH 31, 2011

Eduardo Mendoza-Munoz, date of birth September 11, 1975 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested for driving under revocation and failure to dim to approaching vehicles.  Bond was set at $2,000.

Sabas R. Perez, date of birth January 10, 1962 of Fountain, Colorado was arrested on two warrants; first warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving under the influence, D.U.I. per se, driving without a driver’s license, turning improperly and driving under restraint, bond $1,000 and the second warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of improper head lamp equipment and driving under restraint, bond $1,000.

Nicolette Marie Jones, date of birth February 9, 1973 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of theft.  Bond $300.

Crystal Nichole Lucas, date of birth July 29, 1980 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving without a driver’s license.  Bond $500.

APRIL 1, 2011

Deborah L. Johnson, date of birth March 17, 1962 of Brighton, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear in court for a child support hearing.  Bond was set at $575.

APRIL 3, 2011

Matthew Andrais DeFranco, date of birth August 31, 1982 of Woodland Park, Colorado was arrested for criminal impersonation and harassment, bond $1,000.  Mr. DeFranco was also arrested on a no bond parole hold warrant out of Texas.

Samantha Sztamenits, date of birth October 7, 1983 of Woodland Park, Colorado was arrested for complicity and harassment.  Bond set at $1,000.

Brian Keith Roberson, date of birth November 19, 1959 of Florissant, Colorado was arrested for domestic violence and criminal mischief.  Bond set at $2,000.

APRIL 4, 2011

Trenton Smith, date of birth October 19, 1988 of Divide, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving under restraint and speeding.  Bond was $650.

Jacob Anthony Peterson, date of birth July 4, 1991 of Florissant, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to comply on an original charge of operating a vehicle/vessel without a permit.  Bond of $50.

Donn Richard Philpot, date of birth April 21, 1987 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of prohibited use of a weapon.  Bond was $1,000.

APRIL 5, 2011

Darrel Lee Lange, date of birth June 29, 1974 of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving while ability impaired.  Bond $500.

Matthew Ray Thompson, date of birth August 10, 1982 of Cripple Creek, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for felony theft, thirty two counts of identity theft and thirty two counts of unauthorized use of a financial transaction device.  bond set at $1,000.

APRIL 6, 2011

Robert Eugene Morgan, date of birth October 22, 1981 of Woodland Park, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of driving without a driver’s license.  Bond $400.

APRIL 7, 2011

Dana Kathryn Dilaura, date of birth July 17, 1982 of Pueblo, Colorado was arrested on a warrant for failure to comply on an original charge of forgery.  Bond set at $5,000.