Denver, CO
Jefferson County Sheriff's Office issues 'fact check' about ICE Denver social media post
DENVER — The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) took to social media on Thursday to “fact check” a recent post by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in Denver.
On Wednesday afternoon, ICE Denver posted to X, asking the community for help in locating Jose Lopez-Hidalgo, 32. The agency said Lopez-Hidalgo was “released from Jefferson County without being turned over to ICE.”
Court records show Lopez-Hidalgo was arrested on Saturday for driving under the influence (misdemeanor), driving under the influence per se (misdemeanor) and careless driving resulting in injury (traffic offense misdemeanor). He posted a $5,000 personal recognizance (PR) bond on Monday.
ICE is asking for the community’s assistance in locating Jose Lopez-Hidalgo, 32, an alien from Honduras who was released from Jefferson County without being turned over to ICE. Do not approach if seen, instead report all info to ICE at 1-866-347-2423. All tips remain confidential pic.twitter.com/jOttsb6Std
— ICE Denver (@ERODenver) June 18, 2025
Nearly 24 hours later, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office responded with a post of its own.
In the “fact check,” the sheriff’s office said it is not allowed to “directly turn over an inmate to any law enforcement agency without a judicially authorized warrant,” citing Colorado law.
Local law enforcement agencies are limited in their interactions with ICE under state law. In January, Denver7 Investigates spoke with several sheriff’s offices in the Denver metro area, including Jefferson County, to ask about their policies regarding detainers. A detainer is a request for the sheriff’s office to either notify ICE of the inmate’s release or hold the inmate for up to an additional 48 hours.
The Denver Sheriff’s Department (DSD) notifies ICE ahead of an inmate’s release when it receives a request from ICE. The department said it notifies ICE via fax, which is ICE’s requirement, according to a DSD spokesperson.
In both Jefferson and Douglas counties, the sheriff’s offices notify ICE anytime a foreign-born inmate is booked into the jail. Then, upon ICE’s request, the sheriff’s offices will notify the federal agency when an inmate is beginning the release process.
In all of these cases, it is up to ICE to show up and take the individual into federal custody after they have been released from a local agency’s custody.
- Read the full report from our Denver7 Investigates team below
Denver7 Investigates
Denver7 Investigates: How CO law enforcement agencies respond to ICE detainers
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said in its post that it received an order to release Lopez-Hidalgo at 11:52 a.m. According to the sheriff’s office, an inmate must be released within six hours of when they are eligible, per Colorado law.
JCSO said it spoke with an ICE representative by phone at noon and informed them of Lopez-Hidalgo’s release. The sheriff’s office wrote in its post, “The ICE representative told us ICE would not be picking up Mr. Lopez-Hidalgo.”
Lopez-Hidalgo was released from the Jefferson County Jail at 2:34 p.m.
“At no point did ICE respond to the jail to pick up Mr. Lopez-Hidalgo,” the sheriff’s office said.
JCSO FACT CHECK:
Yesterday, ICE Denver (@ERODenver) posted that an inmate was “released from Jefferson County without being turned over to ICE.” Let’s be clear: we are not legally allowed to directly turn over an inmate to any law enforcement agency without a judicially… pic.twitter.com/yqPINoLU0J
— Jeffco Sheriff (@jeffcosheriffco) June 19, 2025
The sheriff’s office said it reached out to the ICE Denver office about the “misleading post.”
“They made their position unmistakable: if we do not provide ICE extra time to coordinate inmate pickups from our facility, in violation of Colorado law, deceptive posts like yesterday’s will become the norm,” JCSO wrote.
The sheriff’s office concluded its post by saying it “respects and follows Colorado law. We will continue to follow the law and stand by the truth.”
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Denver, CO
Louisiana child rape suspect arrested in Denver
DENVER (KKTV) – A man out of Louisiana suspected of child rape is now in custody in Colorado.
The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force said they arrested 43-year-old James Connolly Tuesday morning in Denver.
The U.S. Marshals Service said Connolly was wanted by West Baton Rouge Parish deputies for first-degree rape of a child under 13 years old.
According to the U.S. Marshals, a full-scale investigation into the allegation was launched, and probable cause was found to file charges.
After an arrest warrant was issued on August 12, they said Connolly was likely aware of the warrant and had fled the state.
On Monday, officials reportedly received information that he could be in Denver. The next day, the U.S. Marshals Service said the Colorado Violent Offender Task Force found Connolly working maintenance for a company near I-270 and York Street in Denver under the name “Alli” with a changed physical appearance.
Officials said Connolly was then positively identified and taken into custody.
“The success of this arrest represents a culmination of extensive cooperative investigative efforts between the U.S. Marshals in Baton Rouge, U.S. Marshals Colorado Violent Offender Task Force – Denver, West Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Englewood Police Department, and Colorado Department of Corrections,” the U.S. Marshals Service said in a release.
He’s currently in the Adams County Jail pending extradition back to Louisiana.
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Denver, CO
Pat Surtain II Delivers Brutally Honest Take on Broncos’ Final Opponents
If the 11-2 Denver Broncos are going to obtain Super Bowl glory, they can’t be satisfied with their 10-game winning streak. Next up, the 9-3 Green Bay Packers come to Denver for a fixture that will kick off a run of four tricky games to finish out a season that now promises so much more.
When it comes to the Broncos facing adversity, Patrick Surtain II believes the Broncos have their opponents set up right where they want them.
“That’s what the NFL is all about. Each and every week, a new opponent comes,” Surtain said via 9NEWS‘ Scotty Gange. “Obviously, we’ve got some great opponents coming up for the rest of the year. So if we want to be that team we talk about, these are the games that matter and count.”
Green Bay’s Micah Parsons and Jordan Love will present a much more pressing challenge than the hemorrhaging Las Vegas Raiders did this past Sunday. Regardless of the challenges ahead, within the Broncos’ competitive DNA lies a unique blend of wanting to prove even more while also enjoying the fruits of their labor along the way.
Locker room celebrations have centered around the feel-good vibes of the aptly named “Club Dub,” so keeping the ball rolling certainly has its fringe benefits. Ultimately, Surtain revels more in how this team has stuck together through all the challenges, which makes living in this particular moment a whole lot sweeter.
“Yeah, it feels good finally watching the tide change,” Surtain told Gange. “You know, we stuck with it. There’s a bunch of guys that stuck through the process for a couple of years now. And to finally fulfill this moment, this opportunity—11 wins on the season is not easy to do in this league. So, that was something to be very pleased and happy about.”
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Complementary Football
Double-digit winning streaks don’t happen by accident. The finer details matter, especially as the gruelling 17-game campaign rolls on.
The Broncos’ offense mounted its three longest drives of the season in Sin City, statement moves down the field that dramatically tipped the scales in terms of time of possession. Surtain appreciated the in-game breather it gave him and his unit.
“The offense did a heck of a job with their time of possession,” Surtain said via Gange. “Yes, it was saving our legs a little bit. I don’t even know how many plays we had—pretty sure it was pretty low. But shout out to the offense for that. And defensively, we picked it up.”
While the Kansas City Chiefs have been vanquished from the AFC West picture, the Los Angeles Chargers caught a major break on Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles, keeping them still in the divisional hunt.
Moving forward, the smaller issues and stumbles on the defensive side might require Bo Nix and the offense to continue playing the kind of ball that keeps the lights on in the Broncos’ pop-up Club Dub.
Even so, Surtain and his teammates still have everything laid out in front of them
More Must-Read Denver Broncos Coverage
Denver, CO
Denver OKs $30M contract with nonprofit despite questions about agency
A nonprofit that has raised red flags for other cities will begin operating one of Denver’s homeless shelters after the City Council approved a $30 million contract with the group Monday.
Urban Alchemy, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, has been accused of fiscal and data mismanagement, leading one city to drop the organization as a partner this year.
Nine of the 13 City Council members ultimately voted to approve the contract after over an hour of discussion on those concerns in which council members also expressed their exasperation with Mayor Mike Johnston’s office.
“The other option appears to be putting people back out on the street in the middle of winter,” said Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer in explaining her “yes” vote.
Jeff Kositsky, the deputy director of shelter and stability in the city’s Department of Housing Stability, said during the meeting that if the council rejected the contract, there would be no way to find a new provider by the time the contract with the Aspen shelter’s current operator — The Salvation Army — expired.
“I think ultimately we would have to shut the shelter down,” he said.
Only three groups submitted bids to run the city’s homeless shelters when officials put out a request earlier this year, Kositsky said. The other two are Bayaud Works and St. Francis Center, both of which were already selected for other contracts.
Urban Alchemy will begin operating the 289-unit Aspen shelter in Central Park in 2026 and the contract will last through 2028.
Denver officials announced in August that The Salvation Army would no longer operate three facilities in former hotels after the City Council raised concerns that the group was unable to keep its occupants safe. There was a string of violent incidents at the shelters and in March, a Salvation Army employee was charged with sexually assaulting a woman staying at the Aspen shelter.
The Salvation Army will continue to run the Crossroads Center, the Labuth Family Center, the Connection Center and the Harbour Light Center.
In San Francisco, the city controller’s office accused Urban Alchemy of not properly tracking the time its employees worked for the city causing an “increased risk to public funds and client services,” according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The controller’s office later ruled that the group was back in compliance with the city’s standards.
The nonprofit, which gives jobs to formerly incarcerated people, also ran into a conflict with Austin earlier this year. Austin officials wrote in a memo to their City Council that they wouldn’t renew their contract with the group after the nonprofit self-identified staff members who had misrepresented data about people using the shelters, according to the Austin-American Statesman.
Cole Chandler, who leads Johnston’s All In Mile High homeless initiative, said the contract with Urban Alchemy was an unusual, performance-based deal to ensure the work is completed.
“These are new accountability measures that have never existed before and those are specifically in place because council advocated for those,” he said.
The meeting reflected another instance of council members’ frustration with Johnston’s administration. Councilwoman Shontel Lewis, who represents the district where the Aspen shelter is located, said she didn’t feel his team answered her concerns about the group.
“I have been kind, I have been patient, I have been a partner and I have gotten nothing but disrespect,” Lewis said.
Representatives from Urban Alchemy attended the meeting and defended their record, saying they have addressed past issues and fired bad actors in the organization.
“We’re here to be accountable for everything that we do,” said Ian Clark-Johnson with Urban Alchemy. “We want to be accountable and transparent and be judged on the merits of the work that we’re doing.”
The council also considered another $3 million contract with Urban Alchemy to provide community ambassador services Monday. That contract was still being discussed as of 6:45 p.m.
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