Archieves of News Releases

NEWS RELEASE 12/10/03 FORMER GEORGETOWN MAYOR BROOKS FOUND "GUILTY" OF MISDEMEANOR THEFT.

(CANON CITY) A former mayor of Georgetown, Colorado, was found guilty Wednesday of stealing a former friend and business associate's jewelry. 39-year old Koleen Brooks was sentenced to 30 days county jail and a $150 donation to the Main Street USA project by Judge C. M. Barton on January 23, 2004.

In closing arguments, Prosecutor Marty Barta told the jurors that Ms. Brooks violated the trust of her former friend Erin Butz by taking Ms. Butz's jewelry that was stored for safekeeping in a safety deposit box at the Fremont National Bank in Canon City. While Brooks had permission from Ms. Butz to store $6000.00 in Ms. Brook's own cash in the same safety deposit box, Ms. Brooks did not have permission to take Ms. Butz's jewelry, which had sentimental value to Ms. Butz. The theft happened on March 11, 2003. A search warrant executed on the defendant's residence in Denver netted recovery of her jewelry.

The jury deliberated just one hour before reaching a verdict, which was a lesser-included offense of felony theft. The misdemeanor theft charge carries up to one year in county jail and/or a $1000.00 fine. The defendant has been previously convicted in Eagle County of making a false report to police, a misdemeanor.

NEWS RELEASE 12/2/03 ACCUSED GUNMAN MATHENY GETS 68-YEAR PRISON SENTENCE IN GUFFEY TRIPLE MURDER.

(FAIRPLAY) 20-year old Jonathan Matheny has been sentenced to 68 years in prison for his role in the murders of Carl and Joanna Dutcher and their 15-year old grandson, Tony Dutcher. Park County District Court Judge Ken Plotz handed down the sentence, calling it one of the most horrible slayings he has ever handled. Matheny was the last of three former Palmer High School students who pleaded guilty to killing his former classmate and his grandparents The three were found dead on January 3, 2001, at the Dutchers' home near Guffey.

District Attorney Ed Rodgers and prosecutor Dave Thorson have asserted that Matheny, Isaac Grimes, and Simon Sue formed a small paramilitary group called Operations and Reconnaissance Agents. Sue was believed to have ordered Grimes and Matheny to kill the three as a test of Grimes loyalty to the group.

Matheny faced between 48 and 80 years in prison after pleading guilty in October to three counts of conspiracy to commit First Degree Murder and a count of violating organized crime laws.

The retirees were shot multiple times in their trailer home with a stolen weapon obtained by the group in a Colorado Springs home burglary . The Dutcher boy was found with his throat slashed while inside a sleeping bag where he had been camping near his grandparent's trailer.

NEWS RELEASE 11/20/03 SIX MEN FACE SEVERAL CHARGES IN WETMORE BIG GAME POACHING CASES.

(WESTCLIFFE) A Division of Wildlife investigation into the out-of-season poaching of five mule deer buck in late October is resulting in six men being charged with numerous misdemeanor hunting violations. The investigation began when concerned citizens reported seeing two dead deer just of County Road 295. The deer had been bound with a ratchet strap around their rear legs. Each deer had its antlers cut off at the skull.

39-year old Michael D. O'Neal of Wetmore is charged with 15 counts for his alleged involvement in the poaching, including six counts of illegal possession of wildlife, hunting without a license, waste of edible game, hunting out of season, hunting with artificial light, and hunting on private property. The potential penalty for each count of illegal possession of wildlife is a fine up between $700 and $10,000, up to one year in county jail, a one-year to life suspension of his hunting privilege and 15 points against his hunting privilege. A person is allowed 20 hunting points before being suspended.

36-year-old Troy M. Evans faces three counts of illegal possession of wildlife and a charge of hunting on private property.

46-year-old William Terry Landrum of Penrose faces similar charges as O'Neal.

38-year-old Kurt Oliver Leach of Pueblo West and owner of a sporting goods store is charged with five counts of illegal possession of wildlife.

43-year-old Steven Edward Cochran of Wetmore is charged with two counts of illegal possession of wildlife and two counts of waste of edible game. His next court date in Custer County court is set on December 5, 2003.

37-year-old Christopher Sean Tallant was cited for four counts of illegal possession of wildlife and one count of hunting on private property.

DOW officials report that three of the dead deer had antlers large enough to qualify as "Samson" deer. If a person is found guilty of a wildlife hunting violation involving such a mule deer buck, the "Samson" law provides for a $10,000 penalty in addition to regular statutory penalties.

NEWS RELEASE 11/19/03 WESTCLIFFE WOMAN CHARGED WITH $100,000 IN THEFTS FROM NEQUETTE DRILLING INC.

(WESTCLIFFE) A former bookkeeper of Nequette Drilling and Excavating, Inc. has been charged with 35 counts of felony theft and check forgery over a three year period from her former employer. 47-year-old Linda Zielke Cary has been arrested and posted a $100,000 bond. She is to be formally advised of the charges and possible penalties on November 24, 2003 in Custer County District Court in Westcliffe.

It is alleged in the arrest warrant affidavit that she directed that numerous extra paychecks be written to her, used the company credit card for unauthorized personal purchases, and forged the signature of Debra K. Williams of Nequette Drilling on dozens of checks. The alleged thefts began in approximately June of 2000 and ended in May of 2003. The CBI, employees of Nequette Drilling, and the Custer County Sheriff's office conducted the investigation along with the cooperation of Fremont National Bank and Colorado Mountain Bank. The total amount of the alleged thefts totals approximately $100,000 to $125,000.

Cary faces three counts of theft between $500 and $15,000, class four felonies. Each class four felony carries a potential prison sentence in the presumptive range of between 2 and 6 years, and/or a fine of between $2000 and $500,000. Ms. Cary is charged with three counts of theft over $15,000, class three felonies. Each class three felony carries a potential prison sentence in the presumptive range of between 4 and 12 years, and/or a fine of between $3000 and $750,000..

Ms. Cary will be represented by attorney Tom Donovan of Colorado Springs.

NEWS RELEASE 10/8/03 FINAL DUTCHER MURDER DEFENDANT ENTERS "GUILTY" PLEA

(FAIRPLAY) Jonathan Matheny will receive a prison sentence of between 48 and 80 years for his role in murdering three people on New Year's Eve of 2000 at their home near Guffey. On Monday, Matheny pleaded guilty to three counts of conspiracy to commit First Degree Murder and one count under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act. He entered his guilty pleas in Park County District Court in Fairplay in front of District Court Judge Ken Plotz.

Matheny was involved in killing Carl and JoAnne Dutcher and their 15-year old grandson, Tony Dutcher. Matheny was to have stood trial in Salida beginning November 10th. Matheny will be sentenced on December 1, 2003.

In August, 21-year old Simon Sue was sentenced to 53 years in prison for the murders. The third co-defendant, Isaac Grimes, is serving a 60 year sentence.

NEWS RELEASE 8/27/03 53 YEAR PRISON SENTENCE FOR SIMON SUE IN PARK COUNTY MURDER CASE

(FAIRPLAY) 21-year old Simon Sue was sentenced Tuesday to a total of 53 years in prison for his role in murdering three people on New Year's Eve of 2000 at their home near Guffey. In sentencing Sue in Fairplay, District Court Judge Ken Plotz said he still doesn't understand why Sue became involved in killing Carl and JoAnne Dutcher and their 15-year old grandson, Tony Dutcher. Plotz said there are two Simon Sues, one whom friends and neighbors testified was a good student and a bright kid and the other who got involved in criminal activities. Plotz said Sue minimized his involvement in the murders.

District Attorney Ed Rodgers and Deputy District Attorney Dave Thorson presented a detailed computer slide show recounting Sue's involvement in the killings. Members of the victims' family testified at yesterday's sentencing. Sue had pleaded guilty in February to three counts of Conspiracy to Commit First Degree Murder and a count under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act. Under the plea agreement, Sue was facing between 40 and 60 years in prison.

Sue will be required to testify truthfully at co-defendant Jonathan Matheny's trial which starts November 10th in Salida.

The third and final co-defendant, Isaac Grimes, is serving a 60 year prison sentence for his role in the murders.

(Canon City) The Colorado Adolescent Mentoring Program (CAMP) is winding up its third successful year in Fremont County. CAMP works with students one-on-one in Fremont County schools with over 35 adult mentors. CAMP mentors meet one hour a week to provide one student with guidance, support, encouragement and advocacy. CAMP mentors work with youth on the brink of success ages 8 to 18 during school hours.

Building on three years of accomplishments, CAMP joins the Colorado Workforce Center to offer Fremont County adolescents opportunities and to eliminate barriers to employment. Eighteen selected youth are gaining work experience and income by providing outdoor maintenance to the homes of area elderly and disabled. Youth are weeding, mowing, seeding, painting and scraping their way to gain work experience while helping those who most need it in their own community.

After each workday youth are transported to greet his or her mentor for one-on-one academic mentoring held at Skyline Elementary School. Mentors work through carefully prepared reading and math lessons. Youth and mentors share an hour working with HOSTS (Helping One Student To Succeed) reading lessons and Accelerated Math lessons focusing on his or her particular barriers to successful reading and mathematics.

For those who would like to become an important mentor in a child’s life, please contact David Morehart or Michael Geesaman by calling 269-0170 ext. 3594.

Special thanks are extended to Kathy Horrell for proving the special HOSTS Reading materials and constructing a rewarding program. Superintendent Frank Cooper, Principal Mike Collins, Dale Dieter, Nick Bufmack, and John Taylor of Skyline school staff for proving a cool, quiet and safe place to meet. Superintendent John Merriam and Principal Jim Lucas for proving much needed RE-2 support.

CAMP and the Office of the District Attorney wish to thank all volunteer tutors and Colorado Workforce staff for making this effort a success. Thank you to Judy Lohnes and the Workforce team, Rhonda Painter, Kristy Swett and Linda Pings for coordinating youth employment and services. Finally, thank you to all the Fremont County business community for supporting our program by contributing to our Appreciation Dinner each year.

CAMP is administered by the Office of the District Attorney and has been funded through Fremont County Build A Generation with a grant from the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

The Colorado Adolescent Mentoring Program (CAMP) is winding up its third successful year in Fremont County. CAMP works with students one-on-one in Fremont County schools using over 35 adult mentors. Mentors meet an hour each week to provide one student with suidance, support, encouragement and advocacy. Mentors work with youth on the brink of success, ages 8 to 18, during school hours.

Building on three years of accomplishments, CAMP joins the Colorado Workforce Center to offer Fremont County adolescents, opportunities and to eliminate barriers to employment. 18 selected youth are gaining work experience and money by providing outdoor maintenance to the homes of the elderly and disabled. They weed, mow, paint and scrape their way to gain work experience, while aiding those who most need it.

After each workday, youth are transported to greet his or her montor for one-on-one academic mentoring at Skyline Elementary School. Mentors work through carefully prepared reading and math lessons. Youth and mentors share an hour working with HOSTS (Helping One Student To Succeed) .

(Cripple Creek) The former U.S. Forest Service employee who started the worst wildfire in Colorado history last June was sentenced to 12 years in prison today.

Terry Barton was sentenced by Teller County District Court Judge Colt following her guilty plea to Second Degree Arson, a class four felony. The 12-year sentence was the maximum sentence, according to District Attorney Ed Rodgers, who represented Park County in the sentencing.

Rodgers said the sentence was " just" given that the damage estimate is nearly 30 million dollars. He noted that the damage to victims is catastrophic and really immeasurable. He states that Barton violated her position of trust in that she was specially trained to protect our forests and the residents therein from wildfires. Ironically, Barton started the fire on a "red flag" day where there was to be no burning or fires started in the national forests. Barton started the fire by burning a letter from her husband in a campfire and leaving the scene. Shortly thereafter, the fire spread and eventually scorched thousands of acres in Park, Jefferson, Douglas, and Teller Counties.

Rodgers said the 12-year prison sentence will run at the same time as her recent 6-year federal prison sentence.

NEWS RELEASE 3/5/03 FLORISSANT MAN FOUND GUILTY OF SEXUAL ASSAULT ON A CHILD

(Fairplay) A Park County jury returned a guilty verdict tonite against Mark Joseph Ankrum, 38, of Florissant. The jury found him guilty of sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust. That crime is a class four felony, according to prosecutor Dave Thorson.

Ankrum waived his right to have a jury determine the habitual criminal counts alleging three prior felony convictions, including a 1985 first-degree sexual assault conviction from Colorado Springs. The habitual criminal counts are set for a court trial on March 18th. If found to be an habitual criminal, Ankrum will be sentenced to prison for an indeterminate sentence of 24 years to life, according to Thorson.

Ankrum was released from prison in 1999. Ankrum said at a prior bond hearing in the present case that the treatment programs were not doing him "any good".

(Fairplay) 21-year old Simon Sue pleaded guilty today to three counts of Conspiracy to Commit First Degree Murder in Park County District Court. Sue also pleaded guilty to another crime under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act. Sue was the alleged mastermind behind the murders.

According to Assistant D.A. Kathy Eberling, Sue will be required to testify truthfully at co-defendant Jonathan Matheny's trial in November in Salida. Prosecutor Dave Thorson in Fairplay said that under the plea agreement, Sue will receive a prison sentence of between 40 and 60 years from District Judge Ken Plotz. Sentencing will be July 28, 2003.

Carl and JoAnne Dutcher along with their 15-year old grandson, Tony Dutcher were brutally killed on New Year's Eve of 2000 at their Park County home near Guffey.

Another co-defendant Isaac Grimes has already been sentenced to 60 years in prison for his role in the killings.

(Canon City) Two former female DOC staffers have been sentenced for their sexual relationship and involvement with convicts they were supposed to be guarding.

District Court Judge Julie Marshall imposed two days in jail and two years probation last Friday on Denise Ortiz, 30, of Pueblo for having sex with a male inmate. Ortiz had pleaded guilty to Sexual Conduct in a Penal Institution, a class five felony. It was stipulated that probation was appropriate, but that the court could impose 0-90 days in the county jail as a condition of probation. Ortiz had sex with an inmate at Arrowhead Correctional Facility in 2001 in a six-month long relationship.

Chief Investigator Alex Wold testified at sentencing that Ortiz violated the public trust to uphold the laws of the state. Wold urged the court, as did prosecutor Norman Cooling, to send a strong message to all DOC employees that there should be firm consequences dealt out to deter other similarly situated employees.

In a separate case, Judge Marshall imposed a similar sentence on Ruby Gordon-Penny, 44, of Penrose, a former GED instructor for introducing contraband, tobacco, into the Fremont Correctional Facility in 2001. The defendant admitted that she had had a sexual relationship with the inmate to whom she delivered the tobacco.

Investigator Bill Claspell testified at sentencing that the inmate profited about $1400 from selling the tobacco to other inmates. Claspell also testified to the dire consequences that can occur when an inmate who cannot afford to pay for the contraband. The debt can be repaid through beatings, stabbings, murder, and extortion, said Claspell.

(Salida) A Salida man who shot another man last year up on Ute Trail was sentenced to two years in the Department of Corrections yesterday. Harley Hagan shot Kenneth Satterfield following an argument over Satterfield driving too fast and interrupting a cattle drive.

Lead prosecutor Marty Barta argued at sentencing that vigilante situations never end well, noting that Hagan left the scene and returned home to get a gun and confront Satterfield. Hagan had earlier pleaded guilty to felony menacing, a class 5 felony in front of Chief District Judge Kenneth Plotz.

Judge Plotz found that the shooting was an accident, but that Hagan's pulling out his gun and threatening Satterfield deserved prison time.

Mr. Satterfield ended up with a bullet in his spine and is now confined to a wheelchair.

(Salida) District Attorney Ed Rodgers has announced the hiring of a new Deputy District Attorney to handle the Chaffee County Court. He is Scott Patton, a recent graduate from the University of Colorado School of Law in Boulder. Mr. Patton replaces Deputy District Attorney Molly Walker, who has been promoted to handle felony prosecution in Chaffee County District Court.

Ms. Walker replaces former Deputy District Attorney Chuck Barton, who has been appointed District Court Judge. Mr. Barton was a career prosecutor before being named to the bench last fall by Governor Owens, replacing District Court Judge John Anderson, who is retiring after over 20 years on the bench.

Mr. Patton interned as a prosecutor for the City of Boulder before accepting his new position. Mr. Patton says he is proud to be a part of the prosecution team in the 11th Judicial District.

(dENVER) Justin Conner not only lost his appeal last Thursday, but the Colorado Court of Appeals held that on one of his convictions, the correct sentence should have been six years and not the original three-year sentence.

Conner was convicted in October 2000 of murdering a night watchman, 71-year old Glen Tate, at the Royal Gorge Bridge. The murder occurred in 1997. Conner was also found guilty by a Chaffee County jury in Salida of Accessory after the fact to Murder, First Degree Burglary, Accessory after the fact to Burglary, and Second Degree Burglary.

District Attorney Ed Rodgers and Assistant District Attorney Kathy Eberling successfully prosecuted Conner. The appellate court rejected his long list of errors he claimed were made in his case. The court sent the case back to District Judge Julie Marshall to correct the sentence on the count of Accessory after the fact to Burglary.

A co-defendant of Conner, James "J.R." McPherson, pleaded guilty to Second-Degree Murder and is serving 48 years in prison.

(CANON CITY) District Attorney Ed Rodgers announced today that he has launched a web site for his office. The web address: www.da11thjd.org. Mr. Rodgers believes that it will provide helpful, accurate information to the public, especially to the citizens of the 11th Judicial District. It is designed to be "user-friendly" by allowing people to conveniently access and print from their home computer various forms and applications, such as the bad check form, a victim impact statement, and a victim compensation form. For example, businesses who receive bad checks can now access and print out the required "bad check form" and fill it out at their convenience and mail it to us at their convenience to save themselves a trip to our office. Similarly, crime victims can access the victim's compensations application and mail their completed form to us. Obviously, the convenience of the internet being available "24-7" is important.

The site contains numerous "links" to other web sites, including court and juror information for Fremont, Chaffee, Park, and Custer Counties, consumer tips from the Attorney General, and the Sex Offender Registry. We will also be posting news releases periodically on the major cases we are prosecuting throughout the district.