Review of the shooting of a civilian by Elbert County Sheriff’s Sgt. Mile Skalisky at the Kiowa Industrial Park, 8561 Highway 86 in Kiowa.
In the first felony trial in Elbert County under current COVID-19 restrictions, a jury found an Elizabeth man guilty of felony DUI after deliberating about 40 minutes.
The jury of 12 found Joseph Robert Hendershott, 57, guilty of driving under the influence with 3 or more priors, a Class 4 felony; and careless driving, a Class 2 traffic offense. The trial lasted two days; the verdict was read Oct 28.
“I am pleased that our judges and criminal justice system partners continue to prove that we can pursue justice and protect constitutional rights even during a global pandemic. This community is well-served,” said District Attorney George Brauchler, who tried the case with Senior Deputy District Attorney Rory Devlin. “Here, a career drunk driver, who avoided injuring or killing an innocent person by the grace of God, received a full and fair trial and now faces a full and fair prison sentence. Nothing less will protect our community.”
On Dec. 16, 2018, Elbert County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the Walmart parking lot in Elizabeth about a possible impaired driver. Witnesses reported seeing the driver, Hendershott, drive his Ford Ranger pickup into the ditch along Colorado 86 and swerve into traffic.
Deputies observed that Hendershott has bloodshot, watery eyes and slurred speech. He was unsteady on his feet and wearing only socks. Hendershott told deputies he was on three heart medications; he refused roadside sobriety tests.
Deputies found where it appeared the truck has sideswiped a chain-link fence in the parking lot, scraping the side of the truck and knocking off the passenger side mirror.
Court records show Hendershott previously was convicted of DUI in 2002 in Douglas County, in 2004 in Elbert County, in 2007 in Douglas County, and in 2008 in South Dakota.
Sentencing is set before Elbert County District Court Judge Gary Kramer on Jan. 5, 2021, at 2:30. The presumptive sentencing range is two to six years in the Department of Corrections. The charge is eligible for probation.
A former soldier has been convicted of all counts in the death of an Elbert County rancher.
Joe Love
A jury on Monday found Joe Robert Love, 28, guilty in the murder of Edward Butler of Agate, who was 68.
“Ed Butler was shot in the head twice by a wanton killer for doing no more than being a good neighbor. An entire community was made to feel less safe by the seemingly random act of violence by a brutal murderer who appears to have taken another life for the most selfish of reasons — to protect himself from accountability for his other crimes,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “I hope the community and Mr. Butler’s family can find some measure of closure and solace in knowing that this cold-blooded murderer will spend his remaining days locked up. This is why we build prisons.”
On Jan. 23, 2016, Love pulled off the highway to look for a bathroom. He ended up at the end of a rural road on a ranch that Butler used to own and was taking care of while the new owners were away.
Love entered Butler’s trailer on the property and proceeded to eat at the table and rummage amongst items inside, a video surveillance system recorded.
Butler happened to drive up to the trailer and saw an unfamiliar vehicle. He called the new owner to inquire if anyone was supposed to be there. When the new owner denied giving anyone permission, Butler confronted Love.
Love took Butler outside, took Butler’s own gun from his hip holster and shot him twice in the head.
Love fled the scene.
Investigators found fingerprints, DNA and other evidence at the scene that led eventually led to Love. He was arrested in January 2017 at Fort Bliss, Texas. He then implicated himself in monitored calls from jail.
“This scenario represents every homeowner’s worst fear: Coming home and interrupting an intruder who is willing to kill to get away with his crime,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Doug Bechtel.
“The evidence is overwhelming that the defendant is the person who killed Ed Butler,” Senior Chief Deputy District Attorney Jason Siers, who prosecuted the case with Bechtel, told the jury. “Ed didn’t deserve this.”
The jury agreed.
Love was found guilty of first degree-murder after deliberation; first-degree felony murder; second-degree kidnapping; aggravated robbery; and first-degree burglary. The statutory mandated penalty for first-degree murder is life in prison without the possibility of parole. Sentencing is set for June 18.
A jury in Elbert County has found a 40-year-old convicted sex offender guilty of sexually assaulting four children, one over a period of years.
Shane Aaron Guthrie was found guilty of all counts, including sex assault on a child pattern of abuse.
The first allegation came to light in early 2017 when a Human Services case worker contacted the Elbert County Sheriff’s Office. The ensuing investigation led to four charged victims, with the earliest offense in summer of 2011.
“The sacrifice of four children’s innocence at the hands of a sexual deviant cries out for vigorous prosecution and lengthy incarceration. And that is exactly what this miscreant is getting. This is why we build prisons.,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “We must all be vigilant and look after the youngest and most vulnerable in our community.”
He added: “Never hesitate to report suspicions to law enforcement. The professionals will investigate, and if there is a crime, we will prosecute the offenders and see to it that no more children can be harmed.”
Deputy District Attorney Michael Mauro prosecuted the case with Senior Deputy District Attorney Cori Alcock.
“Children are among the most defenseless victims of crime because, as in this case, they often trust and even love the perpetrator. At the time abuse occurs, they often do not fully understand the wrongfulness of what is being done to them,” Mauro said. “This defendant betrayed the trust and innocence of these kids, using them as objects of his own sick desires. The jury’s verdict rightly acknowledges the ugly truth that this type of crime can and does occur in our community and must never be tolerated or go unpunished.”
Sentencing is set for Jan. 29.
Elbert County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a 911 call at a residence Thursday evening.
Deputies arrived at the address and began to deal with the situation. A deputy deployed a Taser against a man at the scene who had a gun. The man subsequently died.
His cause of death will be determined by the coroner.
It does not appear any deputy discharged a firearm.
The incident is being investigated by the 18th Judicial District Critical Response Team.
The former mayor of Kiowa has pleaded guilty to threatening his teenage son with a gun as his son was trying to keep his dad from driving drunk.
Lawrence Perreault
Lawrence Perreault, 45, pleaded guilty Tuesday, Feb. 27, in Elbert County District Court to felony menacing and to a misdemeanor count of prohibited use of a weapon – drunk with a gun.
Judge Robert Lung placed him on a four-year deferred judgment.
Perreault will be on probation for four years, with alcohol treatment, mental health treatment (if needed) and absolutely no access to firearms. He must perform 24 hours of community service. He also forfeited the firearms in police custody. At the end of the four years, if he has been compliant, the felony charge will be dismissed. The misdemeanor is a permanent conviction.
“It is difficult to imagine what could lead a father to point a gun at his son. Here we have a teenager trying to help his dad do the right thing,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “The father, the man who should be setting a good example, instead puts his son in harm’s way. This is a man who needs help, and I am glad he has a chance to get it.”
On April 15, 2017, Perreault went with his son and daughter to a mall in Aurora. They got something to eat and went to a movie, then had dinner. Perreault was drinking beer all afternoon and had wine with dinner.
Perreault drove his children to a nearby store, and his son became concerned about his father’s driving and called his mother. The son stalled his father at the store until his mother arrived.
Perreault’s wife put her daughter in her own car and convinced her husband to let their son drive. On the way home, Perrault became angry with his son, threatening him and insulting him. Perreault pulled out his gun and pointed it as his son, then reached over and turned off the ignition in the middle of the road.
Perrealt’s wife also stopped her car, and the two adults began arguing on the side of the road.
An Elbert County Sheriff’s Department deputy saw the cars and stopped to investigate.
“Lawrence Perreault is a member of our community who was given enormous trust — trust not only to lead the citizens of Kiowa in his capacity as mayor, but also to lead troops as a high-ranking member of our military,” said Deputy District Attorney Rory Devlin, who prosecuted the case. “He violated that trust by irresponsibly handling firearms, with which he had extensive training and experience, in an irresponsible manner, and by placing his son at risk. I am pleased he took responsibility with this chance to rehabilitate and to make the community safe by addressing this breach of trust.”
Arapahoe District Judge Phillip Douglass on Tuesday sentenced Jeremiah Pepper, 21, to 40 years in prison for stabbing another man to death.
On July 6, 2017, Pepper entered a guilty plea to second-degree murder in the death of Andrew Martinez, 23.
Jeremiah Pepper
Arapahoe County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call of a stabbing in Strasburg on Aug. 10, 2016.
Pepper had stabbed Martinez near Pepper’s car. The two were friends and had been co-workers at a local fast-food restaurant. Martinez slept overnight in Pepper’s car, and an argument ensued when Pepper went out to his car in the morning.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Cori Alcock asked the court during sentencing for the maximum allowed under the plea agreement.
“One man lost his life. He was killed by the defendant,” she said. “It was a simple argument and should not have resulted in the death of a young man with his life ahead of him.”
The judge agreed.
“What’s clear to me is that this was a young man who could not control his anger,” Judge Douglass said. “This is the most serious offense there can be – a life was taken. … You committed a heinous crime.”
He sentenced Pepper to 40 years in the Department of Corrections with five years of mandatory parole.
“This loss of life did not have to happen. Both families are forever wounded by one stupid act,” said District Attorney George H Brauchler. “Hopefully the process and the sentence provides some peace to the parties involved.”
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District Court Judge Jeffrey K Holmes on Tuesday sentenced an Agate man to 144 years in prison for the death of a former partner in a marijuana business and then setting a wildfire to cover it up.
An Elbert County jury on July 19, 2017, found Shawn Geerdes, 48, guilty of murder in the death of Jason Dosa, 44, of Parker.
Shawn Geerdes
Geerdes was found to be a habitual offender, multiplying the mandatory sentence.
“You had a horrible criminal history,” Judge Holmes told the defendant in imposing the court’s sentence.
The case began Sept. 20, 2015, when Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputies were notified of a fire. They found a car on fire that had started a wildfire.
Ultimately, investigating officers found a body in the trunk, later identified as Dosa. He had been shot five times.
Investigators traced Dosa’s movements and found his last location at a marijuana greenhouse in Agate on land owned by Geerdes. Dosa and Geerdes were former partners in the grow operation.
Investigators found evidence at the growhouse including bloodstains and spent shell casings that indicated Dosa had been killed there and his body later transported to Jefferson County. The case was tried in Elbert County and prosecuted by Senior Deputy District Attorney Douglas Bechtel and Chief Deputy District Attorney Christopher Gallo.
Geerdes was found guilty in July 2017 of second-degree murder, a Class 2 felony; setting a wildfire, a Class 3 felony; and second-degree arson, a Class 4 felony.
“This defendant took a father away from children, a husband away from a wife,” Gallo told the court in seeking the 144-year sentence. “Then this defendant had to obscure the evidence of what he did – he endangered an entire community in doing so. That deserves a separate consideration.”
Judge Holmes sentenced Geerdes to the mandatory 96 years in the Department of Corrections on the murder count, 48 years on the wildfire count and 24 years on the arson count. The arson and wildfire counts will be served concurrently; the murder and wildfire counts will be served consecutively.
“It is outrageous behavior best reserved for a Hollywood movie. For all that he has taken from others, Geerdes has now lost almost everything,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “That is justice in this case.”
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An Elbert County jury has found an Agate man guilty of second-degree murder in the death of a former partner in a marijuana growhouse.
Shawn Geerdes, 48, was found guilty Wednesday of second-degree murder, a Class 2 felony; setting a wildfire, a Class 3 felony; and second-degree arson, a Class 4 felony.
He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 96 years in prison if he is found to be a habitual offender during his Sept. 5 sentencing hearing.
The case began Sept. 20, 2015, when Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputies were notified of a fire. They found a car on fire that had started a wildfire.
Ultimately, investigating officers found a body in the trunk, later identified as Jason Dosa, 44, of Parker. He had been shot five times.
Investigators traced Dosa’s movements and found his last location at a marijuana greenhouse in Agate on land owned by Geerdes. Dosa and Geerdes were former partners in the grow operation.
Investigators found evidence at the growhouse including bloodstains and spent shell casings that indicated Dosa had been killed there and his body later transported to Jefferson County. The case was tried in Elbert County and prosecuted by Senior Deputy District Attorney Douglas Bechtel and Chief Deputy District Attorney Christopher Gallo.
“When reviewing a case, our office always evaluates the applicability of affirmative defenses, such as self-defense or defense of premises — commonly known as Make My Day,” Bechtel said. “However, the defendant’s actions in this case of shooting the victim, putting the victim in the trunk of his own car, driving the car 80 miles, dousing the car in gasoline and staring a car fire and wildfire shows that the defendant knew this was not a justified shooting. Simply put: ‘Actions speak louder than words.’ ”
District Attorney George Brauchler praised the outcome.
“Here is yet another violent crime related to marijuana. Whatever benefits there may be from the legalization of marijuana, eradicating violent crime associated with it is not one of them,” Brauchler said. “I’m pleased my team and our law enforcement partners were able to bring this murderer to justice.
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On March 3 at 11:13 p.m. a Denver woman was contacted on Interstate 70 just east of the Agate exit (mile marker 340) after reports she threatened to kill police officers.
Law enforcement made contact with Jasmine Faith Delores Johnson, 26. Shots were fired; neither the suspect nor officers were hit by gunfire.
Johnson is being held without bond at the Arapahoe County Detention Center on a previous warrant out of Broomfield.
Additional counts are anticipated after Friday night’s incident is fully investigated. Johnson’s booking mug is not being released at this time.
Criminal charges are merely a formal accusation that an individual has committed a crime. A defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
This is an ongoing investigation involving Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, Elbert County Sheriff’s Office, Colorado State Patrol and the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
The case will be heard in Elbert County Combined Courts.
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