The Littleton Police Department was founded in 1890 when a town government was formed. The first town marshal was appointed that year to enforce the laws of the city. By 1890, the town was already thirty years old and consisted of a flour mill, post office and two railroad depots, that operated through the town by the hour. Communication was limited to mail service and the telegraph all the way until the early 1900's, when the telephone came into use. Telephone service for the town government was limited to one phone installed in the home of the town marshal and a second phone installed in the home of the mayor. Between the years of 1890 & 1940, twenty-six men served as town marshal. Marshals were paid a monthly salary ranging from $50 at the turn of the century to $150 by the year 1945. Marshals used their own wagon and team, and later they used their own automobile for personal and town business use. No women have served as town marshal or chief of police. Marshals dealt with bank robberies and other serious crimes on occasion, including other assignments, such as serving official notices, collecting delinquent taxes, monitoring the operation of town street lights and checking for prohibited use of the town's limited water supply. Rabies was a common occurence and unlicensed dogs and cats were shot on sight by the marshal and paid $.50 cents to $1.00 for each animal that was killed and buried. Marshals were ever vigilant for back room gambling, bootlegging and other vice-related crimes. Eventually, horse-drawn vehicles gave way to gasoline powered machines and marshals had to chase down speeders and other traffic violators. Indigent prisoners were ordered to work off their fines that were given by working on the streets at the rate of $2 per day and escapes from custody were not uncommon. For added help, "Special Police" were deputized to help the marshal maintain order during special events and/or holidays. This practice of utilizing reserve officers continued with the Police Department through the 1980's. By the year 1940, Littleton was no longer a small agricultural town. It was an emerging suburban city and by the end of the decade, the town marshal was known as the police chief and the one-man marshal's office would become a actual police department. A marked police car was produced with a red light and siren and the first two-way radio was purchased to allow communication between the Denver Police and the Arapahoe County Sheriff. By the 1950's, the Police Department consisted of the chief, one sergeant, and several officers. Two to three marked police cars were in service stocked with two-way mobile radios and now radio dispatching of police calls were occuring. By 1957, Littleton became a City Council/City Manger form of government. The Police Department continued to grow and advance with the times and by 1990, the Littleton Police Department observed its 100th year of formal operation. Its rich and distinguished past history will no doubt influence its continued operation through the 21st century. In all its time, no Littleton officers have been killed in the line of duty.

Communication definitely would have been a problem at the foundation of the Littleton Police Department. Being limited to telegraph and mail service when first established, and later only 1 phone for the marshal, getting a quick response for emergencies would be nearly impossible. Unless luck would have it that an officer was in the right place at the right time, all crimes would have been dealt with after the fact. Nowadays, officers can be contacted and dispatched immediately and are able to stop some crimes as they are happening or even before.

Another problem that was occurring in the early creation of police departments was that often whoever was the biggest "bully" would be chosen to be a police officer. There wasn't a good police system in place, which is why many of the officers would also be seen gambling or bootlegging. Today, police officers have to go through rigorous testing processes and background checks, as well as demanding training, to ensure that officers will stick to a higher moral standard and be prepared for any situation thrown at them.

In Colorado:

Agencies/Offices: 166

Number of Personnel = 8,616 Personnel per 100,000 residents = 187

Sworn Personnel = 6,375 Personnel per 100,000 residents = 139

Three reasons why I do think Colorado needs more sworn officers per/100,000 residents:

It averages out to only one officer for every 719 residents.

More officers would result in a better and safer community.

It would help officers get more “in touch” with their community instead of being separate from it.

The number of sheriff’s offices in Colorado is 62, the total personnel reaches 6016 and sword personals are 3391. However the number of personnels per 100, 000 people is 131, almost twice as the number of sworn personnel in Colorado. In our opinion the state of Colorado has adequate number of sworn personnel’s (74 sworn personnel’s per 100, 000 residents). However it would be better if the number of sworn personnel was higher than the number of personnel, that would make all residents feel more secure. Colorado should have more sworn officer since the statistic show that the crime rate has been increasing every year (FBI, Uniform Crime Report). Also the Crime rank, based on the number of crimes per capita with 1 being the best and 51 the worst, Colorado stands on # 36 which is a high for the state (2009 Public Records Research). As following the twitter page of the ABC Denver channel most of the tweets we see are the headlines of violent an outrage crime like RT: “Aaron Thompson found guilty of killing daughter Aarone” (twitter Denver channel), and that is why Colorado needs more sworn officers.

-Colorado Crime Rates 1960-2008, (2008) http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/cocrime.htm

-Colorado Crime Statistics for 2005, (2009) http://www.prsearch.com/crime/colorado

-Denver Channel via Twitter,http://www.twitter.com/denverchannel

-Tyler Lopez, (September 28, 2009), Thompson found guilty of child abuse resulting in death, Denver Channel, http://www.denverchannel.com/news/21136086/detail.htm

-Littleton Police Department, (2005) A brief history of the littleton police department, City of Littleton, http://www.littletongov.org/police/history/

Misdemeanor Crime: shoplifting (but the statute states theft):

Theft crimes are divided in seriousness by the amount of property taken. C.R.S. § 18-4-401 sets forth the elements. Theft occurs when a person "knowingly obtains or exercises control over anything of value of another without authorization, or by threat or deception" and a) intends to permanently deprive the owner of the thing of value, b) uses or abandons the thing of value in a manner that deprives the owner of the use or benefit of the thing of value, c) uses or abandons the thing of value intending to deprive the owner of the use or benefit of the thing of value, or d) demands any consideration for the return of the thing of value to the owner. Theft is a class 1 misdemeanor if the value is $500 to $1,000, and a class 2 misdemeanor if the value is less than $500.

Felony Crime: Robbery:

Robbery, C.R.S. § 18-4-301, generally involves the taking of property directly from another person. Robbery is defined as taking anything of value from the person or presence of another by the use of force, threats or intimidation. Robbery is a class 4 felony.

(Statute)

Felony Crime: Robbery:

HYPERLINK "http://www.boulder-bar.org/bar_media/gloss.html" \l "ROBBERY" \t "_blank" Robbery, C.R.S. § 18-4-301, generally involves the taking of property directly from another person. Robbery is defined as taking anything of value from the person or presence of another by the use of force, threats or intimidation. Robbery is a class 4 felony.

(Book Deff.)

Robbery: Wrongfully taking and carrying away of personal property from a person by violence or intimidation.

Similarities: Both state that robbery is taking property from another person with the act of force or intimidation.

Differences: Unlike the statute, the book does not state threats as being an additional act of robbery. The book also views robbery as any property being forcefully taken, not just property of value

(Statute)

BURGLARY, SECOND-DEGREE - This occurs when a person breaks an entrance into, or enters unlawfully, or remains unlawfully after a legal or illegal entry, in a building or occupied structure with the intent to commit a crime. See Manual § 6.8 and C.R.S. § 18-4-203.

(Book Deff.)

Burglary: Breaking and entering of a structure owned by another with the intent to commit a felony therein.

Similarities: Both state that a person has to break and enter a structure owned by another with the intent to commit a crime.

Difference: Unlike the book the statute states that a person can unlawfully enter a structure owned by another. Therefore it goes more in depth by stating it is still considered burglary if a person walks into a structure with the intent to commit a crime even if the door was wide open

The legal standard for insanity in Colorado are M'Naughten Rule and Irresistible impulse according to which the verdict is that the defender is found not guilty by reason of insanity. The M` Naughten Rule was found in England in 1984 when Naughten killed intentionally the assistant of the English prime minister. He was found not guilty under two rules 1) the defendant doesn't know the nature of the actions he was doing and 2) he also doesn't distinguished wrong from right. The M` Naughten Rules is used by the majority of the states. The irresistible test came as a response to the M Naughtten test and the rule was expanded to the Irresistible act. It states that even though a person can make difference between wrong or right if his act was driven by uncontrollable behavior he or she should not be found guilty. Example of that is if a child was molested. If the mother commits a crime against the molester she can argue that she was not able to control her behavior.[3] [4]

http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/hinckley/hinckleyinsanity.htm and

Colorado's verdict for insanity is not guilty by reason of insanity..the court mandates treatment if found NGBI..and the court has the authority of release...as far as punishment from the verdict, one possible explanation is to make sure that the defendant gets the help they need in a state facility..

Over the past thirty years, property crime in Colorado has decreased dramatically. In 1980 there were over 195 thousand property related crimes committed, including arson, burglary, and motor vehicle theft. Violent crimes, however, have remained steady at around 15,000 per year. The most frequent crime committed in Colorado is larceny / theft at 100,000 in 2007, whereas murder was only committed 153 times. 2007 compared to 2006 shows that crime rates dropped dramatically across the board.

here were 4,407 complaints of internet crimes in the state of Colorado in 2007. Of those crimes, auction fraud was the number one complaint at 32.2%. A close second was non-delivery of merchandise/payment at 26.6%. Identity theft was 6th at only 3.4%. The total dollar losses was more than $5,400,000. The highest loss reported was $425,000, which resulted from Nigerian letter fraud. Most people, 44.7%, reported a monetary loss of $100-$999, however 4.6% reported a loss of over $10,000.

Male perpetrators, at 75.8%, far exceeded female perpetrators. Colorado is positioned 13th in the United States as having 25.84 perpetrators per 100,000 people. Regarding the total number of perpetrators living in Colorado, it is 17th.

Complainants were about equal with males at 55.6% and females at 44.4%. Those aged 30-39 were 24.7% of complainants, which was the highest. However, it was very close to complainants aged 40-49 and 50-59. Colorado positioned 2nd highest in the United States as having 90.65 complainants per 100,000 people. Of complainants living in Colorado, perpetrators also living in Colorado were 7.4%.

[1] Online picture retrieved September 21, 2009 from www.my2copper.com

[2] Retrieved from Boulder Country Bar Association http://www.boulder-bar.org/bar_media/offenses/6.8.html

[3] Retrieved September 18, 2009 from Kimberly Collins, Gabe Hinkebein, and Staci Schorgl, "The John Hinkley Trial and its Effect on the Insanity Defense" http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/hinckley/hinckleyinsanity.htm

Crime Trends in Colorado
Over the past thirty years, property crime in Colorado has decreased dramatically. In 1980, there were over 195,000 property related crimes committed, including arson, burglary, and motor vehicle theft. Violent crimes, however, have remained steady at around 15,000 per year. The most frequent crime committed in Colorado is larceny/theft at 100,000 in 2007, whereas murder was only committed 153 times. 2007 compared to 2006 shows that crime rates have dropped dramatically across the board.

Some research questions we could ask regarding UCR data:
1. In 1980, of the 195,000 property crimes committed, how many of the defendants got convicted?
2. Of the murders committed, how many were solved?
3. What was the most stolen item in 2007?

Some research questions we could ask regarding the NCVS:
1. How many of the crimes committed were reported by the NCVS?
2. Is the reason why the crime rate dropped because people just didn't report them?
3. How many of the violent crimes were rape?

Some research questions we could ask regarding self-report data:
1. How many people admitted to committing a property related crime?
2. How many people admitted to committing a violent crime?
3. Who contributed to the self-report data, and when and where were the reports done?

Psychological Crime Theory
Soldiers in a battle-scarred Army unit, who were psychologically scarred from their combat in Iraq, killed as many as eleven people after they had returned home. The psychological crime theory would be describe the reason why these crimes had occurred. An army task force of medical experts came to the conclusion that there were two main factors in determining why such events happened. Those factors include the unit's extensive combat exposure and the extended lengths of deployment. This unit was compared with a similarly sized unit and found it suffered many more combat deaths in Iraq, leading to the risk of negative behavioral outcomes. It was also stated that the soldiers faced significant disruptions in family-social support at home. These soldiers also had committed crimes before, and abused drugs and alcohol in the past. The unit was accused of five killings around Colorado Springs in 2007 & 2008, including the slaying of a couple gunned down while posting a garage-sale sign. They were also involved in six more slayings in Colorado in 2005. The psychological crime theory best describes the reason why this crime occurred because it clearly shows that the experiences of the soldiers in Iraq greatly impacted them to such an extent, that they were psychologically damaged from those experiences. Their minds have been "disturbed" ever since. They most likely suffered from delusions and felt alienated when doing so. The fact that these soldiers didn't receive emotional support at home also points to the psychological theory. The lack of emotional support means there was no insight or control to the understanding of the events that these soldiers faced and in return, these soldiers could not distinguish right from wrong. The article also states that these men were afraid of being belittled if they decided to seek mental help[1]. In the future, these men could be helped if there were more confidential procedures to the services being offered to each and every soldier. There should also be better training for officers to manage soldiers with behavioral problems and ensure that GIs who seek help are in no way humiliated.

Should These Laws Be Revised?
Texting while driving is currently legal for anyone with a driver's license over 18 years of age, but it should be illegal. Colorado recently passed a bill restricting drivers under 18 and those with only instruction permits from using cell phones, but is it enough? More than 50% of adults 18-24 admit to texting while driving. One study showed that drivers using their cell phone were more likely to rear-end someone than drivers over the legal blood alcohol limit[2]. Another study found that a driver is 4 times more likely to injure themselves seriously in an accident while using a cell phone[3]. VirginiaTech Transportation Institute also conducted a study that revealed that "texting took a driver’s focus away from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds–enough time…to travel the length of a football field at 55 mph"[4]. Because of the high risks of serious injury or death to the driver and others, texting while driving should be illegal.

Marijuana is illegal, but it should be legalized. Marijuana helps with pain, prevents migraines, sex is better, and it helps with depression[5]. One study showed that smoking pot helped protect our brains from all that harmful boozing[6]. Marijuana contains an amazing chemical, beta-caryophyllene, and scientists have thoroughly proven that it could be used to treat pain, inflammation, atherosclerosis, and osteoporosis[7]. Marijuana cannot kill anyone, unlike other drugs. For example, alcohol can cause a liver to die out, and tobacco causes strokes or heart cancer.

[picture] (n.d.). Retrieved September 15, 2009, from http://charlie180.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/burglar.jpg
[1]Banda, P. S. (2009, July 16). Iraq war stress weighed in Colorado killings. Retrieved September 11, 2009, from North Jersey Website: http://www.northjersey.com/news/national/west/Iraq_war_stress_weighed_in_Colorado_killings.html
[2]Fuller, J. R. (n.d.). Colorado texting ban takes effect. Retrieved September 15, 2009, from Personal Injury Co. Website: http://www.personalinjuryco.com/CM/Articles/Colorado-Texting-Ban-Takes-Effect.asp
[3]Edgar Snyder & Associates. (n.d.). Car accident cell phone statistics. Retrieved September 15, 2009, from Edgar Snyder Website: http://www.edgarsnyder.com/auto-accident/auto/cell/statistics.html
[4]Safe Teens. (2009, September 1). Shocking statistics and video about texting while driving. Retrieved September 15, 2009, from SafeTeens Website: http://www.safeteens.com/2009/09/01/shocking-statistics-and-video-about-texting-while-driving/
[5]Grover, J. (2002, November 22). Is marijuana really good for you? Retrieved September 14, 2009, from The Johns Hopkins News-Letter Website: http://media.www.jhunewsletter.com/media/storage/paper932/news/2002/11/22/Science/Is.Marijuana.Really.Good.For.You-2249149.shtml#5
[6]CC Staff. (2009, August 31). Smokin' the pot is good for you. Retrieved September 14, 2009, from College Candy: http://collegecandy.com/2009/08/31/smokin-the-pot-is-good-for-you/#more-39458
[7]Rowe, A. (2008, June 29). Some proof that marijuana is a powerful medicine. Retrieved September 14, 2009, from Wired Science Website: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/06/proof-that-mari/

"Wedding Cakes" and Expenditures

[1]

Walker's "Wedding Cake"

Samuel Walker created a way to help others more easily understand the way most cases are processed by using a four-layer wedding cake. Explanations of the layers of the wedding cake, and examples of cases in Colorado that coincide with each layer, are given below.

The first layer of the cake is the "celebrated layer" where court cases are blown up in the media and followed every step of the way. An example is in Denver, a woman no contest in a case involving the death of her two children. A little more than a year ago, the woman left her 5-year-old and 2-year-old children in her car and they died of heat exhaustion. She is sentenced to a two-year deferred sentence, and either 300 hours of community service or 50 public presentations on leaving kids in hot cars[2]. The story is a top-layer case because of the coverage in the media. The case has been covered by the Denver Post and other outlets since the beginning of the case, through the arrest, and finally to the verdict.

The second layer of the "wedding cake" includes serious crimes, usually committed by experienced offenders. Crimes like rapes, burglaries, and vicious incidents with innocent victims that include weapon and violence are worth full attention and a prison sentence. An example of the second layer is the case of Michael Lollis. The offender pled guilty to three completed rapes and one attempt to sexual assault. After a DNA test, he was linked with six more completed sexual assaults. His DNA was placed in the national DNA database because of the new Colorado law that went into effect in 2007, which requires all felons to provide DNA samples. He is now facing 120 years in prison[3].

The third layer of Samuel Walker's "wedding cake" consists of lower level felonies, such as small level robberies and assaults with no weapons being used. Recently, at the Gamma Phi Beta house outside of the University of Denver, a sorority sister woke up at 5:45 am to a man standing near her bed. The man then threatened the women verbally and ran off. Nobody was injured, but many laptops from the sorority house were stolen. Many small robberies similar to this one have been happening like this around the campus and have been unsolved[4]. Crimes like this are a perfect example to the "wedding cake" theory.

The fourth layer of the "wedding cake" consists of misdemeanors. The Colorado woman who is connected to a Texas Polygamist case would be an example of the fourth layer. This woman was considered a "person of interest" in the investigation into a polygamist ranch in Texas. Texas authorities found out she was linked to a telephone number possibly related to reports of alleged abuse at the Yearning for Zion Ranch. A search of her home turned up several items connecting her with the calls regarding the YFZ Ranch and also other polygamist compounds in Texas and Arizona. Rozita Swinton has been charged with a misdemeanor for making false reports to police in Colorado Springs, a charge unrelated to the Texas raid[5]. This incident is like many other that would fall into the fourth layer of the criminal justice "wedding cake".


Colorado Justice System Expenditures

In the state of Colorado, the expenditures for the entire justice system is $2,677,286, which is 7.5% of the total expenditure for the state. This is roughly average in relation to all the states in the United States expenditure. This is how that money is broken down between the police, the courts, and corrections.

The police get the most money, coming in at $1,203,113, getting the highest percentage of the money spent on the justice system with a percentage of 44.9%.

Corrections come in second with $1,000,586 spent on them, which is 37.4% of the total expenditure.

Last, and some say the least, is the judicial and legal area of the justice system with only $473,587 spent on them. They only received 17.7% of the total expenditure.

The reason why the police received the most money is most likely because Colorado only has a small population of 4,766,000 people. The state doesn't need to spend more money on jails or courts because there aren't as many facilities (jails and courthouses) as the police have. Most of the money spent on police is spent at the city and municipality level, not at the state level. Since there are more smaller towns than bigger cities, there only needs to be a few large courthouses, say in Denver and Colorado Springs, and that is where most of the money is spent for both the judicial/legal and corrections; at the state level!

One idea that is very feasible for the corrections is to have the inmates grow and maintain a farm. Not just a little garden, but an actual farm that could give them the food they need to eat, or have them sell the food to get the necessities that are currently given to them by the state out of their budget.

One idea for the police to reduce spending is to cut down the amount of police officers. To do that, there would need to be a change in shifts for the police. Say a 12-hour rotation shift; an officer would work 4 days, 12 hours a day, and then 3 days off. Some days there would be a lot more officers on duty and some days there wouldn't be as many.

Another way to reduce spending would be to raise the monetary amount required to take a case to court. That would greatly reduce the amount of cases being brought up to the courts, relieve the pressure on the caseload, and speed up the process.


Related Colorado Websites

The following are websites associated with the Colorado criminal justice systems, their missions statements, and the perspective on justice that each mission statement best coincides:

Colorado Department of Corrections
http://www.doc.state.co.us/index.html

The mission of the Colorado Department of Corrections is to protect the public through effective management of criminal offenders in controlled environments which are efficient, safe, humane, and appropriately secure, while also providing meaningful work and self-improvement opportunities to assist offenders with community re-entry through pro-social stabilization[6].

Their mission statement best fits with the Rehabilitation Perspective


Colorado Department of Public Safety
http://cdpsweb.state.co.us/

The mission of the Colorado Department of Public Safety is to provide a safe environment in Colorado by maintaining, promoting and enhancing public safety through law enforcement, criminal investigations, fire and crime prevention, recidivism reduction and victim advocacy. The CDPS also provides professional support of the criminal justice system, fire safety community, other governmental agencies and private entities. Throughout, our goal is to serve the public through an organization that emphasizes quality and integrity[7].

Their mission statement best fits with the Crime Control Perspective


Colorado State Judicial Branch
http://www.courts.state.co.us/

The Colorado Judicial Branch is a fair and impartial system of justice that:
- Protects constitutional and statutory rights and liberties
- Assures equal access
- Provides fair, timely and constructive resolution of cases
- Enhances public safety
- Supervises offenders
- Facilitates victim and community reparation[8]

Their mission statement includes beliefs from both the Justice and the Due Process Perspectives.

[1] Create a Cake. (n.d.). Retrieved September 7, 2009, from Create a Cake Website: http://www.creatacake.com.au/images/4%20tier%20cake%20with%20flowers.jpg
[2] Cardona, F. (2009, September 3). Retrieved September 5, 2009, from Denver Post Website: http://www.denverpost.com/ci_13262866
[3] KDVR Denver. (2009, September 4). Retrieved September 7, 2009, from Fox 31 KDVR Website: http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-serialrapist-090409,0,1010503.story?track=rss
[4] McPhee, M., & Nicholson, K. (2009, September 4). Retrieved September 5, 2009, from Denver Post Website: http://www.denverpost.com/crime/ci_13266217
[5] KDVR Denver. (2008, June 6). Retrieved September 7, 2009, from Fox 31 KDVR Website: http://www.kdvr.com/kdvr-coloradowomanconnectedtote-6712030,0,4110527.story
[6] Colorado Department of Corrections. (2009, April 1). Retrieved September 7, 2009, from Colorado Department of Corrections Website: https://exdoc.state.co.us/userfiles/regulations/pdf/0100_18.pdf
[7] Colorado Department of Public Safety. (n.d.). Retrieved September 7, 2009, from Colorado Department of Public Safety Website: http://cdpsweb.state.co.us/
[8]Colorado State Judicial Branch. (n.d.). Retrieved September 7, 2009, from Colorado State Judicial Branch Website: http://www.courts.state.co.us/

Welcome to the Colorado Crime Family Blog!

Welcome to this blog!
Figure 1. Colorado (n.d.). Source: discoveringcolorado.com


The Colorado Crime Family (CCF) will use this blog to discuss the criminal justice system in the beloved state of Colorado. There are 7 members in the family, which we will introduce below.

• AF is a 23-year-old sophomore who is majoring in criminal justice and would like to be a private investigator.
• AD is a 20-year-old sophomore who is majoring in criminal justice and is interested in becoming a divorce lawyer.
• CH is a 21-year-old sophomore who is majoring in criminal justice and is interested in becoming a business lawyer.
• LH is a 25-year-old sophomore who is majoring in accounting and would like to go into fraud accounting.
• DC is a 21-year-old senior who is majoring in film and is taking criminal justice for the social science credit.
• LR is a 19-year-old sophomore who is majoring in biology and is taking criminal justice for the social science credit.
• JC is an 18-year-old freshman who is majoring in criminal justice and would like to become a police officer.
  

Enjoy the CCF blog, and learn more about criminal justice and its role in Colorado.


1. Colorado [Online Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved September 4, 2009, from discovercolorado.com. http://www.discoveringcolorado.com/photos.htm