May 1, 2015 VOLU M E 1 3 | I S SUE 26
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Jury convicts chase suspect
Ryan Stone faces minimum of 64 years in prison
By Jane Reuter
jreuter@coloradocommunitymedia.com
A man who led authorities on a dangerous pursuit down I-25 was found guilty of attempted manslaughter, avoiding a conviction on the first-degree attempted murder charge he was facing as jurors began deliberations.
A Douglas County jury found Ryan Stone guilty on 18 of 20 charges for a March 2014 chase that ended with a violent collision at Lincoln Avenue and Peoria Street. Stone, 29, faces a minimum of 64 years in prison after the verdict was delivered at noon April 29. A sentencing date had not immediately been set. The jury also decided that Stone was not guilty of one count of kidnapping and one count of attempted robbery. The pursuit was captured by an 850 KOA news helicopter and televised live. It forced authorities to shut down off-ramps and lay down spike
strips. Stone was charged with attempted first-degree murder with extreme indifference after striking Colorado State Patrol Trooper Bellamann Hee at 94 mph while Hee was putStone ting down a spike strip on E-470 near Chambers Road. But the jury found him guilty of the lesser charge of attempted manslaughter. Parker resident Stacy Rader, whose vehicle was T-boned in the crash that ended the
chase, said she is satisfied with the verdict and attended the trial, in part, to support Hee and a 4-year-old child was who in the back seat of the first vehicle Stone stole. “I think the right thing happened,” she said just after the verdict was read at the Douglas County Justice Center in Castle Rock. Then, referring to Stone, Rader said, “I’m just a little emotional to see his family so upset.” Mark Hurlburt, deputy district attorney Stone continues on Page 9
DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOLS
A family on a
Bond issue drives debate
MISSION
Presentation on capital needs draws supporters, detractors By Jane Reuter
jreuter@colorado communitymedia.com
TOP RIGHT: Addie Maldonado, 14, befriends a Haitian girl. ABOVE: Dawson Maldonado, 17, of Parker, introduces a group of Haitian children to bubbles. Courtesy photos
By Chris Michlewicz | cmichlewicz@coloradocommunitymedia.com
B
y the time they departed Haiti, the Maldonado family had been extended by a few members. Parker residents Obed and Angela Maldonado, and their children: Daw-
What they did
Helped fund and build a church; hired translators, workers and guides to provide temporary jobs; made connections with the villagers by sharing stories, handing out stickers to children and introducing them to wandblown bubbles.
A story
son, 17; Addie, 14; and Caleb, 12. The family traveled with 13 others from the Denver First Church of the Nazarene to Petionville, a section of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and Verrettes
The challenges
Haiti’s unemployment is at a staggering 80 percent, resulting in an impoverished population; the humidity and heat are often unbearable; natural disasters and unstable buildings; the threat of robbery; a vast population of voodoo practitioners; coordinating trips to a third-world country; lack of access to running water and electricity; and long rides in caged truck beds.
For many of the missions, the church has hired a “precious and beautiful woman” named Elise, whom the Maldonados affectionately refer to as “Mama.” She helps with the cooking, cleaning and, at times protection, like when she warded off a group of voodoo dancers that entered the family’s dwelling and
demanded money. For a time, the family never saw where Mama went to sleep for the night. Mama “didn’t want anyone to know where she was living,” Angela Maldonado said. It was discovered that she was sleeping underneath a concrete slab, one of
commune in Haiti from March 22 to April 1. Members of the Maldonado family have gone at least once per year since 2011.
The people
Denver First Church of the Nazarene sends people to Haiti with various skill sets: some are physically strong and help with day-to-day labor, others are nurturing mother figures who help with the island nation’s 1 million orphans. Dawson, Addie and Caleb make connections with children and take away important cultural lessons.
the remnants of her home, which was damaged in the massive 2010 earthquake. “Nobody knew. She’s a very humble woman, thankful for her job, and they were able to repair what they could of her home so she could have a place to live again,” she said.
After 87 meetings with more than 1,000 community members on the school district’s long list of facility concerns, the Douglas County School Board said more work should be done before it can decide whether to put a capitalneeds tax issue on the November ballot. The school district has a final opportunity in November to ask taxpayers to maintain tax bills that would otherwise go down this year. If voters approved the proposal for a new $200 million bond, their school tax bill would remain unchanged instead of dropping by about $36 a year. After deciding not to put the question to voters in 2014, the board charged its Long Range Planning Committee with educating and getting feedback from the public about the $275 million in unmet capital needs. Committee members and financial staff gave a detailed presentation to the board about their findings during the April 21 board meeting. Surveys and comments they gathered from community members show support for funding those needs with a bond or some form of tax. “We heard the recognition of the
Ballot continues on Page 9
HOW DISTRICTS COMPARE Douglas County receives among the lowest per-pupil funding in the Denver metro area. In 2014-15, that amount was $6,763.59, according to the CDE. Neighboring Littleton Public Schools is also on the low end of the state funding list, getting only $1.66 more per-pupil than Douglas County in 2014-15. The CDE shows its per-pupil funding at 6,765.25. Littleton’s per-pupil state funding rank did not dissuade voters there from passing a refinancing mechanism similar to the one proposed in Douglas County in November 2013.