Elise Schmelzer

Elise Schmelzer is a breaking news reporter at The Denver Post. She previously wrote for the Casper Star-Tribune in Wyoming, the Washington Post and the Colorado Springs Gazette. When she's not writing, she disappears into the mountains to hike and fish.

Jonathan Nelson, left, and Matthew Roberts pose for a photo in between buildings near the From the Heart nonprofit

Crime and Public Safety |
How a 16-year-old shooter and 19-year-old victim reconciled two decades after the shot was fired

January 17, 2023 at 7:16 a.m.

Twenty-three years after Jonathan Nelson shot Matthew Roberts in the stomach at a party in Denver, the two men sat down to brunch. Now they hope their story -- and...

A file photo of an Aurora police cruiser.

Crime and Public Safety |
Colorado cop promoted after passing out drunk at wheel of patrol car while on duty in 2019

January 12, 2023 at 11:26 a.m.

An Aurora police officer who was on duty and drunk when he passed out while driving his department car in 2019 has been promoted.

The Colorado sheriff's deputy who killed 22-year-old Christian Glass had no reason to use any force on Glass because he posed no lethal threat and there was no legal reason to detain him, a law enforcement review found.

Crime and Public Safety |
22-year-old posed no threat to police before Colorado cop killed him, law enforcement review finds

January 6, 2023 at 10:57 a.m.

The Colorado sheriff's deputy who killed 22-year-old Christian Glass had no reason to use any force on Glass because he posed no lethal threat and there was no legal reason...

Denver police Officer Brandon Ramos will face assault charges for allegedly shooting five bystanders after he fired at a suspect in a crowded bar district in Lower Downtown last summer, a grand jury ruled Wednesday.

Crime and Public Safety |
Police officer indicted on assault charges in Denver police shooting that injured 6 bystanders

January 5, 2023 at 6:25 a.m.

Denver police Officer Brandon Ramos will face assault charges for allegedly shooting five bystanders after he fired at a suspect in a crowded bar district in Lower Downtown last summer,...

The day before Club Q shooting suspect Anderson Aldrich's alleged 2021 bomb threat and police standoff, family members called the FBI and El Paso County law enforcement to report the suspect was threatening violence against relatives, Christians and the government, records show.

Crime and Public Safety |
Family called FBI and 911 about Club Q shooting suspect’s threats night before 2021 standoff, records show

December 21, 2022 at 4:48 a.m.

The day before Club Q shooting suspect Anderson Aldrich's alleged 2021 bomb threat and police standoff, family members called the FBI and El Paso County law enforcement to report the...

St. Mary's Medical Center in Grand Junction faces a lawsuit alleging a nurse sexually assaulted and film two women in the hospital.

Crime and Public Safety |
Nurse filmed his sexual assault of unconscious women at Colorado hospital, lawsuit alleges

December 21, 2022 at 4:45 a.m.

St. Mary's Medical Center in Grand Junction faces a lawsuit alleging a nurse sexually assaulted and film two women in the hospital.

The 2021 criminal case against Club Q shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich that involved an alleged threat to become the "next mass killer" was dismissed by a judge after the suspect's family members refused to participate in the court process, Fourth Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen said Thursday.

Crime and Public Safety |
Guns seized in Club Q shooting suspect’s 2021 arrest were never returned, case dismissed after family didn’t cooperate

December 9, 2022 at 5:21 a.m.

The 2021 criminal case against Club Q shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich that involved an alleged threat to become the "next mass killer" was dismissed by a judge after the...

Elise Schmelzer

All Stories