Who’s being arrested? And why?
Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and police Chief Paul Pazen promised “firm compassion” in enforcement efforts that would help those with substanceuse disorders and mental health needs.
“Our ongoing efforts will continue to focus on violent, property and narcotics-related crimes in the area, with an emphasis on holding accountable individuals who prey upon those suffering from addiction,” Pazen said in a Feb. 24 news release about arrests at Union Station. But Denver police data shows arrests and citations for drug distribution and violent crimes represent a small sliver of the total enforcement actions. Of 1,218 arrests and citations in the past six months, Denver police arrested 38 people on suspicion of drug distribution — about 3% of all police actions — and 60 people on allegations of violent crime, or about 5%.
When asked about the data, Denver police spokesman Doug Schepman said in a statement that the department’s focus at Union Station continues to be crime deterrence through high-visibility patrols and prompt response to crimes.
“DPD continues conducting drug distribution enforcement operations in the area, and it’s important to note that distribution cases are more challenging than possession cases,” he said.
The most common reasons for arrests and citations were active warrants (410), possession of drug paraphernalia (284), drug possession (134) and trespassing (70). Denver police data does not specify what charges are connected to the warrants. Other lesscommon offenses run the gamut: aiding unlawful public consumption of alcohol, possession of burglary tools, motor vehicle theft, having a vehicle without registration, shoplifting, smoking indoors.
The most common violent crimes were assault (37) and menacing (8). Police arrested a murder suspect in the area, though the
eted in the six-month period, 215 were arrested or ticketed at least twice and 49 were arrested or ticketed at least four times.
“It’s a revolving door in the criminal legal system and this is a good example of that premise,” said Gorman, of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar.
One 24-year-old woman was arrested or cited at Union Station nine times in six months: three times for warrants and six times for drug paraphernalia. She was first arrested on Dec. 22 and she was ticketed most recently on April 27. Between 2 p.m. Jan. 11 and 7 p.m. Jan. 12, she was ticketed twice and arrested once — all for drug paraphernalia, which carries a $100 fine and no possibility of jail time.
Her arrest history is comprised solely of trespassing, minor drug charges, making a false report, and arrests for failing to appear in court for those charges, according to records maintained by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.
Denver police on Feb. 24 announced a “large-scale enforcement operation” that resulted in the arrest of 43 people, including eight suspected of selling drugs. As of May 4, five of those people remained in the
Denver Downtown tion Center.
The majority of the criminal cases are ongoing, though four have been sentenced. One man pleaded guilty to possession of drugs with the intent to distribute and received two years of unsupervised probation as well as credit for 61 days he already served in jail, court records show. Two men, arrested on warrants and possession of drug paraphernalia, had their cases dismissed because of cases they had pending in other jurisdictions. The fourth man received 10 days in jail for drug possession and use.
Thirteen of the 43 have been re-arrested at Union Station since Feb. 24.
RTD police officers have noticed people who used to hang out at Union Station in other locations along the light rail and bus routes they patrol. On Tuesday, RTD police and Lakewood police officers targeted the Lakewood-wadsworth light rail platform, which has seen increased drug use and loitering in recent weeks, said Johnson, the RTD police officer.
“It’s gotten better down at Union Station but, like the homeless sweeps, it pushes people somewhere else,” Johnson said.
Deten
Police officers and RTD security aim to connect people with services and to lead with compassion, Martingano said. RTD employs four mental health clinicians and a homeless outreach coordinator who work with police to help people. But sometimes police have to resort to arrests or citations, he said.
“It’s been months and months and months of trying to direct individuals to the proper services that are provided,” Martingano said. “There comes a point where it’s like, you know what, we have to figure out what plan B is. It’s kinda like telling your kid, ‘If you don’t study, I’m going to shut the TV off.’ Then you actually have to turn off the TV and they’ll be like, ‘Whoa, OK, I’ll study.'”