Sangre de Cristo Sentinel

11/25/2025

https://rockymountainvoice.com/2025/11/22/the-numbers-didnt-match-el-pasos-canvass-exposes-a-statewide-reporting-failure-the-state-never-explained/

El Paso County’s canvass uncovered major discrepancies in Colorado’s Election Night Reporting file, raising new questions about statewide oversight.

11/19/2025

DENVER (KDVR) — A Highlands Ranch storage unit that was purchased during an auction turned into law enforcement’s largest seizure of fentanyl in Colorado history. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said that on Nov. 11, someone legally purchased a storage unit and when they opened it, found m...

11/13/2025

DENVER–Governor Jared Polis recently proposed his more than $50 billion Colorado state budget, requesting a flood of money to education and public safety while acknowledging Medicaid spending has gotten out of hand. The 2026-27 spending plan was presented to the Joint Budget Committee on Oct. 31, ...

11/04/2025

Melody Renee Sprecher (Gleason)
Memorial to be held at their home in Westcliffe on November 8th at 12 p.m.
https://sangredecristosentinel.com/2025/10/obit_sprecher/

10/28/2025

Sunday Morning Car Crash Leads to Mental Health Crisis Response

Sunday morning, Custer County deputies, along with Rye Fire and Rescue, were dispatched to a rollover crash near the town of Rye Colorado on Highway 165.

911 callers reported that the driver appeared uninjured but was making suicidal statements and brandishing a pistol. Witnesses said the man was pointing the weapon at his head and expressing thoughts of self-harm.

The responding deputy called out three additional deputies and a crisis co-responder to assist. Deputies successfully convinced the man to set down his firearm and surrender peacefully. He was taken into custody without injury.

The crisis co-responder—a licensed clinician with over 20 years of experience—spoke with the patient and facilitated a safe transfer to a supervisor with the U.S. Army, which arranged for further mental health treatment at a medical facility.

Custer County currently maintains one of the highest per-capita numbers of crisis clinicians available for 24-hour law enforcement support in Colorado. Although clinicians are dispatched through the sheriff’s office and funded by a grant, they remain bound by clinician–patient confidentiality. They provide diagnostic impressions that help determine the type of care or facility appropriate for each case.

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of su***de or mental health challenges, call or text 988, the National Mental Health Crisis Line.

10/23/2025

10/17/2025

10/10/2025

On October 8th, 2025, at about 5:30 PM Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Ryland Geske was performing routine patrol duties on Poncha Pass (Highway 285 south of Poncha Springs, CO) when he observed a white SUV stopped on the northbound shoulder next to a gray motorcycle. Deputy Geske immediately remembered earlier receiving information (dispatched to a different deputy) about a gray motorcycle with a cargo trailer attached being reported abandoned in this same general area.

As Deputy Geske approached he observed the white SUV pulling out into traffic ahead of him (southbound) and the white SUV was pulling the trailer. Deputy Geske also observed that the motorcycle was on the side of the highway without a trailer.

Deputy Geske initiated a traffic stop on the SUV and identified the driver as Denis Daniel Maqueria Alfonso, age 36 from Alamosa, CO. Maqueria Alfonso alleged that the trailer was his, it had been earlier stolen from him, but he could not provide ownership proof because the friend that had gifted it to him was now in Mexico. Through his roadside investigation Deputy Geske determined that Maqueria Alfonso had seen the motorcycle and trailer on the side of the highway and decided to steal it.

Maqueria Alfonso was taken into custody and transported to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center where he was held on a $500.00 bond for the charge of Theft, a class 6 felony. It was later learned that the true owner of the motorcycle and trailer had parked on the side of the highway to go hiking in the backcountry with intentions of coming back to retrieve them in a few days. Maqueria Alfonso is considered innocent until/ unless proven guilty in a court of law.

“Not only was Deputy Geske in the right place at the right time but his attention to detail and memory retention is hard to match. We are lucky to have him protecting life and property for the people of Chaffee County.” -Sheriff Andy Rohrich

10/07/2025

10/04/2025

https://cowboystatedaily.com/2025/10/01/wyoming-hunter-calls-bull-moose-to-within-10-feet-to-experience-pure-rush/

A Wyoming hunter called in a bull moose to within 10 feet of where he stood while hunting elk Tuesday. The hunter said he experienced a “pure rush,” and…