Category: krdo-local-news

Celeste Springer

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) — The Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) released new details in the investigation into Davis Mortuary and owners Brian and Chris Cotter.

According to the CBI, a total of 24 bodies were located at Davis Mortuary. Additionally, “multiple containers of bones and several containers of probable human tissue” were also located. It’s unknown how many people are tied to the containers of bones and human tissue.

Brian and Chris Cotter are co-owners of Davis Mortuary. Brian Cotter is also the standing Pueblo County Coroner. The mortuary made nationwide headlines last week after 13 Investigates was the first to break the story that it was under investigation.

Brian Cotter reportedly told inspectors that some of the bodies had been in the room for roughly 15 years, and that he “may” have given some families fake cremains.

According to Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) documents, the mortuary was due for its first annual inspection when inspectors found bodies in various states of decay in a room hidden by a cardboard display.

On Friday morning, the CBI descended onto the homes of Brian and Chris Cotter. The CBI said they were executing search warrants, but did not elaborate further. The CBI made no mention of any remains located at the homes; the human tissue and bones were all found across town at the mortuary, they said.

A KRDO13 crew at the scene of Brian Cotter’s home saw investigators carrying out bags of evidence on Tuesday morning. Brian Cotter was also there, standing outside as the search was underway. Investigators were on scene for hours and left with pieces of evidence, including what appeared to be a piece of a desktop computer. A KRDO13 crew also saw investigators motioning to Cotter’s RV on the property. It’s unclear if it’s of any interest, but neighbors say they haven’t seen it moved in years.

“It is a surprise. I hope that justice prevails,” said neighbor Louis Reyes. “I want to see justice.”

As of publication, criminal charges have not been brought forth for Brian or Chris Cotter. The district attorney’s office said it must finish the investigation before evaluating potential charges.

The CBI says they have not questioned either of the brothers, as they have lawyered up.

The Pueblo County Board of Commissioners announced late on Tuesday afternoon that a recall petition for Brian Cotter has been filed. According to a spokesperson for the county, if the recall petition clears legal requirements, petitioners will have 60 days to collect 16,431 valid signatures. From there, the signatures are verified. If everything checks out, the issue will head to voters, who will decide whether to remove Cotter from office.

For all of our reports on this case, click here.

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Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) says they are investigating after a body was found in Fountain Creek early Tuesday morning.

There is a closure running from East Las Vegas Street and Royer Street, police said.

As of right now, CSPD says the death doesn’t appear suspicious, though the coroner will need to determine the official cause of death.

Details are limited at this time, but this article may be updated.

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Scott Harrison

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) — People who drive or live along Jerry Murphy Road on the city’s northeast side have noticed that street “dips” at two adjacent intersections were lowered recently, but not for the reasons they hoped for.

As KRDO 13’s “The Road Warrior” reported in February, the dips at several intersections along the road were built before current construction standards; they are designed to help drainage flow into storm drain inlets which are several blocks apart.

However, the dips are very bumpy for vehicles to drive over and often cause vehicles to scrape their undersides on the pavement.

Neighbors believe that the dips also pose a safety concern because drivers traveling too fast have lost control, hitting the dips and crashing into parked vehicles, yards, and even houses.

Derrick Camus and Debbye Duran-Camus said that they had a close call with a drunk driver.

“It came through here, took out the side of our house here, and I was sleeping in that bedroom — and the wall that it came in was about that far from my sleeping head,” Debbye recalled. “So, this is a dangerous area.

Concerned neighbors and drivers want all of the dips removed, but the city lowered them only at the Glenmore Road and Taos Road intersections.

That change, the city explained, was made as part of a requirement to meet federal disability standards for pedestrians crossing the intersection.

Concrete slabs known as cross pans had cracked along the dips, and repairs increased safety for pedestrians, as well as improving drainage.

The city also installed new curbs, gutters, and sidewalks around the intersections for added safety.

The dips are near Haaff Elementary School, and many students and parents walk through the area to get to and from school.

Drivers should be aware that the lowered dips don’t make the street entirely flat, so drivers should proceed cautiously over them.

The Road Warrior noticed that many drivers are doing exactly that because they’re accustomed to it.

However, the city stated that the most effective solution to reduce crashes caused by the remaining dips is for drivers to slow down.

“We weren’t going in there to put it in for traffic concerns or anything like that,” said Chuck Roy, the city’s acting public works director. “This was really just for walkability and for getting the water across the road.”

Some residents didn’t know the reason for the lowered dips until they saw The Road Warrior’s live coverage on Tuesday morning.

“Thank you for your piece on the Jerry Murphy dips,” Gayle Rovertson wrote in an email to The Road Warrior. It answered several questions I had. But what about the bad cracks and potholes on Jerry Murphy?”

The city plans to repave Jerry Murphy next year, at the earliest.

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Rob Namnoum

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — At Doherty High School. It’s We before Me.

“It’s a team first and individual second. And we’re working hard to establish that. I think we’re doing a good job with that. You won’t see anybody running around wearing number one for Doherty High School this year because the team is number one,” says Doherty head coach Mike Campbell.

Mike Campbell is the new head honcho this season for Doherty. And his players really love being coached up, “I like his coaching style, it’s old school. It’s not so soft,” says Doherty linebacker, Nate Bettencourt.

Gavin Gilbert adds, “It’s like drastically different, to be honest. We’re a lot more connected as a team. I feel like this year, because of the coaching staff and everybody so new, it’s a fresh start.”

It’s a fresh start with a lot of new faces, “Just trying to piece it all together and make it as comfortable as we can, for young players who are typically pretty uncomfortable on Friday night,” says Campbell. 

The senior class is doing their part to help out the younger players, “Coaches aren’t the only coaches. Seniors, they gotta give them a little bit of ice from time to time when coaches are talking to another player or something. We have a lot of experience. We could teach up the little guys to let them know what we know,” says Bettencourt.

The seniors also know that they only have a little time left at Doherty, and they want to leave the program in good hands.

“Even though we’re leaving this school…we want to remember it as a good school. We’re trying to leave them a great opportunity for if not this year, next year,” says Gilbert.

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Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) K-9 Unit says it has welcomed a new firearms detection dog to the force.

According to police, the K-9 is named Roam, and he has wrapped up training for a Patrol Apprehension and Firearms Detection certification.

K-9 Roam (Courtesy: CSPD K-9 Unit)

“He will work closely with Major Crimes detectives to assist in shooting and homicide investigations, and he will be available to respond to firearm-related calls for service citywide,” wrote the K-9 unit on Facebook.

Nationwide, firearm detection K-9s have been used to help detect guns at schools, but they have also been utilized in the private sector, providing private security for places like malls or hospitals.

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Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — The ramp to Highway 24 from I-25 southbound is closed due to a crash, according to Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) cameras.

CDOT says the closure is due to a crash. The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) also has crews on scene, according to their social media.

Details are limited at this time, but this article may be updated.

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Celeste Springer

COSTILLA COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) says that human remains have been located in the Wild Horse Mesa community in Costilla County.

According to investigators, the property owner called in on Aug. 18 to report that he had found the remains.

The CBI says crews were sent out the following day and confirmed that there were remains on site with the help of K9 resources.

The remains have not yet been identified, the CBI says.

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Marina Garcia

PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – 13 Investigates has uncovered that the Pueblo County Coroner, Brian Cotter, is accused of hiding bodies in a secret room of his privately-owned funeral home, Davis Mortuary.

13 Investigates saw a similar, unrelated incident occur at Return to Nature Funeral Home in Penrose back in 2023. Owners Jon and Carie Hallford were accused of letting close to 200 bodies stack up and decompose at their funeral home. Our extensive reporting contributed to legislative change in Colorado.

You can read more on the Return to Nature case by clicking here.

This latest case is a painful reminder for families who were impacted by Return to Nature.

“It’s been a kind of trauma, you know, post-traumatic stress. It’s the kind of the kind of therapy I’ve had to go through is not anything I could have imagined. I wasn’t prepared,” said Lisa Ostly, who was personally impacted by the Return to Nature case.

In a press conference on Thursday, officials with the CBI said that some of the experts who worked the Return to Nature case are assisting with this investigation into Davis Mortuary. The CBI added that they are using some of the same “methods” to investigate this case.

But the families of the Return to Nature case know first-hand that there is a long road ahead for those seeking answers. Jon and Carie Hallford are still working their way through the court system. It’s unclear right now what the timeline will be for Brian Cotter; District Attorney Kala Beauvais said that, as of right now, no charges have been filed against Cotter.

To read our full coverage on the Brian Cotter/Davis Mortuary case, click here.

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Michael Logerwell

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) – The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) said it made the discovery of multiple decomposing bodies in a secret room at Davis Mortuary during a “mandated annual inspection” on Wednesday.

But just a few years ago, this inspection might have never happened.

In May of 2024, Governor Jared Polis signed the Sunset Continue Mortuary Science Code Regulation bill (HB24-1335) into law. That law required funeral homes and crematories to be subject to inspections on a routine basis and allocated DORA inspectors more power to complete the inspection.

KRDO13 Investigates’ coverage of another funeral home, Return to Nature, contributed to the drafting of that legislation. Our coverage ultimately won a Murrow Award.

Rep. Brianna Titone (D) was a primary sponsor on HB24-1335. Titone says this week’s inspection would not have happened without the passage of that bill.

“After all of the decades of having no regulations or inspections, we are finally going to right the wrongs that have been and are still going on,” Rep. Titone said. “We were the ONLY state without regulation, and clearly this has attracted bad faith actors in the funeral industry.”

Another primary sponsor on that bill and others regarding the funeral home industry, Rep. Matt Soper (R) said the news coverage around Return to Nature led to more changes in how Colorado regulates funeral homes and crematories.

“The type of news coverage that shocks the conscience, and people were just stunned. I mean, they were mortified. And so they were coming to us as legislators, actually demanding that we do more,” Rep. Soper said that after a body brokerage scheme was uncovered, he sponsored HB20-1148, Offenses Committed Against A Deceased Human Body. That now-law made abuse of a corpse a felony; it was previously a misdemeanor.

“This is what my constituents and the general public across Colorado asked for us to do. They wanted to ensure that the government actually had the ability to make a license mean something,” Rep. Soper said.

At a CBI press conference on Thursday, a DORA official said this was the very first mandatory annual investigation of the Davis Mortuary. KRDO13 Investigates asked DORA how many times Davis Mortuary had been inspected in the past 15 years. At this time, it isn’t clear how many times they’ve been inspected.

Also revealed at the press conference, none of the employees at the Davis Mortuary were licensed to practice as a funeral director, a mortuary science practitioner, an embalmer, a cremationist, or a natural reductionist. HB24-173, which is now law, requires a license, but not until 2027.

To read all of our reports on the Davis Mortuary case, click here.

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Rob Namnoum

A defensive battle between Falcon and Rampart on Thursday night at District 20 Stadium. Falcon would edge Rampart 7-6.

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