Elise Schmelzer
The Denver Post
Colorado, United States
Contact Elise
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Elise:
“One of the great challenges of our time”: How mass killers slip through Colorado’s fragmented safety net
Assessing the credibility of threats is difficult, messy work, and state law can make it hard for bystanders, mental health professionals and police to intervene until a situation becomes dire. → Read More
Aurora police to use AI to review body camera footage for “the good, the bad and the ugly”
The Aurora Police Department is finalizing a contract with Truleo, a company that uses artificial intelligence software to analyze police officers' speech as recorded by their own body cameras. → Read More
Crime, cops and reform: Here’s what Denverites say the next mayor needs to address about public safety
Questions about Denver's crime and public safety have been central for the 17 candidates running to succeed Mayor Michael Hancock as the leader of the state's largest city. → Read More
Colorado deputy shot and killed unarmed man at point-blank range after struggle outside middle school, video shows
The encounter never should have escalated to the point of a physical struggle or deadly force, according to the wrongful-death lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court against Pueblo County and five sh… → Read More
Colorado cop shot and killed unarmed man at point-blank range after struggle outside middle school, video shows
The encounter never should have escalated to the point of a physical struggle or deadly force, according to the wrongful-death lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court against Pueblo County and five sh… → Read More
Son of Denver’s RTD police chief killed in line of duty
Temple University police Officer Christopher Fitzgerald, the son of the Regional Transportation District police chief, was killed in the line of duty Saturday while pursuing a suspect in Philadelphia. → Read More
Man dies after being Tased by police, struck by car on I-25
A man died Saturday during a traffic stop after being Tased by a Larimer County sheriff’s deputy and struck by a passing vehicle, the sheriff’s office said. → Read More
Denver’s new law enforcement watchdog to focus on community relationships
Lisabeth Pérez Castle became the city's top law enforcement watchdog in January -- filling a position that had been vacant for two years as the city's citizen oversight board searched for the right candidate. → Read More
Colorado deputies indicted in killing of 22-year-old Christian Glass ask for charges to be dismissed
Kyle Gould and Andrew Buen, the two Clear Creek County sheriff’s deputies indicted in the fatal shooting of 22-year-old Christian Glass, last year are challenging the charges against them, saying prosecutors don’t have enough evidence against them. → Read More
Denver homicides fell slightly in 2022, but non-fatal shootings rose — and more teens are being killed
Denver homicides decreased last year from 2021, but remain higher than the number of killings in the 2010s. → Read More
Pain and prison, then peace: How a Denver shooter and victim reconciled two decades after the shot was fired
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 friendship — will help… → Read More
Club Q shooting: Entirety of deadly attack captured on surveillance video, prosecutor says
Surveillance cameras inside and outside of Club Q captured the entirety of the mass shooting at the Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub, prosecutors said in court Friday. → Read More
Denver to pay $325,000 to couple shot by police with pepper balls in incident that went viral
A couple has won a $325,000 settlement from the city of Denver after police officers shot them with pepper balls in 2020, despite the fact that the woman was pregnant and the couple was not causing any harm. → Read More
3 steps to quickly background-check your next Colorado dating app match like a crime reporter
Next time you match with someone on Tinder, Hinge or Bumble, here is how to background check your dating app match in Colorado. → Read More
22-year-old posed no threat to police before Colorado cop killed him, law enforcement review finds
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 l… → Read More
Police officer indicted on assault charges in Denver police shooting that injured 6 bystanders
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 jur… → Read More
Suspect in Berkeley Lake Park fatal shooting turns himself in to Denver police
A 22-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting a man at Berkeley Lake Park turned himself in to police Wednesday. → Read More
A year after Denver-Lakewood killing spree, police review of prior warnings about shooter still not public
Denver police officials launched an investigation after the Dec. 27, 2021, killings to review how they handled tips they received about the gunman, Lyndon McLeod, in 2020 and 2021. → Read More
High-profile chief takes over troubled Aurora Police Department: “I will always say what’s on my mind”
Art Acevedo, Aurora's new interim police chief, comes with a national profile, famous friends, cable television news appearances and more than a decade of experience as a leader of large departments in Houston and Miami. → Read More
Nurse filmed his sexual assault of unconscious women at Colorado hospital, lawsuit alleges
St. Mary’s Medical Center in Grand Junction faces a lawsuit alleging a nurse sexually assaulted and filmed two women in the hospital. → Read More