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Tensions flare at outgoing Denver school board members' final meeting

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Outgoing board members for Denver Public Schools held their final meeting Thursday night, and there was some serious tension.It was a chance to put a bookend on their time governing the largest school district in Colorado, but it was not without controversy. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox This was a meeting attended by friends or family of the outgoing board members, but a group of parents who voted them out, couldn't get into the main room."Every two years, we do a celebration to honor those who are leaving," said Auon'tai Anderson, outgoing Board of Education member at large.He and other outgoing board members were met by family and friends."We were planning on sitting very peacefully in the back for the last board meeting of this board, and we were barred from coming in," DPS parent Heather Lamm said.Frustrated parents were not allowed into Denver Public Schools board chambers during the final board meeting for members who wer...

Greenwood Village murder suspect wanted

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Metro Denver Crime Stoppers is asking for the public's help in solving a high-profile Colorado crime.Justin Kautz, 39, is suspected of first-degree murder in connection with an incident in a Greenwood Village retail parking lot on Oct. 19. A 39-year-old woman with Kautz at the time died in the incident. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox Kautz stands 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighs around 180 pounds, police said. He has brown eyes, closely-cropped hair and a distinctive goatee. He was last seen driving a 2008 black Chevrolet Impala LTZ.Police said he is possibly armed and considered dangerous.Justin Kautz (Credit: Greenwood Village Police Department)“The further it goes from the original crime date, statistically, the harder it is to get that crime solved,” said Danny Young, Metro Denver Crime Stoppers co-president.Metro Denver Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $2,000 for information that leads to an arrest.“Normally, peop...

Declining pot sales put Aurora nonprofits in a bind

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — A decline in marijuana sales is putting a strain on Aurora nonprofits.Marijuana sales have dropped back to pre-pandemic levels, and that's taking millions of dollars off the table for Aurora charities that serve the homeless population. That includes aid like temporary housing, cold weather shelters and meal programs. Auto thefts decline in the Denver metro, where task force is ramped up Organizers told FOX31 the situation is partially because of a shortfall in retail marijuana sales, which are taxed by the city to fund a response to homelessness.That funding was cut by more than half, and if more funding isn't provided, nonprofits can start seeing services reduced almost immediately by Jan. 1.“I was blessed and fortunate to get a room," said Judith Benitez who fell on hard times.Judith Benitez at Comitis Crisis Center in Aurora (KDVR)She's a resident at the Comitis Crisis Center on Victor Street. Since Aug. 7, she has been sleeping at the center."When you’r...

Loveland veteran, 100, receives French medal for WWII heroics

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

LOVELAND, Colo. (KDVR) — It was a medal ceremony 78 years in the making.In front of a crowd of family, friends and fellow veterans, Roger Smith of Loveland had the prestigious French Legion of Honour pinned to his lapel. The medal is the highest French decoration and one of the most famous medals in the world, and it was bestowed on Smith for his heroics in helping to liberate that country during World War II.“So I raised my right hand on the 23rd of July, 1942," Smith told FOX31.A lifelong lover of aviation, Smith had a unique role in France’s liberation. He piloted a glider into German-occupied southern France on Aug. 15, 1944 – known as the “second D-Day.” It’s the day the Allies launched “Operation Dragoon." Colorado veteran reunited with the B-52 he flew over Vietnam 50 years ago Their mission was to land infantry troops and secure Mediterranean port cities to help drive out the Nazis. The operation was a big success.“I’ve been trying to bring out more recognition for what he...

Club Q shooting survivor reflects on anniversary of tragedy

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KDVR) — This Sunday marks one year since the mass shooting at Club Q. Five people were killed and dozens more injured.Nov. 19, 2022, was a day that forever changed the lives of so many, especially victim Wyatt Kent. FOX31 sat down one-on-one with the victim, who had close ties to every person lost in this tragedy. Club Q announces new location and name change In the wake, the days and months pass in no normal way when you're grieving.“It feels like it's been two months, and it feels like it's been five years all at once,” Kent said.1 year since the Club Q tragedyFor Kent, the anniversary of the Club Q shooting marks his birthday — the night he almost lost his life in the club and the night he lost five people who touched his life in different ways. From Kelly, who he says blocked him by gunfire, to the love of his life Daniel, these victims continue to touch his life daily.“Every single day,” Kent said. “Daniel comes through that window over there in a ray...

Tala Beach at 1 Hotel South Beach makes guests feel like they’ve traveled to Greece without leaving SoFlo

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

Picture this: a lush tropical vacation, not a care in the world, tons of fun, food and parties.Sounds like a complete dream, but don’t worry — it’s all real! Not to mention, it’s right in our own backyard, so no need to dust off your passport.This is no Mediterranean vacation. It’s Tala Beach at Miami Beach’s 1 Hotel.Mio Danilovic: “Tala Beach is a beautiful beach club that we opened here at the 1 Hotel. It’s a Mediterranean-inspired oasis, if you will.”Think of it like taking a trip to Greece without ever leaving the city.Mio Danilovic: “People can come from the beach to come have lunch here, they can have lunch and go to the beach, go to the boardwalk. They can come from the hotel, have a beautiful lunch experience or an evening party.”But if you really want to amp up the fun…Mio Danilovic: “Tala Nights is this monthly party that we do, it happens once a month. It’s got bottle service, big-name marquee D...

MV Realty files for bankruptcy protection, accused in lawsuit of ‘swindling’ homeowners across the country

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

A South Florida company is being sued by the state, accused of “swindling” homeowners across the country and targeting seniors. Karen Hensel has tonight’s 7 Investigates.John Browning Jr., homeowner: “There’s a lot of memories here. Yes, there’s a lot of memories here.”This has been home for John Browning Jr. for decades. It was a gift from one of his sons, who was a former defensive lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs.John Browning Jr.: “My oldest son bought the house back in 1996. He bought this house with money that he played football and made.”He gave it to his dad, who has worked hard his whole life — detailing cars.Now at age 76, John is the full-time caregiver for his disabled grandson.John Browning Jr.: “Michael is mentally challenged, and he’s got cerebral palsy.”Both his grandson and a second son live with him.While he was not looking to sell his home, John was enticed when he got a call from MV R...

Scandal, deception at heart of ‘May December’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

Written by Samy Burch from a story by Burch and Alex Mechanik, both making their feature debut, “May December” from director Todd Haynes of “The Velvet Underground,” “Carol” and “Far From Heaven” fame is an odd bird. But then again Haynes has made a career out of odd birds. Haynes once made a short film about Karen Carpenter, using Barbie and Ken dolls as his “actors.” It worked remarkably well.This new film tells the story of a fictional actor named Elizabeth Berry (Natalie Portman), who visits Savannah to study a married couple for a film she is about to shoot. The film is about the couple, who made news over two decades years earlier when they had an affair when the woman was in her 30s, married with children, and the man was 13. She went to jail. When she got out they got married and had children of their own. Elizabeth arrives on the eve of the high school graduation of two of the children. The film is loosely based on the story of Mary Kay Letourneau.The household is in a tizz...

Lee: Some pols want to edit your shopping list

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

Should the government decide what goes in your shopping cart?Surprisingly, some in Congress want to empower government bureaucrats to restrict consumer freedom by limiting the ability of needy families to purchase certain foods and beverages.This attempted power grab comes at a time when Americans ask their political leaders for relief from grocery prices, not more government overreach into their shopping carts.Some members of Congress have introduced legislation prohibiting recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program from buying foods and beverages those congressional members find objectionable. Those members actively seek to include those restrictions in the Farm Bill later this year during the bipartisan negotiations.The logic behind that effort is to encourage healthier lifestyles, which is a laudable goal. Sponsors of the bills somehow believe that banning SNAP purchases of beverages and desserts will tackle the rate of obesity and diabetes in our country. The f...

Behind the lens with ‘Hunger Games’ Jo Willems

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:10:30 GMT

A prequel to an extraordinarily successful franchise, “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” begins 64 years before Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss Everdeen volunteered to be a tribute and fight in a televised life or death match as entertainment for the downtrodden population.It is also decades before Coriolanus Snow (Donald Sutherland) gains control to become Panem’s sadistic, dictatorial president.In this latest adaptation of a Suzanne Collins’ bestseller, Snow (England’s Tom Blyth, 28, who also stars as Billy the Kid in the Epix western series) is young, idealistic and, almost instantly, in love with the young tribute Lucy Gray Baird (“West Side Story”’s Maria, Rachel Zegler).If Lucy is the songbird of the title, the question becomes: Does that make Coriolanus the snake?Belgian-born cinematographer Jo Willems knows that capturing the excitement, the reality of the vicious Games and Lucy’s countrified musical numbers in a packed bar are key to understanding the passio...