Welcome to the CSPD's cases of interest. When there are cases of interest that are of local or national interest, you will find the redacted copies of those cases here. The cases included are frequently requested by citizens and/or the media.
The information from any cases posted here cannot be used to harass, intimidate or seek retribution on any party listed in the case. All cases are redacted in accordance with the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act. There is no charge to view or download any reports shared here.
Today's Status: Internal Investigation into Inappropriate Facebook Comments Complete
To Our Community—
As your Chief of Police, I will always be transparent and honest with our community— during both good and bad times. As many of you are aware, one of our officers was accused of writing inappropriate comments on social media using a pseudonym. The investigation and review process into that incident is now complete. It has been found that the Facebook profile used to make those comments did in fact belong to Colorado Springs Police Department Sergeant Keith Wrede. We offer our organizational humility and a heartfelt apology to our entire community. Please make no mistake that I do not condone his actions, or attempt to minimize the severity of harm it has done in a time of rebuilding between law enforcement and the community. We do however, want to provide full context of the events that occurred.
On June 30, 2020, a small group of protestors blocked traffic on I-25, causing serious potential danger to themselves and drivers. The incident was being covered by multiple local news crews, one of which was live-streaming the demonstration. During that live-stream on KRDO’s Facebook, the comments “KILL THEM ALL” and “KILL EM ALL” were made by someone named “Steven Eric.” A few days later, on July 3, 2020, the CSPD Public Affairs Office was contacted by KRDO, who brought these comments to our attention and stated they received a tip that “Steven Eric” was a pseudonym, and the account actually belonged to CSPD Sergeant Keith Wrede. Due to the inappropriate, unprofessional, and unacceptable nature of the comments, we immediately began an Internal Affairs investigation to determine if the comments were in fact made by Sergeant Wrede. Based on preliminary information in the early stages of the investigation, we believed Sergeant Wrede was the individual who made the comments. Although we were able to quickly determine Sergeant Wrede’s involvement, he was still afforded due process as required by law. At the end of the investigation, Internal Affairs submitted their findings, which included previous personnel history, interviews, etc., to Sergeant Wrede’s Chain of Command. His chain of command made the decision to issue a discipline of a 40 hour suspension (which results in approximately $2,044 in lost wages), the removal from his specialized unit, and reassignment to a different position within the department. It was determined that the comments were made off-duty out of frustration and there was no indication of any physical action or intent to cause harm. I am in no way minimizing Sergeant Wrede’s words. His comments were unacceptable, have damaged our relationship with members of our community, and fell short of our standards.
We have heard concerns from many community members and are also aware of misinformation or misconceptions regarding our role and response to this investigation. I would like to first start by addressing the demand for termination. These requests were for immediate termination before our investigation was even completed. While I understand frustrations, Sergeant Wrede, just like our community members, are afforded due process whenever any type of investigation takes place. I have also heard from many that I did not address these comments or refused to provide information during the internal investigation. From day one, I have taken the stance that the comments made on the live-stream were unprofessional, distasteful, and not reflective of our department. As mentioned earlier, public employees are entitled to due process under the law, and in any investigation, we do not release details as it is on-going. We owe it to our community and our employees to make sure a thorough and fair investigation is completed without any undue influence.
I fully recognize that it will take time to rebuild relationships that have now broken. The only thing I would ask of our community, is to not condemn every officer that wears our badge because of one individual’s action. Please remember officers are human too and make mistakes. Throughout his 20-year career, Sergeant Wrede has professionally served this community. While his statements were harmful and reprehensible, I cannot deprive the community of a good police officer and his services because of an isolated incident of an error in judgment. I also want to reaffirm that the regrettable comments made are not reflective of our department’s character or expectations of how we serve, or talk about, our community. We hope that you can accept our apology and be assured that the CSPD and Sgt. Wrede will continue to faithfully serve the public. We will always aspire to be worthy of your trust in all we say and do.
In the interest of transparency, below are the documents pertaining to the Internal Affairs investigation into this incident:
- Case Summary
- Investigation Documents
- Interview with Sgt. Wrede
- Commander Interview with Sergeant Wrede
- Interview with Witness Officer
- Telephone Interview with Citizen
- Administrative Insight
- Deputy Chief Memo/Insight
- Emails
- Facebook Images
- Relevant General Orders
- Internal Investigation Lieutenant Memorandum
Today's Status: No Charges Filed in May 24, 2020 In Custody Death
District Attorney Press Release - No Chares Filed in May 24, 2020 In Custody Death
On May 24, 2020, the Colorado Springs Police Department responded to a reported disturbance in the 2700 block of Ashgrove Street. The incident resulted in an in-custody death of the suspect, Mr. Chad Burnett. While typically Body Worn Camera is not released until the District Attorney’s Office has made their final determination, we believe it is in the public’s interest to release the footage. This decision was made in coordination with the District Attorney’s Office as well as the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office who investigated this incident.
Due to the substantial amount of time on scene, the most significant events during this incident are shown in the primary video. For transparency, the use of force will be played in full. While only one officer’s Body Worn Camera depicting the use of force is used in the primary video, we have also included the other individual involved officers' Body Worn Camera videos showing the use of force.
The below video will highlight the following portions:
- 911 audio from the reporting party (Begins at 00:00:22)
- 911 audio from a secondary reporting party/witness (Begins at 00:07:59)
- Officers first interaction with Broadmoor Information and Security (Begins at 00:12:35)
- Officers first interaction with the reporting party (Begins at 00:16:01)
- Officers first contact with the suspect (Begins at 00:21:32)
- Suspect's 911 Call to El Paso County Sheriff's Office (Begins at 00:29:21)
- Officer Daigle’s Body Worn Camera during entire use of force incident (Begins at 00:29:55)
The following information is also provided
- Here is a link to the premise history at suspect address
- Download a full timeline of events
When the District Attorney releases their findings, we will update this page to include their report.
Today's Status: No Charges Filed in April 19, 2020 Officer-Involved Shooting
April 2020 Police Officer Involved Shooting Ruled Justified
The following items are available below:
- The 911 audio of the call for service that officers responded to
- A recording with the four involved officers’ BWC synced to show what each officer was doing during the call for service
- The individual BWC video for the involved officers used in the quad view recording
- Photograph of suspect in the basement with a rifle
- Photograph of suspect's rifle from BWC and investigative photos
- Photograph taken in the daytime of the shooting scene
