Police say man shot, killed failed to comply

A man is dead after a Longmont police officer fired his weapon when responding to a disturbance in a south Longmont home Monday afternoon. Police said the man had taken a person hostage.

About 2:27 p.m., Longmont dispatch received a call reporting a domestic-related disturbance in the 2300 block of Bluebird Drive, according to Lindsey Diamond, a city spokesperson. Three officers responded and “contacted” the 20-year-old man, who had taken a person hostage and said several times that he had a gun, according to a Longmont Public Safety social media post.

After the man refused to comply with officers’ commands, one officer fired his weapon, according to the release. The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

This is the second time this year an officer has been involved in a shooting in Longmont.

In March, Longmont SWAT member and Frederick police Sgt. Tyler Farson fatally shot a woman who had reportedly made suicidal statements and pointed a gun at officers. Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty determined that Farson was justified in that shooting and did not file criminal charges.

— Celia Frazier, Longmont Times-Call

Vehicle goes off cliff, killing 5 teenage boys

Five 17-year-old boys died late Saturday night after driving off a cliff in Grand Junction, according to the Mesa County Coroner’s Office.

Grand Junction police officers and firefighters responded to the crash near 2694 Lookout Lane at about 7:45 a.m. Sunday, according to an initial news release from the police department. When they arrived, law enforcement found a vehicle crashed on the hillside, police said.

The teens were all pronounced dead at the scene, the coroner’s office said. The coroner’s office said it will not release the names of the minors.

All five teens were residents of Grand Junction. Three were wearing their seatbelts, including the driver and front seat passenger. The other two were not wearing seatbelts and were ejected, the coroner’s office said.

Speed is being investigated as a factor in the crash, police said.

—Lauren Penington and Jessica Alavarado Gamez, The Denver Post

Suspect arrested in death of motorcyclist

Officers on Sunday arrested a man on suspicion of vehicular homicide after a motorcyclist was struck and killed in a south Denver hit-and-run, police said.

Investigators believe a driver intentionally struck a motorcycle near South Sheridan Boulevard and West Hampden Avenue on Saturday, causing the rider to crash, police said. Paramedics took the motorcyclist to the hospital, where she later died.

She will be identified by the Denver Office of the Medical Examiner.

The driver, believed to be 40-year-old Nathan Patrick Eastman, fled the scene, police said. Officers found the car involved in the crash abandoned a short time later.

Eastman was arrested Sunday evening on suspicion of vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of an accident involving death, both felonies, police said.

—Lauren Penington, The Denver Post

Police seeking driver who fled hit-and-run

A male adult pedestrian was killed Monday morning in a hit-and-run crash at the intersection of East 16th Avenue and Fulton Street in Aurora.

Aurora police officers found the man in the westbound lanes of East 16th Avenue at 2:24 a.m. after he appeared to have been struck by a vehicle. The man died at the scene.

The suspect vehicle involved fled the scene, according to the Aurora Police Department.

Anyone with any information about this crash is asked to contact the Aurora Police Department through Metro Denver Crime Stoppers or call 720-913-STOP (7867).

—Jessica Alvarado Gamez, The Denver Post