Teacher held on suspicion of kidnapping, contributing to delinquency of a minor

A 44-year-old teacher at STEM School Highlands Ranch was arrested Thursday on suspicion of kidnapping and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, according to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.

Tera Johnson-Swartz taught high school students at the charter school from 2022 until Feb. 14, the school’s chief innovation officer, Matt Cartier, said in a statement.

Before her employment ended, school officials put her on paid administrative leave after the sheriff’s office told them about the investigation Jan. 21.

STEM School officials said they’re cooperating with law enforcement but declined to comment further because of the ongoing investigation. They would not confirm whether Johnson-Swartz resigned or was fired.

She is in custody at the Douglas County Detention Center on $50,000 bail and is set to appear in court Wednesday for a filing-of-charges hearing.

— Katie Langford, The Denver Post

Three people wounded in stabbing attacks

Three people were wounded but are expected to survive after a string of unrelated stabbings overnight in Denver, police say.

Denver police reported on social media at 11:09 p.m. Thursday that a woman had been stabbed in the 200 block of South Meade Street. At 1:04 a.m. Friday, police reported a second stabbing in the 1100 block of 29th Street, followed by a third stabbing in the 2300 block of Glenarm Place at 1:10 a.m.

A Denver police spokesperson wrote in emails the victim and suspect knew each other in each of the three cases.

One person was arrested on suspicion of second-degree assault after the Glenarm Place stabbing, according to police.

— Max Levy, The Denver Post

Snowboarder from Crested Butte dies in avalanche

A Crested Butte woman was killed by an avalanche while snowboarding Thursday in Ophir Pass near Silverton.

San Juan County Sheriff’s Office and Silverton Medical Rescue were alerted to the accident at 1:09 p.m. Thursday, according to a Facebook post from Silverton Medical Rescue.

The 41-year-old woman was snowboarding in the backcountry with a male skier, also from Crested Butte, in Middle Fork Mineral Creek, known locally as “The Nose,” when she was caught and buried in the avalanche, according to the post. The man also was caught in the avalanche but managed to ski out. The woman was dead when rescuers found her.

— Graeme Taskerud, The Denver Post