Colorado reactions to Pretti shooting; ICE investigates Colorado branch after leaving racist ‘ace of spades’ cards behind in vehicles; Sundance in Utah

Headlines Monday, January 26, 2026

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    Colorado reactions to Pretti shooting; ICE investigates Colorado branch after leaving racist ‘ace of spades’ cards behind in vehicles; Sundance in Utah KGNU News

Colorado reactions to Pretti shooting

Reaction to the fatal shooting of an anti-ICE demonstrator in Minnesota has been swift and widespread. Demonstrators rallied across the country yesterday, to protest what many characterize as the murder of 37-year-old Alex Pretti. Pretti was among thousands of people protesting the presence of federal Immigration agents in Minneapolis when he was shot to death by at least one federal agent early Saturday, according to the Associated Press.

In Denver, Senator Michael Bennet joined hundreds of protestors at the state capital Sunday. He said that in his view the shooting was a murder, according to the Denver Gazette. He also called on Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign.Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, who like Senator Bennet is running to be Colorado’s next governor, called Alex Pretti, who was an ICU nurse, a great American. He added that his family deserves answers and accountability.

Pretti’s parents live in Arvada. After hearing that the Trump administration said their son was a domestic terrorist who attacked the officer who shot him, they called it a sickening lie. People in Fort Collins also protested the Alex Pretti killing yesterday. And in Louisville Saturday, just hours after Pretti’s death, a man stood in fifteen degree weather with a homemade sign, and told KGNU he wanted to draw attention to the shooting.

READ MORE on CO’s Dems reaction

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READ MORE on the Border Patrol’s Actions

 

ICE investigates Colorado branch after leaving racist ‘ace of spades’ cards behind in vehicles

Federal immigration officials say they are investigating why ICE agents working in Eagle County left ace of spades cards in the cars of the eight people they detained last Wednesday. Alex Sánchez, the president and CEO of Voces Unidas, a Glenwood Springs-based immigrant-rights advocacy group, said the playing cards were printed with contact information for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Aurora. Families found the cards left in the abandoned cars after their occupants were arrested by ICE agents in what Sánchez described as fake traffic stops. His group confirmed that those arrested Wednesday are detained in the Aurora facility.

The Denver Post reports that the so-called “death cards” are similar to those left by some American troops on the bodies of Vietnamese soldiers during the Vietnam War, as a form of “psychological warfare.” The ace of spades has a long history as being a tool for intimidation, including its use by white supremacist groups meant to demean people of color.

The activity was condemned by an unnamed spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security but further investigations await. State Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, a Glenwood Springs Democrat, said “It’s disgusting that ICE is using these racist tactics to intimidate our communities.” Denver immigration attorney Hans Meyer is “investigating the potential unlawfulness of ICE’s actions.

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As Sundance touches down Utah, so do Boulder officials

The Sundance Film Festival is underway in Park City, Utah. After more than four decades in the state, the festival will relocate to Boulder, Colorado, beginning next year. At one of the opening events on Thursday, Amy Redford acknowledged the transition, reflecting on the festival’s origins and its future.

Her father, Robert Redford, established the festival in 1978. This festival has found a new iteration, which will be exciting and it will be imperfect, and it might just feel like our beginnings over 40 years ago. Robert Redford remained closely involved with the festival over the years. He died last September at the age of 89.

The Sundance Film Festival runs through February 1st. This all comes as Boulder has sent an envoy of filmmakers and officials to Sundance this week to study Park City’s management of the festival. Among them was Boulder Mayor Aaron Brockett, who told CBS news Colorado that his visit is dedicated to thinking about how Park City’s organization of the festival can translate to Pearl Street.

 

CO Democrats pitch bills to strengthen housing security

Colorado Democrats rolled out a set of bills last Wednesday aimed at making it easier to build affordable housing statewide, and Governor Jared Polis is backing the proposals. Polis and Democratic lawmakers have spent years pushing to increase density, especially near public transit, as a way to bring down housing prices. The three new proposals build on others that have either passed or failed previously. Here’s Governor Polis at a press conference launching the bills.

One of the bills would let local governments apply for new funding for transit-oriented housing and better access to transit. Another would create a tax exemption for land that will be later used for rental housing. The third would make it easier for schools and some other entities to build housing on their land, even if it isn’t zoned for residential construction.

 

You can hear daily headlines on the Morning Magazine, KGNU’s weekday morning show with coverage of local and regional public affairs and news with headlines and commentary. Click here to listen to full episodes of the Morning Magazine.

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