Coloradoan reporter Sady Swanson's top stories of 2023: Fort Collins news in review

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I’m Sady Swanson, and I started at the Coloradoan 6 years ago, shortly after graduating from Colorado State University.

I’ve spent most of my time covering public safety and criminal justice stories, but I’ve also covered education and spent some time this year covering city government.

Covering crime and public safety means I’m often speaking with people about some of the worst days of their lives, from losing a loved one to a drug overdose or car crash, to experiencing a lifelong trauma.

I am constantly in awe of the courage shown by those in our community who have experienced these tragedies, and I am honored to help tell their stories. I am proud to tell these stories, and each one sticks with me long after it’s published. I believe telling these stories brings our community closer together.

I wanted to share the 10 stories I wrote this year that I found most impactful.

Lawsuit alleges Fort Collins priest sexually abused another teen boy for years

More than 20 years after he says the abuse started, Scott Verti filed a lawsuit against the former Fort Collins priest he said abused him more than 100 times over 10 years. It was previous news coverage of Timothy Evans’ release from prison that made Scott realize he was ready to publicly talk about what he experienced, and it was moving to hear him tell his story for the first time.

New norm or 'statistical blip'? Rise in Larimer County police shootings drives concern, action

2022 saw a high number of shootings involving law enforcement, with most involving the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office. This story looked at what might be driving this increase and how it impacts the department and community. There have been far fewer police shootings this year.

Fort Collins police, partners revamp handling of homeless concerns

Calls come in daily for Fort Collins police to respond to issues involving those experiencing homelessness, even though many of those instances may not involve a crime. In those cases, there isn’t much police can do, and this article looks at the community partnerships growing in town to more appropriately address these issues.

Family continues investigating months after Transfort facility death

Patricia Telleen’s only son, Jason, was killed when he was hit by a bus while working at the Transfort facility in Fort Collins in January. She has spent all year fighting for justice for Jason. Patricia opened her home to me to tell me about Jason and how losing him has affected her, and to share her determination to get justice for her son.

After '6 years of court and 8 years of grief,' man who killed William Connole sentenced

I’ve been covering the case against Christopher Parker since I joined the Coloradoan. These shootings rocked Northern Colorado back in 2015, and I was proud to follow through our coverage to Parker’s sentencing this year. While this sentencing resolved one of the fatal shootings from 2015, the killing of well-known Windsor resident John Jacoby that same year remains unsolved.

How community pushback changed the land use code

One of the most contentious issues facing Fort Collins this year was the proposed revision of the city's land use code. I jumped into covering this as city council was preparing for another attempt at updating the code. This story dove into specific parts of the code that received the most public pushback and what changes, if any, city staff made in response.

This Fort Collins church says it's 'saving lives.' The city has deemed it a 'chronic nuisance'

This article looks at the effectiveness of the city’s broadened chronic nuisance ordinance, and how its working to address behaviors now included under the ordinance. I talked with Pastor Steve Ramer at the Fort Collins Mennonite Church about how being labeled a “chronic nuisance property” impacted the congregation's work, and talked with some folks benefitting from the church’s work about how these nuisance behaviors negatively impact them. It’s a complex issue that I worked to unpack with this story.

Woman who supplied fentanyl in fatal overdose of Fort Collins woman sentenced to prison

Fentanyl has been a growing problem statewide, and a new law that went into effect last year gives law enforcement and prosecutors another tool to combat the fentanyl crisis: a new criminal charge, fentanyl distribution resulting in death. The sentencing in this case is the first sentencing for this new charge in Colorado. This case and the information shared by both sides at sentencing highlight the complexities in handling drug distribution and overdose cases.

Fort Collins police are issuing fewer traffic tickets despite deadlier streets. Here's why

Fewer traffic citations does not mean safer streets. I talked with the Fort Collins police chief about why he believes officers are issuing fewer citations, and it gives folks a glimpse into what policing is like in this day and age, including a heavier reliance on technology and decreasing officer morale.

Impaired driving is deadly, but lawsuits argue false arrests also have big consequences

I’ve spoken with far too many families who have lost loved ones because another person made a poor choice to drive impaired. Impaired driving is clearly serious, but several people who have filed lawsuits saying they’ve been falsely accused of DUI have also talked about losing out on jobs or promotions, missing time with dying friends or family due to bond requirements, and a general loss of trust for law enforcement and authority many said they had before. This article doesn’t just talk about that, but how law enforcement and attorneys investigate and prosecute DUI cases, and why these cases can be complex.

To read more from me, visit coloradoan.com/staff/4406436002/sady-swanson.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Coloradoan public safety reporter Sady Swanson's top stories of 2023