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September 21
May 2
March 24
March 23
Homeless feel betrayed by verdict
March 19
March 17
March 16
March 14
December 10
November 28
Jeffrey John Hubert: Time slips away on streets
Beat on street among Denver's homeless is one of fear, defiance
Richard Steinmetz: Wary life among the 'clowns'
John Bryant & Katherine Livingston: Manhole cover for a bed
Keith Williams: Scars of street life
November 26
November 25
November 23
Murder suspect, 16, put in adult jail
LoDo not paralyzed by murders
November 22
Homeless shelters fill fast
November 21
LoDo rebirth disrupts street life rhythms
November 20
November 19
FBI profilers may help solve murders
Death takes many forms for homeless
'We have nothing to be afraid of'
November 18
New killings spread fear in homeless
November 15
November 12
November 10
November 7
November 5
October 31
Men felt lure of streets
October 30
October 29
October 28
Police ponder connections in four downtown slayings
October 27
October 24
October 9
October 7
September 30
September 18
September 9
It's not just beatings: Alcohol, the elements, accidents make life dangerous on the street
By Hector GutierrezDenver Rocky Mountain News Staff Writer
Homeless men face a violent and turbulent life on Denver's streets that leaves them vulnerable to assaults and the elements. While the public's attention is focused on a series of killings of seven homeless men in Denver, almost as many transients have died in the metro area this year from fights, alcoholism and exposure. "We're very concerned, and it's very disturbing," said Denver police Sgt. Tony Lombard. "It's a section of society that's just out of the mainstream, and that lifestyle leads to their vulnerability." The victims ranged in age from the 30s to the 50s. Some were in terrible health. Some drank too much. They included James Dodson found dead in a makeshift campground near the South Platte River, the victim of years of drinking. And Homer Thunderhawk who died during a fight over a bottle of cheap wine. Denver police homicide Sgt. Jon Priest said about 250 -- about 20 percent -- of the 1,200 to 1,400 deaths his detectives look into each year involve transients. Most died of natural causes. Some died violently. Beatings are commonplace. Denver Rescue Mission executive director Del Maxfield said the homeless are easy targets. "We have an angry, angry, angry society," Maxfield said. Since Nov. 2, Denver detectives have been investigating four assaults on homeless men in the downtown area. They include fights over spots on the 16th Street Mall and robberies for radios and money. Because it's often difficult to locate relatives or friends of the homeless, police find themselves taking responsibility for the dead while trying to determine whether they died of foul play. "We become the sole voice for that victim, and that's what makes it that much harder," Priest said. Steve Walkup, the Denver Rescue Mission's director of programs, said many homeless are not aggressive until they drink or take drugs. "I would say it's just like a Broncos game," Walkup said. "If someone is drunk or high on any drugs, I don't care who they are, they're going to be a little more aggressive." Also, they are often beset by mental illness. They often live alone and don't want to socialize. As a result they are not likely to seek safety in shelters. Here's how five homeless men, according to Denver police, died this year without much fanfare: On Sept. 13, Damon Shields was riding his bicycle during a lunch break and found Dodson's shirtless body. Dodson was on his knees, his body slumped forward and his arms behind his back like a victim facing an executioner. He had built a makeshift campground between the railroad tracks and the river near Denver's border with Englewood. Dodson was 36. Shields had befriended Dodson a month earlier because he hung out near where Shields worked. "He didn't want to ask for handouts," said Shields, a sign builder who provided his friend with aluminum he could sell for scrap. Dodson apparently had a severe drinking problem. When he died he weighed only 114 pounds. The coroner said Dodson's death was caused by alcoholic hepatitis. Shields wanted to respect Dodson's privacy but regretted he didn't do more to help. "I'm not going to be so shy in the future," he said. "I'm a Christian, and I really wished I had been a little more bolder." Sonny Blair GrayGrass and Homer Thunderhawk were sharing a bottle of wine on a Sunday afternoon in May near 21st and Stout streets. GrayGrass, 38, told detectives he began to walk away with the bottle when Thunderhawk attacked him, warning him, "Don't leave with the bottle." GrayGrass told detectives he fought back, knocking Thunderhawk to the ground. GrayGrass admitted he kicked Thunderhawk several times in the head with his boots, police said. GrayGrass said he walked away with the wine bottle. Passersby found Thunderhawk unconscious on the sidewalk and called police. Thunderhawk lapsed into a coma and died May 24 eight days after the beating. He was 47. GrayGrass faces a second-degree murder trial in January. On June 19, a Denver police officer found Kern R. Fredericks, 40, dead, lying face down next to Bear Creek in southwest Denver. The coroner said Fredericks, a former retail salesman, drowned. An autopsy showed the German native had liquid acetone mixed with benzodiazepines, a tranquilizer, in his blood. That mixture also "could be the cause of death or a factor in the death," the medical examiner said. Fredericks was a member of Alcoholics Anonymous and had been active in Bible study at Riverside Baptist Church. He had been living with his mother in a rental apartment in Littleton and working as a clerk, neighbors said. But after his mother moved and left him the apartment, neighbors said, they didn't see him again and thought he took to the streets. Fredericks was survived by a daughter, his mother, two brothers and a sister. On Sept. 21, police traffic investigators got a call from the coroner's office. Transient Batista Desiderio, 60, had died from the injuries he suffered the night before. Desidorio was hit in the 2300 block of Broadway by a Trans Teq prototype bus, being tested by the Regional Transit District for the 16th Street Mall. Investigators said Desidorio was trying to make his way across a construction zone late at night. The driver of the bus was heading east on Broadway but did not Desidorio in time. On Oct. 20, detectives responded to a Conoco gas station at 3495 S. Monaco St. about a "known dead." The manager at the station discovered Ralph McCarty, 57, lying inside a gate that encircles a dumpster. He wasn't breathing. The coroner responded to the scene and declared him dead. The coroner can't issue a death certificate because no one can locate McCarty's next of kin. November 19, 1999
Homeless men face a violent and turbulent life on Denver's streets that leaves them vulnerable to assaults and the elements.
While the public's attention is focused on a series of killings of seven homeless men in Denver, almost as many transients have died in the metro area this year from fights, alcoholism and exposure.
"We're very concerned, and it's very disturbing," said Denver police Sgt. Tony Lombard. "It's a section of society that's just out of the mainstream, and that lifestyle leads to their vulnerability."
The victims ranged in age from the 30s to the 50s. Some were in terrible health. Some drank too much.
They included James Dodson found dead in a makeshift campground near the South Platte River, the victim of years of drinking.
And Homer Thunderhawk who died during a fight over a bottle of cheap wine.
Denver police homicide Sgt. Jon Priest said about 250 -- about 20 percent -- of the 1,200 to 1,400 deaths his detectives look into each year involve transients.
Most died of natural causes. Some died violently.
Beatings are commonplace.
Denver Rescue Mission executive director Del Maxfield said the homeless are easy targets.
"We have an angry, angry, angry society," Maxfield said.
Since Nov. 2, Denver detectives have been investigating four assaults on homeless men in the downtown area. They include fights over spots on the 16th Street Mall and robberies for radios and money.
Because it's often difficult to locate relatives or friends of the homeless, police find themselves taking responsibility for the dead while trying to determine whether they died of foul play.
"We become the sole voice for that victim, and that's what makes it that much harder," Priest said.
Steve Walkup, the Denver Rescue Mission's director of programs, said many homeless are not aggressive until they drink or take drugs.
"I would say it's just like a Broncos game," Walkup said. "If someone is drunk or high on any drugs, I don't care who they are, they're going to be a little more aggressive."
Also, they are often beset by mental illness. They often live alone and don't want to socialize. As a result they are not likely to seek safety in shelters.
Here's how five homeless men, according to Denver police, died this year without much fanfare:
Dodson was 36.
Shields had befriended Dodson a month earlier because he hung out near where Shields worked.
"He didn't want to ask for handouts," said Shields, a sign builder who provided his friend with aluminum he could sell for scrap.
Dodson apparently had a severe drinking problem. When he died he weighed only 114 pounds. The coroner said Dodson's death was caused by alcoholic hepatitis.
Shields wanted to respect Dodson's privacy but regretted he didn't do more to help.
"I'm not going to be so shy in the future," he said. "I'm a Christian, and I really wished I had been a little more bolder."
GrayGrass, 38, told detectives he began to walk away with the bottle when Thunderhawk attacked him, warning him, "Don't leave with the bottle."
GrayGrass told detectives he fought back, knocking Thunderhawk to the ground. GrayGrass admitted he kicked Thunderhawk several times in the head with his boots, police said.
GrayGrass said he walked away with the wine bottle. Passersby found Thunderhawk unconscious on the sidewalk and called police. Thunderhawk lapsed into a coma and died May 24 eight days after the beating. He was 47. GrayGrass faces a second-degree murder trial in January.
The coroner said Fredericks, a former retail salesman, drowned. An autopsy showed the German native had liquid acetone mixed with benzodiazepines, a tranquilizer, in his blood. That mixture also "could be the cause of death or a factor in the death," the medical examiner said.
Fredericks was a member of Alcoholics Anonymous and had been active in Bible study at Riverside Baptist Church.
He had been living with his mother in a rental apartment in Littleton and working as a clerk, neighbors said. But after his mother moved and left him the apartment, neighbors said, they didn't see him again and thought he took to the streets. Fredericks was survived by a daughter, his mother, two brothers and a sister.
Desidorio was hit in the 2300 block of Broadway by a Trans Teq prototype bus, being tested by the Regional Transit District for the 16th Street Mall.
Investigators said Desidorio was trying to make his way across a construction zone late at night. The driver of the bus was heading east on Broadway but did not Desidorio in time.
He wasn't breathing. The coroner responded to the scene and declared him dead.
The coroner can't issue a death certificate because no one can locate McCarty's next of kin.
November 19, 1999
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