Press Conference Aurora: An Epidemic – Colorado’s Crisis of Injustice

Colorado — Families whose loved ones have been killed, harmed, or devastated by systemic injustice across Colorado will gather for a press conference on Monday, November 17th at 5:00 PM at Aurora City Hall (15151 E Alameda Pkwy, Aurora, CO). This press conference will take place immediately before the Aurora City Council meeting. This meeting marks the first in-person meeting since public access was restricted in June.

The location is intentional. Aurora remains one of the most egregious examples of state violence and systemic harm in Colorado’s recent history. From police brutality to institutional failures that have left families without answers and without justice, Aurora stands as ground zero for the crisis we are naming. This moment demands public presence, public accountability, and public truth.

At the press conference, families will stand in solidarity and speak at their discretion to offer a lived reality of the ongoing injustices that have plagued this state, reminding Colorado that behind every case is a stolen life, a grieving family, and a community still fighting for justice that has yet to be lived out.

Joining them will be the legal counsel representing these families, some of the nation’s most respected in civil rights litigation. Their unified stance underscores a powerful truth: the top legal minds in the country recognize the depth of this crisis and are committed to challenging the systems that are failing Colorado’s communities.

Community advocates and organizers will also speak, outlining urgent demands and a path forward:

1. Demand for Meaningful Enforcement of the Aurora Consent Decree
Speakers will call on Attorney General Phil Weiser and his team to convene an immediate strategic session with the City of Aurora to formally acknowledge what communities already know: the consent decree has not produced improved outcomes for Aurora residents.

2. Call for Preventive State Legislation on Police Violence
The press conference will urge the Colorado Legislature to proactively adopt a legislative package focused on preventing police violence and not merely responding to it after harm occurs.

3. Message to the Newly Elected Aurora City Council
Speakers will remind new council members that they were not elected to return Aurora to the past or maintain the current broken conditions. They were elected to usher in a new era of leadership that is grounded in community wisdom, transparency, and a commitment to transformative change.

Colorado is at a critical crossroads. Families, legal experts, and community activists are coming together to declare that justice has been delayed far too long. This press conference unites the community to stand for change that Colorado can no longer postpone.

For media inquiries, interviews, or additional information, please contact:

MiDian Shofner, CEO (303) 525-6461