Todd Shepherd
Colorado’s loss is Washington, D.C.’s gain. Investigative reporter Todd Shepherd, who runs Complete Colorado, is moving on to take a position as an investigative reporter with the Washington Examiner. In case you aren’t familiar with his work, he is a diligent and persistent reporter with a nose for (and little tolerance of) B.S. Nobody knows their way around a Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) request or the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request quite like Shepherd. Some of his best investigative work included:
- Udall’s office pushed back hard on number of health care cancellations
- Small businesses hit with six-figure fines going back 5-8 years
- Hickenlooper suggests full clemency an option if death penalty becomes too big an issue
- Bloomberg placed personal calls to Hickenlooper during gun control debates
If Shepherd’s work in Colorado is any indication, those in the administration ought to be on their best behavior. Colorado’s misbehaving elected officials probably won’t miss Shepherd, but the rest of us will. Here’s an excerpt of his note to friends and colleagues:
“…I’m also grateful for the many opportunities and the many gifts of friendship I’ve been blessed with here in Colorado, a place that truly feels like home to me now even though I’m moving away….
…When I moved here in May of 2005, I was excited for an adventure. I had no way of knowing the adventure I’d get would exceed my dreams 100-fold. I’m sad to be saying goodbye for now, even if I might return at some seemingly distant and unknown point in the future.”
Happy trails, Todd.