Lakeside scrambling as Colorado town attorney says: "That's a serious indictment"
After a grand jury indicted Lakeside's police chief and his daughter, the town clerk, for numerous felonies, Lakeside's town attorney said Friday he was scrambling to arrange a special meeting of the town's Board of Trustees next week to address what he called "a serious indictment."
Town Attorney Tim Flynn told CBS News Colorado he was trying to quickly set up a meeting to "take action" on the future of Police Chief Robert Gordanier and his daughter, Brenda Hamilton, the town clerk. "I don't know if he [Gordanier] can be in that position now," Flynn said.
The Jefferson County District Attorney on Thursday revealed the grand jury indictments against Gordanier, who serves as Lakeside Police Chief, Fire Chief, and Mayor Pro Tem, and Hamilton. Both are still on the town payroll; Hamilton has been on paid leave since late 2023.
The grand jury charged each with felony theft, embezzlement, and official misconduct. The grand jury said Gordanier sold multiple police vehicles to his daughter between 2019 and 2023 for as little as $300. She then sold them on the open market, pocketing thousands of dollars.
In one case cited by the grand jury and prosecutors, Gordanier signed off on selling a Ford Fusion to his daughter for $1,000, although the town had recently purchased it from another police agency for $5,000. Prosecutors said Hamilton then resold the vehicle to a man in Wyoming for $12,000.
Jim Pelloni, who served as assistant police chief in Lakeside, said Friday that he tried to get town officials to act when he reported what he called "corruption" involving the police chief and his daughter, and the way police vehicles seemed to disappear.
Pelloni said he could not get anyone to take action until CBS News Colorado began investigating the situation in 2023.
"It's unfortunate it came to this point," Pelloni said. "When things are not being run properly or there is corruption, people will step up like myself and do the right thing," said Pelloni, who is no longer with Lakeside.
An attorney representing both Hamilton and Gordanier has not responded to multiple emails seeking comment. Brenda Hamilton previously said she had done nothing wrong. However, her father acknowledged signing blank bills of sale for multiple vehicles, then suggested his daughter filled in the sales prices and other information.
"I signed the title and that was it," Gordanier said. "She wanted to buy them, and so I sold them. It was a lot easier just to do it and be done with it than having to advertise or anything."
Gordanier said during an on-camera interview. Asked if selling the cars to his daughter for a few hundred dollars and her reselling them for far more was a "sweetheart deal."
Gordanier replied, "Sounds like it to me, yeah."
Lakeside covers only 0.2 square miles on Denver's western border, with a population of 17 residents, according to census figures.
However, due to numerous retail businesses and an amusement park, the town has an annual budget of about $2.5 million.
Both Hamilton and Gordanier were booked into the Jefferson County Jail this week and posted $25,000 personal recognizance bonds. Each is due in court in August.