You may remember the case involving Randy and Shelley Love.
They are the couple who got ripped off by a local contractor who they paid for various home repairs he didn’t finish.
Instead of arresting the man who stole their money, Colorado Springs police arrested the couple after they tried to get their money back.
News 5 Investigates has just learned all charges against the couple have been dismissed.
“We are free,” Randy Love said as he left the courtroom.
Randy and his wife, Shelley, were charged back in October 2016 with trespassing.
“We were just trying to find where his place of business was so we could serve the lawful papers on him to take him to small claims court,” Randy said.
The Love’s only had one address for contractor Todd Braudis.
It just so happened that Braudis’ business address is also his home address.
The Love’s knocked on the door and nobody answered.
A few minutes later, Braudis’ friend, an off-duty Colorado Springs police officer showed up and asked them to leave.
The Love’s left and four days later, Colorado Springs police called them downtown and served them with criminal trespass charges.
“We’ve appeared in court 4 times,” Randy said. “We tried to mediate. Todd Braudis never returned any calls to the District Attorney.”
The 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office says Braudis canceled a mediation hearing on March 27.
When the office tried to reschedule, Braudis stopped answering his phone.
“The case was subsequently dismissed because the determination was made that this was a civil case that should’ve been handled in mediation,” spokesperson Lee Richards said.
Police stood by the arrests from day 1.
The Colorado Springs Police Department does not comment on active cases, so as soon as this matter was closed, News 5 Investigates reached out to police for an on-camera interview to get their side of the story.
Lt. Howard Black said he would check with Chief Pete Carey on Monday, July 3.
Our interview request was denied.
The Love’s did sue Braudis for their money back and won a $7,000 judgment. To-date, they say they have not received a penny.
If you hired Braudis for repair work that he didn’t perform, you should file a complaint with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office.
