Court roundup: Latest in Top Dollar Pawn case; Club Q shooter pleads guilty in federal court (2024)

A new weekly series from The Gazette highlighting the activity in notable local court cases for the Pikes Peak region.

Damari Sims-Herrick

The man accused of causing the death of 32-year-old Darrian Adame in January 2023, pleaded not guilty to one count of first-degree murder at an arraignment hearing on Monday.

Sims-Herrick is now scheduled to go to trial on Oct. 15, but will return to court before that for a motions hearing on Aug. 26.

Amber Comstock

Comstock appeared to court on Monday for a preliminary hearing where an El Paso County judge found probable cause to bind over one count child abuse causing death, according to court records.

Comstock, who is accused of causing the death of her toddler in 2022, will appear in court next for an arraignment hearing on July 25.

Anderson Aldrich

Convicted mass killer Anderson Aldrich, who is responsible for killing five people at the LGBTQ+ nightclub Club Q in 2022, pleaded guilty to 74 charges in federal court on Tuesday. The lack of a death penalty option, however, left many victims unhappy with the outcome of the case.

Read more about Aldrich’s guilty plea and sentence.

Walt Mauro

One of three co-defendants in the Top Dollar Pawn money-laundering case was sentenced to five years in prison on Tuesday after an El Paso County judge refused to revoke Mauro’s guilty plea.

Read more about Mauro’s sentencing hearing.

Jack Jargowsky

Jargowsky, one of the other co-defendants in the Top Dollar Pawn case, is now slated to begin his jury trial on July 8 after appearing in court on Tuesday for a disposition hearing, according to court records.

Gregory Whittemore

The case against the man accused ofraping and killing 27-year-old Allison Scarfone and hiding her body in his garage in 2022 continues to be delayed due to ongoing mental health issues.

Whittemore appeared in court on Thursday for a review hearing where his attorneys informed the court that they needed four additional weeks for a sanity evaluation currently being conducted to be completed. Whittemore will return to court on Aug. 1, when his attorneys anticipate the sanity evaluation will be completed.

Whittemore has yet to enter a plea on the 11 charges he faces, including first-degree murder, due to ongoing issues with his mental health.

Alejandro Balderas-Avilez

Balderas-Avilez had his first appearance in 4th Judicial District Court on Thursday vacated after being arrested for allegedly killing 84-year-old Dolores Holler in a hit-and-run accident in December, according to court records.

Balderas-Avilez is now scheduled to make his first appearance on June 27, according to court records.

Aee Shawn Mathews

Mathews appeared to court virtually on Thursday for an arraignment hearing where he pleaded not guilty to all charges in one of his two open homicide cases.

Mathews, who is now out of custody after posting an $800,000 surety bond, is scheduled to go to trial on Dec. 2

Read more about Mathews’ arraignment hearing.

Zain Aguilera-Valdez

Court records show that a sentencing hearing scheduled for Aguilera-Valdez was continued on Thursday.

Aguilera-Valdez, who is accused of several counts of attempted first-degree murder for allegedly firing multiple gunshots in front of the New Havana Grill in 2023, will return to court on July 11 for a sentencing hearing, according to court records.

Breanna Smith

Smith was sentenced to 90 days in jail and 10 years of probation on Friday after pleading guilty to leaving the scene of an accident causing death, according to court records.

Smith hitEduardoIbanez-Charco — who was riding his bike at the time — with her car at the intersection of Astrozon Boulevard and Hanco*ck Expressway on Sept. 6, causingIbanez-Charco's death before fleeing the scene.Smith turned herself in to law enforcement on Dec. 2 after a warrant was issued for her arrest.

Linda Guest and Joseary Arizmendi

Guest and Arizmendi made their first appearances in 4th District Court on Friday morning. The pair are accused of kidnapping, holding hostage and repeatedly assaulting a couple forallegedly speaking with police that resulted in a person known by the suspect’s being sent to prison, according to previous reporting from The Gazette.Guest and Arizmendi allegedly made the victims dig their own graves, which is what led to one of the victims escaping.

Formal charges were not filed at the first appearance, and bothGuest and Arizmendi will return to court on Tuesday, June 25, for their formal filing of charges. The pair were arrested on suspicion of first-degree assault, second-degree kidnapping, aggravated robbery and second-degree assault, according to arrest records.