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Ex-wife of Colorado Springs mayoral candidate alleges abuse

On Behalf of | Apr 1, 2011 | Domestic Violence

The Colorado Springs mayoral elections have taken a turn as accusations of domestic abuse against one of the candidates surfaced recently. The former wife of one of the mayoral candidates has come forward with allegations of domestic violence, saying the man physically abused her during their brief marriage.

Recently, the woman contacted the Colorado Springs Gazette with her story of mental and physical abuse. The two were married in June 1968, and she filed for divorce less than a year later. The woman says she is sharing her story so voters will have better insight into her ex-husband’s character before elections are held on Tuesday.

According to the woman, the man, one of seven mayoral candidates, beat her every three days on average while they were together. She says he even beat her on their honeymoon and threatened to kill her. She says she thought the abuse would stop after they were married.

The divorce complaint reportedly alleges that the mayoral candidate was “extremely and repeatedly cruel” toward the woman, which caused her to suffer both mentally and physically. The woman also sent the newspaper a copy of the divorce decree. The grounds for divorce were listed as “mental and physical cruelty.”

Her ex-husband has denied all accusations of domestic abuse. His chief of staff stated that no part of the woman’s allegations is true. She said that they suspect the accusations are politically motivated as they have surfaced days before the mayoral elections. She also added that it is suspicious that the woman waited 42 years to tell people about it.

The candidate and his lawyer have maintained that the grounds of mental and physical cruelty that was listed on the divorce decree was a common citation in most divorces before no-fault divorce laws were established in the state.

The candidate has been married to his current and third wife for 27 years. His second wife maintained that she was never abused.

Source: The Gazette: “Mayoral candidate Bach’s first wife alleges 1968-69 abuse,” Daniel Chacon, 31 March 2011

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