Councilmember Gold reprimanded for social media posts after Donelson protests MLK Day comments
Colorado Springs City Council leaders have given official repercussions for the recent meeting when a councilmember refused to participate in the Martin Luther King Jr. Day proclamation — but not for the person who left the meeting.
Councilmember Kimberly Gold was issued a reprimand by Council President Lynette Crow-Iverson earlier this week for making derogatory personal comments about the councilmember who walked out during the proclamation, Dave Donelson.
During the Jan. 13 council meeting, a group of faith leaders used the annual proclamation to speak about how King’s beliefs should cause city officials to oppose the violent efforts used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The meeting took place days after Renee Good, formerly of Colorado Springs, was killed by an ICE officer in Minneapolis while driving her vehicle.
Donelson stated his support for ICE, called the public comments “offensive” and did not participate in the rest of the discussion or photos for the proclamation.
According to the reprimand letter, Gold had violated council rules with the comments made during the meeting and online immediately after Donelson left. Gold told the member of the public that she appreciated the “fiery conversation.” Her only direct reference to Donelson was to cite his comments about ICE’s actions being supported by federal laws and say that the people had the power to have those laws changed.
“Some residents came in support of the proclamation and denounced ICE’s actions. One of our council members was enraged, angrily stormed off the dais, and then refused to participate in a customary photo,” Gold wrote on Facebook later that day.
City Council spokesman Alex Ryden said the reprimand was issued after a conversation between Crow-Iverson and Gold about the comments. The issue was a violation of the council’s rules for decorum, which falls on the council president to resolve, and state that councilmembers should not be demeaning, aggressive or derogatory to each other or the public.
“The Letter of Reprimand was intended to remain private but inform of a rules violation and have the issue resolved without the unnecessary attention,” Ryden said in a written response to questions.
The reprimand letter had signatures in support from five other members of the City Council. Donelson, Nancy Henjum and Gold did not sign off on the letter.
Crow-Iverson and Gold could not be reached for comment on Friday about the incident.
Gold posted a picture of herself with the reprimand letter on Facebook Thursday, along with a quote saying “I won’t be remembered as a woman who kept her mouth shut. I’m okay with that.”
Reprimands and similar disciplinary actions are uncommon for the council. The warning issued by Crow-Iverson is the lesser version than the reprimand outline in the city of Colorado Springs’ Code of Ethics for more serious offenses by elected officials. Violations of the larger Code of Ethics would have to be addressed with a public vote during a City Council meeting.
Donelson received a public vote in July 2024 when he was censured for questioning the decisions other councilmembers had made because of the campaign donations they had received, according to past Gazette reporting. Censure has harsher consequences than a reprimand letter, and it removed him as a liaison to multiple boards.
In 2018, councilmembers dismissed an ethics complaint against then-President Richard Skorman after he appeared at the scene of a friend’s minor car crash and handed out city business cards.