Failed by the system

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) -- It's been nearly ten months since a Pueblo woman lost her life at the hands of her abuser. Her life came to an end after weeks of harassment by a man that was repeatedly released back into the community despite her desperate pleas for protection. 13 Investigates is shedding light on what led up to the murder of Renee Dominguez and how a criminal justice system that her friends say failed her.

Dominguez’s six closest friends said she was stopping at a Pueblo Dollar General to pick up some items on a cold Friday night just before 8 p.m. on January 14, 2022. Up to this point, they said she was being habitually stalked for over two months by her ex-boyfriend 59-year-old Jerome Bustos.

"She knew. She had a feeling for months, no, for weeks, she's been telling us all. I'm going to die. He's going to kill me. I could feel it,” Sandra Pluskett, Dominguez's best friend, said.

13 Investigates obtained startling surveillance video from the night of the murder. The video shows Bustos peer into the store appearing to see if Dominguez was inside. Once she exits the store, they engage in a verbal argument.

What follows is a barrage of bullets fired at Dominguez as she rushes back into the store.

Warning: The video below might be upsetting for some, viewer discretion is advised.

Dominguez died that night. She left behind a young son.

Two months before her murder, on November 7, 2021, Pueblo Police responded to a home belonging to Bustos on Desert Candle Drive in north Pueblo. 

13 Investigates obtained never before seen police body camera video showing what a neighbor across the street said to officers that night. In it, the neighbor can be heard warning police about Bustos, claiming he beats women all the time.

Warning: The video below might be upsetting for some, viewer discretion is advised. The video has been edited with a voice over and text for clarity.

Officers entered the home and separated Dominguez and Bustos. Dominguez’s mother told police a verbal argument between the two had turned physical. According to a police report from the PPD, officers asked Bustos about the fight between him and Dominguez. Bustos claimed he and Renee had a verbal argument. Police asked Bustos if the argument became physical, to which he replied it did not.

However, in that same report, officers wrote Dominguez, who he referred to by her first name, had “bruising along the middle of Renee’s neck and dried blood on the left side of Renee’s neck. Renee also showed me a scrap on her left knee. Renee stated she got the scrap from when she was thrown on the ground.”

Officers arrested Bustos on two misdemeanor charges, 3rd-degree assault, and domestic violence. Bustos also had an active warrant out of Pueblo County at the time as well.

Later that day, Dominguez filed for a civil protection order, a legal document meant to help protect domestic violence victims from their alleged abusers. In that document, Dominguez wrote of the many times she endured verbal and physical abuse at the hands of Bustos.

"They failed her. She did everything right." - Sandra Pluskett, a friend

In one incident, she wrote Bustos was “whaling on me with a closed fist” while she was in the fetal position. Dominguez went on to write that she was scared about what Bustos would do to her if he was released from jail.

Her fears were justified.

Twelve days later, on Nov. 19, 2021, officers responded to the Southern Colorado Clinic on the southside of Pueblo, where Dominguez worked.

She told officers that Bustos was coming in and around her work trying to contact her and violating the protection order, which said he could not contact her through any means.

According to a police report, Pueblo Police found Bustos across the street from her work sitting in a rental car. Police wrote that he was within 100 yards of Dominguez, the protected party, which wasn’t allowed. Bustos was arrested on a violation of a protection order charge, a class-two misdemeanor.

"We knew he was everywhere. He would be parked across the street from the clinic in a rental car. He went around us every which way he could and he knew where she was every time,” Pluskett said.

It wasn’t long before he was back on the streets. Bustos only spent one night in jail and was released on bond the next day.

Less than a month later on Dec. 16, 2021, officers responded to another report from Dominguez’s job. This time, she said Bustos was calling her work and trying to get her fired.

Bustos wasn’t at the Southern Colorado Clinic, and the two officers went to his home in north Pueblo. However, according to a police report, he didn’t answer the door and officers weren’t able to find him. He wasn’t taken into custody for this incident.

Police did file an arrest warrant for felony stalking with Pueblo District Attorney Jeff Chostner’s office. Chostner told 13 Investigates they received the warrant on December 28, 2021, but Bustos was never charged between that date and Renee’s murder on January 14, 2022.

13 Investigates asked DA Chostner why Bustos was never charged given the prior assault charge and violation of a protection order charge.

Chostner said the case was in their “internal evidence review of the case and coordination with law enforcement, we have to be sure of our evidence, as there were additional aspects of the case, that could be charged; and we wanted the charging to be correct and comprehensive.”

Dominguez’s loved ones shared their frustrations with 13 Investigations, saying that he should’ve been in custody.

"It turned from not domestic violence to flat-out stalking her. I'm going to kill you. And he should have been arrested at that time,” Pluskett said.

Two weeks later, police were called to Dominguez’s home. On January 11 and 12, 2022, she filed police reports with evidence that her tires were being slashed. She believed the damage was done at the hands of Bustos, but she was not able to provide any evidence it was him.

Police attempted to contact Bustos, but he never answered.

 Two days later, Dominguez was shot to death .

As for Bustos? He was never brought to justice. According to investigators, he died by suicide after fleeing to Colorado Springs. After his death, all of the criminal and civil cases against him were dismissed.

Dominguez was not the first woman to accuse Bustos of assault. She also wasn’t the first woman to file for a protection order against him.

In 2005, one of his ex-wives filed for a civil protection order against him in Pueblo County court.

Then, in 2019, another ex-wife filed for protection too.

In the 2019 protection order, the woman outlined 154 incidents of domestic violence abuse. Those incidents included threatening to run her over with his truck and physical abuse that led to concussions, black eyes, and bruised ribs.

Court records show that she fled Pueblo County and traveled to Moffat County and then Rio Blanco County to escape what she outlined in the incident checklist documents.

In those counties, a violation of protection order cases were opened. Bustos was arrested and jailed for a brief time but was ultimately released on bond.

Court documents say this woman was "terrified" that Bustos would find her. Her addresses and information were even withheld from court records after the prosecution alleged that releasing her location would put her life in jeopardy.

In a danger assessment report completed by a medical professional at St. Anthony Summit Medical Center, the woman "scored" "extreme danger: 18 or more." That includes dangers like homicide, and "highly recommends criminal justice or other professional help for the victim."

A court document from Oct. 2020, just 13 months before police first responded to Bustos' home, stated that the victim from 2019 "continues to fear for her life."

Bustos’ various criminal cases tied to that victim never went to trial. In 2021, trials in Colorado were repeatedly put on hold because of the COVID-19 pandemic. After Bustos’ death, all of his pending criminal cases tied to his ex-wife were dismissed as well.

In the months after Dominguez’s death, 13 Investigates questioned how Bustos was able to possess the gun that killed her.

In a criminal protection order filed on November 9, 2021, Pueblo County Judge Steven Laman ordered Bustos to “relinquish all firearms.”

According to a 2021 Colorado law, someone mandated to give up their guns must do so within 24 hours and file a document with the court demonstrating this was done within seven days of the order.

Before it went into effect, documenting turning over the weapon in seven days wasn't mandated.

Bustos filed the document with the court, claiming he didn't have a gun and didn't need to give anything up.

13 Investigates learned that, despite requiring documentation, there were ways to get around it. According to law, it's a judge's responsibility to make sure that order is filed, but there must be probable cause that the person is being dishonest about having a gun.

There was no follow-up for Bustos. However, in one Colorado city, there's someone whose job is to reinforce the court order.

Denver District Attorney Beth McCann has devoted resources to having an investigator whose sole job is to look into whether domestic violence abusers are actually handing over their guns. At the time of this report, McCann is the only district attorney in Colorado to have an investigator like that.

"We know that the likelihood of a domestic violence victim being shot and killed increases substantially after a case has been filed and someone has been arrested,” DA McCann said. “When that person gets out of jail there's a lot of anger."

In 2021, McCann’s investigator took 141 guns away from 48 people who had firearms and were in violation of a court order.

"I really believe we are preventing homicide and suicide with this program,” McCann said.

13 Investigates asked Pueblo District Attorney Jeff Chostner if he would be open to installing this kind of position in the Steel City.

“​​This is something I would be interested in. To some extent, it is in place with the conditions of the protective orders imposed by the Judge. We routinely ask for this in our hearings. What we don’t have is staff members to follow up on this condition. We only find out about it if there is a repeat offense. I would definitely be supportive of resources for either our Office or another law enforcement agency dedicated to this kind of supervision,” said Chostner.

13 Investigates spoke to Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser about what can be done to improve protections for domestic violence victims in Colorado.

Every year, Weiser’s office releases a domestic violence fatality report. The report analyzes all domestic violence murders from the previous year and his office formulates best practices to prevent them in the future.

The numbers from their 2020 report highlight a disturbing trend. Of the perpetrators in domestic violence murders, 34% had violated a protection order in the past. In 54% of the 2020 murders, firearms were the predominant weapon used.

Dominguez fell into both of those statistics.

Weiser referenced the recent legislative change in 2021 that made it mandatory for someone with a protection order to give up their guns if mandated by a judge in a court of law. However, as previously stated, people can get around that mandate.

13 Investigates also questioned why habitual domestic violence offenders, like Bustos, are repeatedly allowed back into the community on either a PR bond, a cashless bail, or low cash or surety bonds.

“A bail bond should be very high, making it hard to let them out. What we need to get better at is how to make these judgments to protect people,” Weiser said. “And if we let people out knowing they're a risk to hurt others, that risk may be realized.”

It's worth noting that while Weiser spoke to offenders being released, his office does not set bond amounts. Individual judges in each county are responsible for setting bond amounts.

The judges who released Bustos on bond between 2020 and 2022 are Moffat County Judge Brittany Schneider, Rio Blanco County Judge Joseph Fennessy, and Pueblo County Judge Margaret Vellar.

During his numerous criminal cases, Bustos posted a low amount bond and was released within days or even hours of being booked in.

13 Investigates asked Weiser if violating a protection order should be more than a class-two misdemeanor.

“We in the Domestic Violence Review Board, we in public policy roles, have an obligation to keep looking at our protection system. Is it working as it's intended to? Or is there room for improvement,” Weiser questioned. “I am open to that conversation. We need that conversation and we'll keep having it.”

Renee’s six closest friends are now pushing the state, elected leaders, and the judicial system to make the necessary changes to protect domestic violence victims and hold habitual offenders accountable for their actions.

"Laws need to change so that the judges and the police can act in the best interest of the victim and not just let the abuser just get a slap on the wrist,” Pluskett said. "They failed her. She did everything right."