Golden Police Chief Joe Harvey has temporarily stepped away from leading the department, and Deputy Chief Mike Hendershot is stepping in as interim chief, city officials announced last Wednesday. The shift comes amid continuing fallout from the 2024 crash that killed Officer Evan Dunn, with city leaders stressing that day-to-day policing will continue under the current command structure while staff and leadership regroup.
In a news release last Wednesday, the City of Golden confirmed that Harvey “has stepped away” and formally named Hendershot as interim chief. According to the city, Hendershot has served with the Golden Police Department for more than 18 years and has nearly 35 years of experience in law enforcement, including over a decade in command roles. The release also listed city contacts for residents with questions about police services during the transition period.
Sentencing and courtroom impact
Harvey’s leave began the same day a Jefferson County judge sentenced Stephen Geer to 13 years in prison for the November 2024 crash that killed 33-year-old Officer Evan Dunn, as reported by The Denver Gazette. Geer pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and vehicular assault. Investigators say his vehicle hit a car that had stopped at an earlier crash on Highway 58, pinning Dunn and his partner, Officer Bethany Grusing, under a vehicle for about 35 minutes. Harvey delivered an emotional impact statement in court and, according to that reporting, then initiated his leave. A department spokesperson said there is no timeline yet for his return.
What happened on Highway 58
The deadly collision unfolded around 5 p.m. on Nov. 6, 2024, when Geer’s Mazda CX‑9 entered the scene of a previous crash on Highway 58 and slammed into a parked vehicle. First responders worked to free Dunn and Grusing from underneath the vehicle. Dunn was pronounced dead at the scene, and Grusing was transported to a hospital with facial fractures. The crash and its aftermath have continued to weigh heavily on Golden’s relatively small police force.
Department staffing and next steps
Harvey has told both the court and the public that his department is still dealing with the human toll of the crash, with some officers leaving the force and others thinking about doing the same, which has put added strain on staffing and morale. The city’s statement emphasized that “Police Department operations will continue as normal” and voiced confidence in the department’s leadership while Hendershot serves as acting chief. The release again pointed residents to city contacts for anyone with questions about police services during this interim period…