Heather Willard / NewsBreak Denver / May 12, 2023
(Arapahoe County, Colo.) The 2019 conviction and sentencing of Tina Black, 68, was affirmed by the Colorado Appeals Court for her part in the murder of a witness to a marijuana dispensary robbery.
Black was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and conspiracy to commit first-degree burglary of drugs. She was sentenced to life in prison without parole and over $40,000 in restitution in February 2019.
According to an arrest affidavit, witnesses reported two Black male suspects with at least one long gun robbed The Cure dispensary, 6200 East Yale Avenue, on Aug. 14, 2016.
During the investigation for this crime, David Henderson contacted Arapahoe County Sheriff’s deputies to report he had seen two men and a woman driving a suspected vehicle to a hotel. He reported that they brought “large amounts of marijuana in bags” into the room. He also spoke to the detectives about concealed items that could have been weapons or other stolen items.
Henderson also reported that Black contacted him and brought him to the hotel room, where there were suspicious men, who made him uncomfortable. Henderson initially met Black through his work as a mobile auto mechanic and fixed her vehicle.
Henderson was found shot over six times in front of his mother’s apartment complex on Oct. 12, 2016. Henderson’s mother told police she was worried for his safety when she found out he had been a witness and contacted law enforcement.
Another witness informed police they told Tina Black and her son where Henderson was, but believed they would only beat him up. Black coerced the witness into saying his location through phrases like “snitches get stitches.”
According to police, Black and her son, who was also sentenced in Henderson’s death, were gang affiliated. Black’s son wore a GPS ankle monitor during the crimes, although then-District Attorney George Brauchler told media members that it had been turned off. Additionally, Tina Black was on parole for a separate violation.
Due to witness intimidation, the case was kept sealed until days before the sentencing was handed down, according to the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
Judge David Furman affirmed the sentencing, the Colorado Court of Appeals announced Thursday.
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