(and other items of interest)
Rash of Burglaries strike Salida Restaurants
Large amounts of cash were stolen when four Salida restaurants were burglarized between June 21 and July 17. The latest victim was the Patio Pancake restaurant on U.S. 50 in which an unknown sum of cash was taken during the night of July 17.
Three earlier burglaries occurred during the FIBArk festival weekend when three area restaurants experienced late-night break-ins resulting in the theft of large quantities of cash. Thieves struck The Boathouse Cantiña, Bongo’s Salida Café and The Windmill Restaurant between about 10 p.m., June 21 and 7 a.m. June 22, making off with more then $65,000 in cash.
Chaffee County Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for information leading to arrests. They can be reached at 719-539-5299.
Durgan Sentenced
CANON CITY – Kristin Durgan, 40, wife of a Salida man found dead last year in the Arkansas River, entered a plea agreement in 11th Judicial Court and was sentenced to 48 years in prison for her role in the murder of her husband, James Durgan.
She admitted to luring James Durgan to a site in Bighorn Sheep Canyon on U.S. 50, claiming she was stranded, along with their two children, with car trouble. Once he arrived, he was abducted by two men whom prosecutors say carried out the killing, Brian Folsom, 30, and Andrew Tanner, 23.
Folsom was sentenced to 48 years in prison for his role in the murder. Tanner’s trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 13.
Arkansas River Claims Three Victims in one Week
Two Denver-area residents drowned when their raft overturned in the Pine Creek section of the Arkansas River, north of Buena Vista on July 7.
A second man, David Campbell, 49 of Carollton, Texas, died of cardiac arrest on July 9 after the boat he was in capsized. The accident occurred in the Pinball section of the river near the north end of Browns Canyon, south of Johnson Village.
In the first incident, four co-workers at at Emergency Medical Services Corp. in Greenwood Village, CO attempted to run the Pine Creek section while it was running at 1,840 cfs which exceeded Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area officials’ recommendation that the river not be run if the level exceeds 1,250 cfs.
Although none of the boaters were wearing helmets, two of the rafters escaped injury.
BLM Advisory Council Neutral on ‘Over the River’
CANON CITY – The U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s Front Range Resource Advisory Council has decided not to voice a collective opinion on the proposal by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude to hang fabric panels over 5.9 miles of the Arkansas River.
The project, titled “Over the River,” will require a permit from the BLM, among other government agencies, following an Environmental Impact Statement process.
The 15-member council has voiced concerns about wildlife and other issues of the project, which is currently scheduled for display sometime between July 15 and Aug. 15, 2013, but is staying neutral until the final EIS is written.
Murder Suspects found by GPS
LEADVILLE – Two suspects in a second-degree attempted-murder case out of Cañon City were arrested in Leadville on July 13.
Theron Leppke, 23, Leadville, and Travis Cox, 19, Cañon City, were located by officers from the Cañon City Police Department who used the global positioning system in Leppke’s cell phone to track him to Leadville.
After contacting Lake County law enforcement, the two were apprehended without incident, although officers in Lake County surrounded the suspect’s home with long rifles after an earlier phone conversation with Leppke indicated he was not planning on giving up peacefully.
Rainwater Catching now Legal in Colorado (for some)
DENVER – Two new laws will now allow some Colorado residents to legally claim the rainwater that falls on their homes.
For the first time since territorial days, many in Colorado can legally collect rainwater after obtaining a permit to do so.
On June 2 Governor Ritter signed H.B. 09-1129, directing the state to approve pilot projects for homeowners with wells to collect water from rooftops and impermeable surfaces for non-potable uses.
Municipal water users shouldn’t break out the barrels just yet. The law only applies to residents on wells. That may change depending on the results of the pilot programs, which will last about two years.
High-speed Rail Being Considered
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico, Colorado and Texas have submitted a joint pre-application for up to $5 million to pay for a study of a possible 720-mile high-speed rail system that would travel at speeds up to more than 200 mph from El Paso, Texas, through Albuquerque to Denver.
The Federal Railroad Administration will have the final say on the applications.
The Obama Administration launched an effort back in April to develop a national network of high-speed passenger rail lines, using $8 billion in federal stimulus funds.
Obama Books now OK at Supermax
CANON CITY – Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, an al-Qaida member serving a 30-year sentence at the federal supermax prison in Florence, who had his requests to read two of Barack Obama’s book rejected due to national security concerns, will now have access to them after all.
The Bureau of Prisons reversed course and allowed him access to the books, “Dreams from my Father” and “The Audacity of Hope,” despite their earlier contention that the books contained material “potentially detrimental to national security.”
The earlier rejections, as well as other restrictions on the inmate, led to a temporary hunger strike by Abu Ali which has since ended.
Roadless Plan up for Revision
DENVER – Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter wants to add approximately 160,000 acres of high-quality roadless forests to a proposed roadless rule.
The goal, according to Ritter, is to assist in combating a bark beetle epidemic but also protect travel and natural resources industries. 4.1 million acres of roadless land within 11 national forests would be affected by the proposal, first published in July 2008.
Other issues of concern with the ruling are wildfire prevention, expansion of existing coal mining and utility infrastructure.
G.J. Daily Sentinel is Sold
GRAND JUNCTION – The Daily Sentinel newspaper in Grand Junction, formerly owned by Cox Newspapers, has been sold to a Kansas-based company, Seaton Publishing Co.
Last year Cox announced it was selling most of its newspapers in Colorado, North Carolina and Texas.
More Wilderness Designation Sought
WASHINGTON D.C. – U.S. Rep. John Salazar, D-Manassa, has introduced legislation to create more than 63,000 acres of wilderness in Ouray, San Juan and San Miguel counties.
The legislation includes specially managed mountain terrain. The proposed areas are in the Gunnison, Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and San Juan national forests and BLM areas. Commissioners of the three counties requested the wilderness designation.
Continuation of the Hardrock 100 foot race, access for water users to maintain and repair facilities, and continued grazing in areas where it’s currently allowed are all key provisions of the proposed legislation.
Dead Gator Found in Ditch
HOTCHKISS – A dead alligator was discovered in a ditch about four miles northeast of Hotchkiss in Western Colorado on July 14 by a ditch rider.
The Colorado Division of Wildlife believes the four-foot-long alligator was released by someone while it was still alive.??They stress the dangers that exotic animals can cause to an environment to which they are not native.
“Animals from different parts of the country or the world can carry diseases that could devastate native wildlife species,” said Doug Homan, a district DOW wildlife manager in Hotchkiss. “An invasive species also could be a predator that Colorado wildlife cannot defend themselves against.”??
To dispose of an exotic species, call your local county animal control office, a veterinarian or contact a DOW office.
Liquor Store Held up by Clown
BOULDER – A robber wearing makeup resembling the Joker from the Batman comics and talking in a woman’s voice robbed a Boulder liquor store on June 28.
The clown pulled a gun on the clerk saying, “My husband lost his job and I need to feed my kids,” according to an article in the Denver Post.
According to police, the robber wore a denim dress, a red and purple wig, a black and white hat, white and red makeup and a fake nose.
Notable Quotes:
“Opponents create dynamics which shape the project and how it looks. The process is totally part of the artwork, but it is not the aim.” – Artist Christo on the “Over the River” project.
The Mountain Mail, July 9, 2009.
“I don’t call this project ‘art’. I’m absolutely ill that it might happen.” – “Over the River” opponent Linda Golden of Howard.
The Mountain Mail, July 9, 2009.
“If you get up above 10,000 to 15,000 volts …it’s really painful! People accept that being shocked is a way of life but it doesn’t have to be.” – Norman Webner, inventor of the “Shocker Stopper.”
The Chaffee County Times, July 23, 2009.
