According to police, at approximately 10:07 a.m. on Saturday Monty Ray Turner, 51, allegedly broke into his estranged wife’s home located in the 700 block of Eldora Place, physically assaulted her, sprayed her with pepper spray and then stunned her with an electronic control device.

Police said Monty Turner allegedly kidnapped their 3-year-old son, Luke Turner.

“They were last seen riding away on bicycle with a kids seat. The bike was last seen east bound on Mt. View Avenue from Independence Drive. We believe Monty Turner may have parked a vehicle nearby and has since fled in that vehicle,” police said in a statement.

Luke Turner (credit: Longmont Police Department)

“I’m worried … because there was pepper spray everywhere, and I know my husband had to have it all over his hands. So I’m sure Luke has pepper spray all over him. He’s probably scared to death,” Luke’s mother Brandy Turner said. “You know, so much has happened. He’s been yanked back and forth so much and he witnessed his dad attacking me. I was screaming and fighting, and then I don’t know what his plans are.”

According to police, Monty Turner has an arrest warrant for failure to comply with a $50,000 bond. He will be facing additional charges related to the kidnapping, burglary and assault.

(credit: CBS)

Monty Turner’s wife has a restraining order against him preventing him from contact with her and her son.

Luke Turner is 3 feet tall with blonde hair and blue eyes. Monty Turner is 6 feet tall, 230 pounds with blonde hair and blue eyes. Police located a pickup truck that he might have been driving. They are still looking for a maroon Dodge Caravan with license plate 576-ZXY. Later Saturday police said they believe he was driving a 1999 Chrysler 300 with license plate 161-ZXZ.

Police say Monty Turner also took his son last summer and disappeared for 8 months. Luke Turner was just reunited with his mother in March.

Additional Information From Longmont Police

Anyone with information on this crime, or any other crime, is asked to call the Longmont Police Department at 303-651-8501 or Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers provides a way for members of the community, like you, to assist local law enforcement agencies in the fight against crime. Crime Stoppers knows “someone other than the criminal has information that can help solve a crime”. Crime Stoppers offers ANONYMITY to people who provide information about crimes AND pays rewards when the information supplied leads to an arrest. People providing information to Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers that lead to the arrest and filing of charges for this crime may receive up to $2,000.00 reward and re-main anonymous. Tips can also be provided to the Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers via the internet at http://www.nococrimestoppers.com or by Text to: 244637 (crimes) Keyword: NOCO (followed by your tip).

“It’s our 10th one-goal game, and unfortunately, I’m almost getting used to it,” Orange coach John Desko said. “I think these guys did a terrific job of keeping their composure at the end of the game,”

Syracuse advances to Monday’s championship game against Duke, another perennial lacrosse power. The Blue Devils beat Cornell 16-14 in the other semifinal. It’s the first time two programs will meet for the title. They have combined for 21 appearances in the NCAA championship and have 12 titles between them.

The Orange (16-3), who will play in their first final since 2009, didn’t lead until Maltz scored.

Denver (14-5) got out to a 3-0 lead, and led by 4-1 and 5-2 in the first half. The Pioneers entered the fourth quarter holding a 7-4 edge.

With 2:42 to play, Denver’s Eric Law and Carson Cannon each drew 30-second pushing penalties, giving Syracuse a two-man advantage. JoJo Marasco scored the first of their three goals with 2:35 left, setting the stage Luke Cometti’s tying goal with 59 seconds left, then Maltz.

“I happened to be at the right spot at the right time,” Maltz said. “JoJo took the ball right to the cage and the ball trickled off the goalie’s chest. I’m thankful the ball landed in the back of the net and we’re moving on to Monday.”

The Pioneers’ Chase Carraro won the faceoff and Denver coach Bill Tierney called a timeout with seven seconds left, but the Pioneers couldn’t get a last shot off.

Ryan LaPlante made 13 saves for Denver in the first half, while giving up just two goals. Regardless, Tierney stuck with what he had been doing throughout the season, rotating goalies and replacing LaPlante with Jamie Faus, who allowed seven goals on 11 shots in the second half.

“This is what we’ve done all year, and none of those goals were Jamie’s fault,” Tierney said. “Jamie’s our closer, and he’s done a great job all year. We unfortunately didn’t cover up the rebound. I didn’t know heading out on the field after halftime how many saves Ryan had. I didn’t think much about it.”

Cometti led Syracuse with three goals, while Maltz and Marasco had two each. Law led Denver with three goals and second-leading scorer Wesley Berg was held without a shot.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Pagan became the first San Francisco player to end a game with an inside-the-park homer, connecting with a runner aboard in the bottom of the 10th inning Saturday to give the Giants a thrilling 6-5 victory over the Colorado Rockies.

“I know two things: I’m going to score and Flannery is going to score with me,” Pagan said. “He’s amazing. I’ll be honest with you, I was running out of gas a little bit around third. He helped me to get there.”

Troy Tulowitzki homered leading off the 10th to put the Rockies ahead 5-4, but Colorado closer Rafael Betancourt (1-2) walked Brandon Crawford to open the bottom half.

Guillermo Quiroz sacrificed before Pagan sent a long drive that hit the base of the oddly angled wall in right-center and bounced high over the head of right fielder Michael Cuddyer. The ball caromed away from Cuddyer as the speedy Pagan raced around the bases and slid home ahead of the relay.

“I was thinking at least three. I was watching the ball and it didn’t bounce too far from him,” Pagan said. “I’m thinking three but looking at the coach. He gives me the OK and I’m going for it.”

The last major leaguer to hit an inside-the-park home run that ended a game was Rey Sanchez for Tampa Bay on June 11, 2004 — also in a 10-inning victory over Colorado, according to STATS.

The previous Giants player to do it was Hall of Famer Bill Terry on Aug. 24, 1931, when the club was in New York. His drive beat the Chicago Cubs 2-1, STATS said.

“I thought it was going over the fence,” said Pagan’s teammate, Hunter Pence. “Inside the park is the last thing you think of. All we could do is watch him run and hope he was safe.”

It was Betancourt’s first blown save in 11 chances this season.

Carlos Gonzalez homered among his three hits and drove in two runs for the Rockies. Cuddyer and Jordan Pacheco also drove in runs.

Buster Posey had three hits and scored twice for the Giants, who ended a four-game slide against the Rockies. Pence, Andres Torres and Marco Scutaro each drove in runs. Crawford and Pablo Sandoval had two hits apiece.

“That would have been a tough one to lose,” San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy said. “That was an emotional roller-coaster ride. We had a couple of critical calls go against us, but it’s all about bouncing back and these guys found a way.”

Bochy watched the game-winning hit from his office. He had been ejected in the eighth inning.

“I’ve never seen that before,” Bochy said. “I wish I could have been out there.”

Giants closer Sergio Romo (3-2) gave up Tulowitzki’s 10th homer.

“To go up and then lose the game is tough,” Tulowitzki said. “But then we know the Giants play well in front of their fans and feel like they can win these kinds of games.”

Rockies starter Juan Nicasio went five-plus innings, allowing two runs and seven hits. He walked one and struck out two.

Barry Zito lasted six innings, giving up four runs and seven hits. He walked one and struck out three.

Bochy was ejected in the bottom of the eighth by plate umpire Alfonso Marquez for arguing a call at third base after Scutaro appeared to dodge Nolan Arenado’s tag on a throw from the outfield.

Marquez called Brandon Belt out at home on a close play in the seventh.

Pence’s RBI double in the sixth ended San Francisco’s 24-inning scoreless streak against Colorado pitching. Crawford’s sacrifice fly and Scutaro’s bases-loaded walk brought the Giants within 4-3.

Torres tied the game with a double in the seventh.

Dexter Fowler opened the game with a double and, one out later, Gonzalez hit the first pitch into McCovey Cove beyond the right-field wall.

The Rockies added a pair of runs in the fourth on consecutive doubles from Tulowitzki and Cuddyer, and a one-out single by Pacheco.

“It was a well-played game,” Colorado manager Walt Weiss said. “The walks hurt us. You don’t think about it when the ball comes off the bat, but with the configurations of the park, it can bounce anywhere.”

Cuddyer has three hits — all for extra bases — and four RBIs in his two games back from the disabled list.

The Giants loaded the bases in the first inning but failed to score. Nicasio retired 13 of his next 16 hitters, twice stranding runners in scoring position.

NOTES: Gonzalez became the first Rockies player to have a “splash hit” into McCovey Cove. It was the 27th splash hit by an opponent and the 90th overall since the ballpark opened in 2000. … The Giants played their major league-leading ninth extra-inning game. … Centerplate, Inc. concession workers went on a one-day strike, picketing in front of the ballpark. Concessions were staffed by management and others. … Bochy said a decision on Tuesday’s starter, to replace injured RHP Ryan Vogelsong, will be made by Sunday. … Rockies RHP Jon Garland (3-5, 5.19 ERA) pitches Sunday’s series finale. He last faced the Giants on Sept. 9, 2010. … Tulowitzki extended his hitting streak to 10 games. … RHP Matt Cain (3-2, 5.12) starts Sunday for the Giants. He will be facing the Rockies for the 30th time.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

In Denver, several hundred people took part in a march from the Capitol to the 16th Street Mall. Organizers are taking aim at big companies that produce genetically modified food and want legislation to require labels on GMO foods. They claim Monsanto is also controlling patents and squeezing out small farmers who grow organic food.

“Their motto is that they’re feeding the world, but really what they’re doing … they’re driven by greed and they’re driven by, ‘How can we make more money and make lots of money?’ a protester said. “So what’s wrong with that is whenever you have someone trying to make money, they’re pushing other people out of the way.”

“Among the challenges facing agriculture are producing food for our growing population and reducing agriculture’s footprint on the environment,” Monsanto said in a statement. “We are making a contribution to improving agriculture by helping farmers produce more from their land while conserving natural resources such as water and energy.”

The thefts are happening in the Five Parks and Whisper Creek neighborhoods in West Arvada. Homeowners are making sure they take precautions so they don’t become victims.

Arvada police say when residents leave their garage door open or car door unlocked they’re making themselves a target.

News of the crimes has the community on high alert.

Kent Quillen isn’t the type of guy who takes chances.

“I’m putting lights up and hook up cameras for watching the neighborhood and my house too,” Quillen said.

There have been about five cases since Wednesday and another 11 reports of rocks being thrown through windows.

“Thank goodness we haven’t been targeted yet,” resident Victor Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez’s peace has been shattered.

“It’s concerning. We have an alarm, so we have some additional level of security, but I’ve been thinking about changing the locks, putting a bump lock on the doors, things like that,” he said.

Meanwhile, Quillen will be keeping a close eye on things.

“I’m hoping it slows the crooks down. Hope they think the neighborhood is watching each other and taking care of it,” he said.

Officers say these types of crimes spike in the summer, so they’re reminding everyone to lock their cars and keep garage doors shut.

Lt. Jeff Turner said the crash occurred in the 1900 block of southbound Interstate 225. A tan minivan had broken down and was parked on the shoulder.

A tan minivan had broken down and was parked on the left shoulder. A gold minivan had stopped and had attempted to jump start the disabled minivan but was unsuccessful.

“The gold minivan was attempting to leave the area, turned into the left through lane of traffic and into the path of a red car,” Turner said in a statement. “The red car struck the front passenger side of the gold minivan. The impact spun the gold minivan more than 180 degrees and into the center dividing barrier.”

The red car then struck a blue car that was also traveling southbound.

There were four people in the tan minivan. Three were uninjured and one had a minor injury possibly from flying debris. There were two people who were in the tan minivan but were standing beside the tan minivan at the time of the accident. They were uninjured.

There were four other people in the gold minivan at the time of the accident. The front passenger was seriously injured and transported to a local hospital. She is expected to survive. Two other rear passengers suffered non-life threatening injuries and were transported to a local hospital.

The driver of the gold mini-van fled the scene.

There were four people in the red car. All seriously injured and transported to local hospitals. The front passenger has life-threatening injuries. The others are critical but expected to survive.

There were four people in the blue car and none were injured.

Names haven’t been released.

Police don’t believe alcohol or excessive speed were a factor. The highway was closed from the time of the accident until about 4:15 a.m.

Two other people in the car are in critical condition. The accident happened around 7 a.m. Saturday.

The driver was exiting Wadsworth Boulevard onto I-70 when he hit a truck sitting in the median.

Traffic was backed up for several hours on Wadsworth and I-70 as police investigated the crash.

Dexter Lewis and brothers Joseph and Lynell Hill each face multiple counts, including first-degree murder, felony murder, robbery and arson.

The attack happened last October.

Prosecutors have until July 26 to decide whether to seek the death penalty.

Investigators say the men originally intended to rob Fero’s Bar & Grill. They were arrested after someone in another case told authorities that he was with the men during at least part of the attack.

Denver is the eighth worst when it comes to dogs attacking postal workers. Dog owners should check with their insurance company to make sure they are covered if their dog bites somebody.

By just looking at 6 ½-year-old Aeris Burt you’d never know how much she’s healed in the last two months from a dog bite.

“I only cried for five minutes,” she said.

Five minutes of terror when a dog bit her in the mouth.

“The dog ripped her pretty good, so she had this cut right here. But the doctor lined up both lip lines and then did the stitches on both top and bottom, so it would grow and still be a beautiful line,” Aeris’ mother Stefanie Newcomb said.

The dog belonged to a family friend, and it was a dog Aeris knew well.

“I was playing with him and then he didn’t want me to play with him anymore so then he bit me,” Aeris said.

It turned out dog bites are covered by standard homeowners or renters insurance policy. According to the Insurance Information Institute, there were nearly $490 million in dog bite claims last year. The average cost per claim almost $30,000. Colorado ranks 19th in the country for the most dog bite claims.

That liability coverage can help pay for the damage or injuries related to that person’s dog bite or attack,” said Angela Thorpe, State Farm media relations specialist. “This can happen anywhere.”

One out of five dog bites requires medical attention.

Aeris Burt (credit: CBS)

Homeowners and renters insurance policies normally provide at least $100,000 in benefits for dog bite victims. Higher limits are available at an additional cost.

“A possible settlement is being talked about,” Newcomb said.

Aeris is doing quite well considering it’s only been eight weeks since her attack, but you can still see where her stitches were.

“I’m sure this little scar on top of her lip will stay but it could’ve been worse,” Newcomb said. “We’re glad it’s just this.”

Although Aeris does seem to be the same with her own dogs, her mother says she’s still teaching her children how to be around dogs.

More than half of all dog bite victims are children.

Police hope to cut down on auto-pedestrian accidents and they hope people will begin to change the bad habit of jaywalking.

“We’re out passing out fliers today about pedestrian bicycle safety rules of the road, trying to cut down on pedestrian accidents we have had,” an officer told some pedestrians.

The danger each pedestrian and cyclist faces is real.

“If I am standing and I am struck by a vehicle and I’m accelerated up to 25 miles an hour, that will cause internal damage, not even talking about the crush injuries; and that will cause my organs to come apart and fail and cause death,” Sgt. Mike Farr said.

It comes down to some simple rules. When the walk symbol is lit, pedestrians have the right of way. The flashing or solid orange hand means don’t cross.

For now police aren’t handing out tickets, just flyers.

“If we see that the voluntary compliance through education isn’t working then we will move on to the enforcement,” Farr said.

Tickets are $30 for the citation plus another $35 in fees.

The Hutchinson News reports that 19-year-old Rachael Finley of Larkspur, Colo., died in the accident Friday evening. The Kansas Highway Patrol says the driver of the dune buggy lost control on a curve on a road outside Syracuse.

The driver of the dune buggy was also injured.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

The U.S. attorney’s office says in a release the indictment was returned against 61-year-old James Paul Hunt of Montrose.

Acting U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis says Hunt had applied to be a third-party custodian for his son, who is charged with distributing child pornography.

Feldis says when Hunt signed his custodian application, he didn’t disclose a prior arrest, one of the questions on the form. Feldis says Hunt pleaded guilty in Colorado in 1987 to sexual assault on a child. Feldis also says Hunt didn’t disclose the charge or his guilty plea when questioned under oath.

Each felony count carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Almost 90 acres at the top of Aspen Mountain are open through Monday for people to make turns. Daily adult lift tickets are $36, or $18 for passholders.

The mountain had celebrated its last day of the season April 14, but resort officials decided to reopen some terrain for the holiday weekend after getting more snow since then.

Arapahoe Basin is the only other Colorado ski area still open, with about 350 acres available. And it hasn’t closed since opening day last fall. It plans to end its season June 2.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

He sure didn’t lose his power stroke while nursing his troublesome neck the past two weeks.

Cuddyer homered and hit a two-run double after being activated earlier in the day, Tyler Chatwood beat San Francisco for the second time in seven days and the Colorado Rockies blanked the Giants 5-0 on Friday night.

“Good, good, the neck’s good,” Cuddyer said. “It felt great. Being able to go out there and help us get the win was nice. I felt comfortable in the box, I didn’t feel like I’d missed much time. In the grand scheme of things I really didn’t miss that much time.”

Carlos Gonzalez also hit a solo homer and D.J. LeMahieu added an RBI single as the Rockies beat two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum (3-4) for the second time in a week.

Gonzalez was fortunate to play at all. Before the game, a fan threw him a ball point pen to sign an autograph and it hit Gonzalez – who didn’t see it coming – just under the left eye.

“I still signed it, with a bloody pen,” he said, chuckling. “Incredible, ahhh?”

The Rockies, swept in a three-game series at AT&T Park last month, won their fourth in a row in the rivalry for the first time since 2006.

Colorado also snapped a nine-game losing streak at AT&T Park with its first win in the waterfront ballpark since Aug. 10, 2012. San Francisco was shut out at home for the first time since that same game, also started and won by Chatwood (3-0) – he beat Lincecum that day, too.

“It’s pretty neat to do that against that lineup,” Chatwood said. “They’re a great hitting team. Any time you can have success against a lineup like that, it’s big.”

Cuddyer’s two-out double in the first gave Colorado a quick cushion, then he connected for his eighth home run with a solo shot leading off the sixth. He also scored two runs after returning to the Rockies’ lineup from the 15-day disabled list.

Cuddyer, batting fifth and playing right field after missing time with an inflamed cervical disk, went 2 for 4 with three RBIs. Gonzalez homered leading off the eighth against Sandy Rosario, Gonzalez’s team-leading 12th clout.

“I felt pretty good physically,” Lincecum said. “Mechanically I felt good. Just a couple of pitches that got away from me and they really made me pay for it.”

Lincecum struck out eight and walked two over seven innings in his second consecutive start against Colorado and third in all this year. The right-hander allowed four runs and seven hits after taking the loss against the Rockies at Coors Field last Saturday.

He has defeats in four of his past five decisions. He has allowed 16 earned runs in his past 18 innings against the Rockies this season for an 8.00 ERA.

“I just have to stop making mistakes up in the zone against them,” he said. “If I miss with my spots they have to be down or away. But things are right in the middle of the plate.”

Chatwood allowed four hits in six scoreless innings, struck out four and walked one in another lopsided Rockies result against the reigning World Series champions. Colorado shut out San Francisco 5-0 in the series finale in Denver last Sunday.

The Rockies (27-21) remained in a first-place tie with Arizona atop the NL West standings after the Diamondbacks beat San Diego in Phoenix, with the Giants one game back.

“They’ve dominated us every time here,” Gonzalez said. “That gives us a lot of confidence when you can win a series against a team that won the championship a couple of times the last few years.”

San Francisco’s Marco Scutaro went 0 for 3 after having hit safely in each of his previous 15 games against Colorado, his former club before being traded to the Giants last July. But the Giants generated few opportunities against Chatwood and the Colorado bullpen.

Wilton Lopez, the Rockies’ third reliever, finished the five-hit shutout.

Notes: Rockies manager Walt Weiss said RHP Rafael Betancourt would not need a DL stint for his groin injury. He threw a light bullpen before the game and was available to close the game. … San Francisco starter Ryan Vogelsong, who had surgery on his broken right hand Tuesday, is keeping his sense of humor about an injury that will sideline him about two months. “I hit myself in the face last night, sleeping with it,” he said of the heavily wrapped hand. “That didn’t feel too good.” He wears a sling sometimes, which “kind of tells everyone not to run into me.” Manager Bruce Bochy said the Giants would announce their fill-in for Vogelsong’s spot Tuesday at Oakland after Sunday’s finale with Colorado. … A decision about whether Giants RHP Santiago Casilla would have arthroscopic surgery was expected soon. … Weiss plans to continue resting young C Wilin Rosario for day games after night games to keep him fresh. … The Giants lost in one of Lincecum’s starts for only the fifth time in the past 16 dating to last season.

- By JANIE McCAULEY, AP Baseball Writer

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

A tricked-out Airstream Classic camper that boasts many of the amenities of home – including a flat-screen TV, DVD player and air conditioning – will be available for campers this summer in the Southbay Campground operated by the Larimer County Natural Resources Department.

The shiny, 31-foot camper is equipped to sleep three adults or two adults and two children with linens provided. It has a fully outfitted kitchen along with a toilet and shower.

Camping in an Airstream is like staying in a hotel room, said Gary Buffington, director of the natural resources department. The rig is meant to round out the park’s portfolio of camping options, which include tents, recreational vehicles and cabins.

“We think it will be a popular addition to our camping program,” he said.

The county paid $37,000 for the camper and $2,000 to have it delivered from Georgia. Another $6,000 was put toward refurbishing it.

Renting the camper will cost $99 a night and carry a two-night minimum. Buffington said the county is likely to get its investment back in two to three years.

The Airstream is likely to make appearances at community events such as the county fair and the Colorado State University homecoming parade. It may be moved around to other county parks that can provide full electrical, water and sewer hookups, Buffington said.

The camper was on display Tuesday at the Larimer County Courthouses Offices for inspection by county officials and passers-by.

Airstream camping is a growing trend across the country, said Dan Rieves, visitor services manager for the natural resources department. Some campers like to mix a bit of luxury into their outdoors experiences along with nostalgia for the vintage, aluminum-shelled camper.

“We’re actually a little behind the times,” he said.

- By KEVIN DUGGAN, The Coloradoan

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

“The outlook isn’t good,” he said. “Without water, we’re nothing.”

Though April brought more than 20 inches of snow to Colorado’s Front Range, Southwest Colorado has seen little of that spring moisture. And with a drier-than-normal winter coming on the heels of one of the driest years on record, this season is shaping up to be as bad as last year and possibly even worse for the region’s ranching and agricultural operations.

Initial indicators show reservoir storage, field crops and native plants are going into the growing season in worse shape than 2012.

The Hi-Country Cattle Auction in Breen is one place where the effects of the season’s dry conditions are playing out.

Dozens of animals for sale had bare patches, and their fur was stretched taut across the contours of their backbones and ribs. The animals’ owner likely had run out of hay and couldn’t afford to buy more, said Bob Kujath, an Oxford rancher at the auction.

Large squares of supreme-quality alfalfa hay in Southwest Colorado are $230 to $245 per ton, according to the latest Colorado Hay Report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service. Two years ago, the prices ranged from $160 to $170 per ton. Prices increased dramatically as drought spread across the Southwest in 2012, but prices since have leveled out because hay consumers simply cannot afford to pay more than the current market price, said Randy Hammerstrom, officer in charge of USDA’s market news service.

The tight hay market, combined with poor high-country and pasture grazing conditions has led many local ranchers to sell off part of their herds, said Chris Cugnini with Hi-Country Auction.

The number of cows going through the auction increased by about 2,000 from 2011 to 2012, and Cugnini said ranchers are dipping deeper into their herds this year as well.

Meanwhile, local hay farmers expect to produce even less than last year in large part because of bleak irrigation forecasts. The region’s major reservoirs entered the water year with 24 percent to 69 percent less water than 2012 and then were hit with a season of below-average snowpack. Now, warm spring winds combined with dry soils are greatly depleting runoff flows.

It’s “the worst case scenarios, all combined,” said John Ey, superintendent of the Florida Water Conservancy District.

Irrigators depending on McPhee, Lemon and Vallecito reservoirs are slated to receive a fraction of their allocated stored water – Vallecito Reservoir irrigators will get about 80 percent, McPhee Reservoir irrigators are expecting about 23 percent and Lemon Reservoir irrigators are expected to receive 35 percent.

Florida Mesa farmers will receive irrigation water only through early to mid-July and will likely get just one cutting of hay, said Phillip Craig, a local hay farmer and president of the Florida Water Conservancy District’s board of directors.

Eyeing current water forecasts, farmers have left fields fallow or planted crops such as oats that don’t take as much water as hay. Doug Thurston, a farmer on the Florida Mesa, said he will be able to irrigate about two-thirds of the number of hay acres that he was able to last year.

It can take years for crop yields to return to normal after a season or two of drought, Craig said.

“It took us five years to recover from (the) 2002 (drought),” he said. “We’ve never gotten back to production we had pre-2002.”

The region’s forests and other public lands used for grazing haven’t fared much better than agriculture. Last year was the 15th driest year on record according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Plants that were already starved for moisture after a warm, dry spring were subject to an equally dry fall. When winter’s first snowfall finally did arrive, the ground already was frozen, so none of that moisture was absorbed.

Fall moisture is important because that is when plants regrow root systems. Plants weren’t able to regrow roots last year, so they are going into the spring already stressed, said Mark Tucker, rangeland management program leader with the San Juan National Forest. In addition, many areas experienced heavier than normal grazing last year, putting them at a disadvantage going into this year.

“We don’t have the forage production to (support) normal livestock numbers and season (length),” Tucker said.

For the 28 permittees who run cattle across the Columbine Ranger District, the news means they will likely have to shorten their grazing season and reduce the number of cattle they take up to the high country. Jared Whitmer, a rangeland management specialist with the ranger district, said many permittees will have to wait an additional one to two weeks before they can head up to the high country to allow plants more time to develop. The delay means some ranchers will have to buy more hay for their animals or to turn them out onto their poorer-producing hay fields.

In his initial assessments, Whitmer also noticed stock ponds and drainages that usually hold water this time of year are dry. Without that water, ranchers may be more limited in where they can graze their animals, which could stress some areas more than others, Tucker said-

Researchers at Colorado State University have studied drought’s ripple effects. In a survey about last year’s drought conditions, 90 percent of respondents from Southwest Colorado reported below-average forage yields while 35 percent reported selling livestock in response to the drought.

If the drought persists, 34 percent of Southwest Colorado respondents said there was a 50 percent or greater chance they will leave the industry in the next five years while a third suggested they sought additional off-farm employment in response to the drought.

Trent Taylor, a dryland farmer on the Fort Lewis Mesa said steep declines in his crop production have led him to seek off-farm income. His wife started teaching, and he has bought a few rental properties.

“I’m hedging my bets,” he said.

EMERY COWAN, The Durango Herald

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Her house is nestled in a close-knit Laurel Street neighborhood where she says people look out for one another. There’s a “good sense of community.”

But being a block away from the Colorado State University campus, she hears students trolling for parties on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. The smell of burning marijuana wafts near her home on occasion, and almost every weekend brings the chore of clearing beer bottles and fast food bags from her lawn.

“It’s really the blending of two worlds,” she said.

In the coming 15 years, CSU plans to be a larger piece of that mix, with plans to grow enrollment to 35,000 students from today’s 27,000. For nearby neighbors, that plan brings up questions mirrored across Colorado’s growing Front Range, Johnson said while taking a break from working in her front yard.

Will there be enough housing? Where will people live? Will it be affordable? It’s all the talk among friends and neighbors.

“I think infrastructure will definitely be tested,” she said.

Concerns about the impacts of growth at CSU and Front Range Community College are nothing new in Fort Collins.

Spurred mainly by concerns of living next to more college students, a residents group called for the temporary halt to construction of multifamily housing units in spring 2012. Worried their central Fort Collins neighborhood and others were at risk of “becoming destabilized,” their comments came to light as a “gold rush or land grab” among developers was under way, a letter sent to the mayor and City Council said.

The City Council didn’t OK a moratorium but did impose a number of strict land use standards for multifamily developments this winter. That change and others followed the release of the city’s Student Housing Action Plan, a slew of strategies to meet student housing demand without sacrificing quality of life in primarily-single family neighborhoods.

This is a constant challenge with which city Neighborhood Services Manager Beth Sowder is familiar.

“Student housing will always be an issue in Fort Collins, as long as the university is here,” she said. “And that’s a good thing.”

Students traditionally rent both multifamily units and single-family homes within a mile or so of campus. Unlike Arizona State University, where students are the predominant residents around campus, Fort Collins sees a unique blending of permanent and temporary tenants that manifests in various ways.

And that “clash of lifestyles can create issues” a times, Sowder said.

In partnership with CSU, Sowder’s group works hard to educate students on being courteous, responsible and law-abiding neighbors. Outreach includes greeting students living near campus each fall to welcome them to the area and a host of other means such as educational campaigns, resource websites and landlord training.

“Most students” want to live in harmony with permanent neighbors, said graduating senior John Dietrick, director of CSU student government’s Community Affairs. They introduce themselves and share a phone number, should neighbors have concerns about noise or partying. Sowder agreed, saying “the majority of students are great,” loved by longtime neighbors.

But there are a few bad eggs.

Take the party-turned-riot on April 27 in the Summerhill neighborhood off Prospect Road, where police used tear gas to disperse hundreds of students who refused to leave, some yelling and throwing things at officers.

That was an isolated incident, Dietrick said, prompted by a “few individuals who decided not to reflect what CSU is about.” And while it did change some perceptions of students, it hasn’t marred their reputation in the long run, he said.

The Coloradoan asked readers how they feel about CSU’s projected enrollment growth and whether neighbors and students can live in harmony. Several people said their thoughts would have been more positive, had they been asked the questions prior to the riot.

CSU student Sabrina Herrick wrote on Facebook: “The problem people have isn’t that (students) are drunk at 2 a.m., it’s what they do when they’re drunk at 2 a.m.” She said she’s lost count of the number of times she’s caught drunken students urinating on her apartment building.

Some said they support CSU and its efforts to bring in money at a time when it has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in state and federal funding. Others still said they are concerned about future traffic and parking challenges but welcome new residents — temporary as they may be.

“I think certain people might be forgetting that students and residents have typically gotten along just fine in Fort Collins,” said John White, who lives in an area of Old Town where there’s “students mixed in.”

In anticipation of CSU’s growth, a slew of housing developments are being built in Fort Collins, many intended for students.

Data in the Student Housing Action Plan, released in February, show 3,421 new units with 6,123 bedrooms approved, under construction or recently completed in multifamily units. Of those, roughly 1,400 units and 3,600 bedrooms are intended to house students.

Following the April 27 riot, one question emerged: Do students make more noise and cause more disturbances when they live together, in a complex, or when they’re sprinkled among permanent residents in a neighborhood?

A 2012 city staff investigation found Fort Collins Police Services issued or made 516 citations/arrests related to noise or nuisance complaints/code violations between June 2011 and June 2012. Of those 403, or 78 percent, were given to people at single-family dwellings, and 113, or 22 percent, were issued to people at multifamily residences.

This illustrates what a number of people already know: When there’s a mix of lifestyles “you have more chances for someone to be disrupted,” Sowder said.

While an increase of student-targeted multifamily housing isn’t likely to reduce current dust-ups between students and neighbors, it may help limit any greater occurrence as CSU grows.

Dietrick says he thinks there’s ample room in Fort Collins to fit both an increased number of students and others who move to the area. It’s one topic he and others from CSU student government discussed recently with city officials.

“I don’t think housing is an issue right now,” he said.

But others clearly disagree, leaving both the university and other stakeholders to plan for what happens when the city’s largest employer and major cultural driver grows in influence.

MADELINE NOVEY, The Coloradoan

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

It’s not a new complaint. Since 2005, when the Federal Railroad Administration said that trains at crossings had to give a longer, louder warning of their presence, the neighbors have said it’s just too noisy. And there can be a lot of neighbors; Longmont alone has 17 railroad crossings.

“There’s a train that comes through at 5 in the morning and, really and truly, it does wake you up,” said Mary Thurston Wise. Her home sits just off Atwood Street, where the tracks run down the center of the road, creating five crossings in five blocks.

“When you’re outside, you have to go inside. I run in, calling, ‘Close the screens! Close the doors!’”

The FRA wanted to reduce crossing accidents. And according to the statistics, it’s worked.

In the eight years before the 2005 rule, Boulder County averaged 2.25 railroad crossing accidents a year. In the eight years since, it’s averaged 0.375, including none at all in the last four years. (A 2011 incident, in which a teen trying to hop a ride had her legs amputated, was listed as a “trespasser accident” rather than a crossing collision.)

Still, plenty of people have wondered if there can’t be a better way.

This year, senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet and congressmen Cory Gardner and Jared Polis have been trying to find some way to keep the safety without blasting eardrums.

“I’m totally a safety-minded person,” Wise agreed. “So if there’s a good answer for safety and preventing noise pollution, I’m for it. It would be nice if there could be a happy medium.”

Ask FRA officials and they’ll tell you there is a solution in place: quiet zones.

Under the 2005 rule, if a city takes certain steps – such as a barrier median or a long crossing arm so cars can’t swerve onto the tracks – then the crossing can be marked as a “quiet zone” where horns will be blasted only in an emergency.

But quiet zones aren’t cheap. Longmont recently estimated that to set up quiet zones at a dozen crossings in town would run nearly $7 million. (The other five were supposed to have been taken care of under the Regional Transportation District’s long-delayed FasTracks project.)

That’s a lot of money, engineering services manager Nick Wolfrum said, especially when crossing accidents were rare in Longmont even before 2005.

“You have not seen a community in Colorado that’s gone on ahead and wholesale created quiet zones,” Wolfrum said. “It’s more of an isolated, ‘I’m doing this project anyway, so if I extend the median a little, I can make it a quiet zone.’”

And in certain areas, one quiet zone doesn’t do anything. Coming back to Atwood, if the city closed one crossing or lengthened one barrier arm there, four others nearby still need a horn sounded – money spent for no real gain.

“Since we never got to the point of funding anything, the City Council never said, ‘This is our number one priority,” Wolfrum said.

Enter Washington. In January, Bennet and Udall sent a letter to the FRA emphasizing that train horns did more than annoy neighbors, they stifled economic development.

“As you may expect, train horn noise impacts almost everyone in communities where the railroad runs right through the center of town and where the business and residential area is spread over a relatively small area,” read the letter, which asked the FRA to re-open the issue. “These impacts are amplified in downtown areas, which are focusing on redevelopment and urban renewal, as well as creating healthy, walkable neighborhoods.”

The FRA noted in return that 525 quiet zones had been created nationwide, including 10 new ones in Colorado.

The agency would review its rules, FRA administrator Joseph Szabo wrote, but added that even if the standards can sometimes be difficult, safety has to come first.

That’s where Gardner and Polis came in. In April, the two asked a congressional subcommittee – specifically, the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials – to hold hearings on the matter. The hearings have not yet been scheduled, Gardner said Friday, but will likely be added to an existing hearing later this year.

The goal, Gardner said, is flexibility.

“This is a federal regulatory agency. This is something I feel we can deal with,” he said. “What I want to bring up is ‘Do you really need to blow the horn that loud, that long?”

For the record, “that long” is currently 15 to 20 seconds, while “that loud” is 96 to 110 decibels – around the level of a chain saw or a rock concert.

SCOTT ROCHAT, Longmont Times-Call

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

However, in the case of Kat Mackinnon, the school in question was not the University of Colorado. Instead, it was the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism, a small school on Valmont that teaches a holistic approach to herbal medicine in the Western tradition.

Mackinnon is now the manager of the school’s Evergreen Clinic, a sliding-scale facility that uses student-clinicians to evaluate and consult with clients. Mackinnon, who moved to Boulder from Connecticut, says she found the program to be exactly what she was looking for – an education that took a holistic approach, offering not only herbal remedies, but in-depth study in anatomy, physiology and nutrition.

“It was working with the whole person in every respect,” she says.

It’s a combination that appeals to many students and one that is not easy to find, says Lisa Ganora, the school director.

“It’s higher level than a lot of other herb schools,” she says. “It’s for training professional clinical herbalists. They study physiology, herbal constituents, biology, how to make things, field botany and plant ID.”

Ganora says the school enrolls a good number of students like Mackinnon, who have graduated from other herb schools. About two-thirds of the roughly 30 students come to the school from elsewhere.

“They want to take their education farther,” she says.

And the mystique of Boulder doesn’t hurt.

“You get a chance to go to herb school and live in Boulder. It doesn’t hurt that it’s such a great town,” she says.

The school, which was founded in 2003 by Paul Bergner, was then called the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism. Bergner retired last year, and considered closing the school. However, Ganora took over as director.

The school year begins in August with students studying fundamentals through November. The advanced herb program starts in January and after graduating from those two programs, students can go on to specialize in clinical nutrition, advanced nutrition or flower essences. In addition, the school is starting an evening track for the fundamentals course in which classes take place two nights a week and one Saturday a month.

The school works in the western traditions of herbalism, which includes Native American medicine as well as the herbal traditions of countries such as Britain, France and Germany. In addition, Ganora says, the school incorporates the writings and clinical diaries of doctors who worked in the United States during the 19th century and used herbal treatments.

“The medical system (then) … was a lot more diverse than it is today,” she says.

However, she is careful to add that the school doesn’t teach “herbs good, doctors bad.”

“Every system has its strengths and weaknesses,” she says.

Her own case is instructive in that regard. About five years ago, Ganora developed neurological symptoms, including dizzy spells, problems with dropping things, balance issues, tingling neuropathy in her fingers and bad leg cramps. In addition, her joints were swollen and painful. She saw every type of practitioner – from a Native American shaman to a neurologist who gave her an MRI. The doctor thought she had multiple sclerosis.

Then she asked school founder Bergner what he thought was wrong. He suggested she try eliminating dairy from her diet. To Ganora the suggestion made no sense: She didn’t have the gastro-intestinal issues or respiratory problems that are common with dairy intolerance. Nevertheless, she went on a six-week dairy elimination diet and her symptoms resolved. Then she tested it by pigging out on cheese, and the symptoms returned. Since then, she has also eliminated gluten from her diet and has seen further improvement, but nothing as dramatic as with the no-dairy diet.

She says her case is emblematic of the school’s approach in another way. While she took herbs to ease her symptoms, the school does not merely offer an “herbal Band-Aid” to clients.

“We sit down and talk about where problems might have come from,” she says.

CINDY SUTTER, Daily Camera

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

The landscape blurs by. The coffee is piping.

And gas prices are not a bother.

It’s an image that – at least conceptually – Colorado Springs residents like.

Colorado Public Interest Research Group wants to take that message to the Colorado Department of Transportation and Gov. John Hickenlooper.

The consumer advocacy organization this summer will campaign to build support for high-speed rail in Colorado. This month and in early June, members will canvass local residents door to door, said Danny Katz, CoPIRG director.

The campaign, which will wrap up in August, will also take the organization to the El Paso County Commissioners and Colorado Springs City Council.

“They have a huge stake in decisions,” Katz said. “High-speed rail can have a positive impact locally. We also believe that a lot of businesses will benefit from it.”

CoPIRG plans to use the input to encourage the Colorado Department of Transportation to complete a study on regional connectivity – which includes high-speed rail – with enough detail that the proposal could be presented to voters.

“We want to keep the studies moving forward so we are continuing to the day when we, as Coloradans, can decide whether we can actually build this thing,” Katz said. “There’s a ton of support for the concept of high-speed rail, and it’s worth spending the money to complete the studies because it’s an important part of our future.”

Top selling points, he said, will be the route – downtown Colorado Springs to downtown Denver – and speed.

“You tend to get the biggest benefit, most riders and attract more tourists when trains go faster,” Katz said.

There’s plenty of demand for such a system from Colorado Springs to Denver, said Craig Casper, transportation director for the Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments.

“Commuter rail between Colorado Springs and Denver has been our number one request by the public,” he said. “At the conceptual level, that’s the most mentioned project from those people who come to our meetings.”

Casper envisions a train running at more than 120 mph.

“So it’s still quicker than driving. It’s trying to replace vehicle trips, not replace airline trips,” he said.

According to the Transportation Department’s Interregional Connectivity Study, 59 percent of respondents in a survey were in favor of rail. About 28 percent were neutral.

A train from Pueblo through Colorado Springs to Denver had the biggest draw, according to a market share report, at 48 percent.

The biggest obstacle, though, is the cost.

The CDOT report pegs it at about $14 billion, depending on the route.

It will eventually end up in the hands of voters, Katz said. That’s why the report by the Transportation Department must be completed despite the staggering cost of the project.

More detail is necessary, including specifics such as location of stations, the type of train and actual costs.

“I think the final study we are pushing CDOT to do won’t be very different from the studies that we’ve seen, but will include detail that is required so that when it’s done and the Legislature or governor want to set it to a vote, it would be ready,” Katz said. “We’re just not there yet. It’s just too generic to say: ‘Vote for this $14 billion thing.’”

- By GARRISON WELLS, The Gazette

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

But not a drop of that snowmelt cascading into the Colorado River will reach the Pacific Ocean. The last time the Colorado River reached its delta at the Sea of Cortez was in 1998.

The Colorado River – the carver of the Grand Canyon and the chaotic stage for river runners in Glenwood, Westwater, Cataract and numerous other canyons – is bridled by urban growth from its headwaters at La Poudre Pass at the Larimer-Grand county border all the way to its dry delta in Mexico.

More than 35 million people rely on the Colorado River for drinking water and lawn care. More than 5.5 million acres of farmland depend on the river for irrigation. In Fort Collins, the Colorado River fills bathtubs, Horsetooth Reservoir, and bottles of Fat Tire and 90 Shilling.

As an avid fly-fisherman and Roaring Fork Valley river activist, Ken Neubecker knows the Colorado River well. In April, the group he works for, American Rivers, named the Colorado the group’s most endangered river of 2013.

“It’s been one of the most endangered rivers for a long time,” he said last week while watching trout jump in the muddy Colorado River as it raced, swollen with silty spring runoff, through Glenwood Springs. “It’s good to see that the entire river is getting attention now because the entire river is pretty much worked to death. It has been plumbed from top to bottom.”

All the people who rely on the river every day are projected to double to up to 76 million in the next 50 years. New industries, such as thirsty oil shale development in northwest Colorado, are expected to use more water from the river. Climate change is expected to make the flows in the river less and less regular and less and less certain.

“We’re putting very intensive demands on very limited resources, somehow hoping that we won’t push the river to its breaking point,” said Dave Nickum, executive director of Colorado Trout Unlimited.

The challenge for the river’s caretakers is daunting, he said: “It’s really trying to keep it as a viable living river in the face of diversions.”

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced in December that it expects flows in the Colorado River to decrease at the northern end of the Grand Canyon by about 9 percent in the next 50 years because of regular periods of drought in the river’s headwaters. That is expected to create a large gap between how much Colorado River water is needed for cities, farmers and wildlife, and how much water the river can actually provide.

When the future of the Colorado River is uncertain, the future of Northern Colorado is uncertain, too.

“If you’re here in Fort Collins, half of the water that comes out of your tap is Colorado River water,” said Reagan Waskom, director of the Colorado Water Institute at Colorado State University. “We are part of the reason that the upper part of the river gets de-watered. We have to take responsibility for that.”

Top to bottom, the story of the Colorado River is one of a plumbing system for the west’s cities, farms and backyards – a story that is both national in scope and intensely local to Northern Colorado even though the course of the river itself never touches Front Range cities.

The first drops are stolen from the Colorado River by the Grand Ditch, which girdles the Never Summer Mountains near La Poudre Pass, diverting spring snowmelt into the Poudre River for the benefit of farmers far below on the plains.

A few miles south, Colorado River water filling Lake Granby and Grand Lake is piped beneath Rocky Mountain National Park to provide water to Fort Collins, Loveland, Boulder and other cities via the Colorado-Big Thompson Project. That project supplements the water Fort Collins takes from the Poudre River – a lifeline for the city after the High Park Fire dirtied Fort Collins’ Poudre River water.

Denver diverts even more water from the Colorado River, and as ongoing drought leaves the mountain slopes bare of snow, those who rely on the Colorado River farther downstream worry about what the river’s future means for them.

You can hear the worry in the voices of the Colorado River’s Western Slope caretakers, some of whom gathered last week in Grand Junction to discuss how the drought-stricken Upper Colorado River Basin is expected to remain stricken and how the long-term outlook for the river’s flows and the demand for all that water is looking all the more bleak as time goes on.

Speaking at a “State of the Rivers” meeting at Colorado Mesa University, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation hydrologist Erik Knight said this year’s drought spells the fifth-driest runoff year ever seen on the Gunnison River, a major tributary to the Colorado. Lake Powell, which receives all the snowmelt in the Colorado River Basin from Colorado, Wyoming and northeast Utah, is expected to get only 42 percent of its normal inflow this year, he said.

National Weather Service hydrologist Aldis Strautins said all indications are that the drought ravaging the Colorado River Basin will continue its wrath despite a month or so of wet weather.

That’s the short-term outlook. The long-term outlook has a direct effect on Northern Colorado.

Nearly all Colorado River water managers agree that the river’s headwaters are likely to become hotter and drier as the climate changes, making flows more erratic and less predictable from year to year. So, the problem is this: Because 90 percent of the people who rely on the Colorado River for water live in the Southwest, but 90 percent of its water comes from Colorado and Wyoming’s mountains, the laws of supply and demand on the Colorado River don’t benefit Coloradans.

Sometime down the line – maybe 20 years, maybe 30 or more – Colorado residents may be forced to cut back how much of the river’s water they use if there isn’t enough water in the river basin to give Front Range cities the water they need while sending Colorado’s legal quota of water down the river to Arizona and California, said Eric Kuhn, general manager of the Colorado River District.

Colorado, Wyoming and Utah are required to provide Arizona and California an average of 75 million acre-feet of Colorado River water over 10 years. If the water demand exceeds water availability because of drought, climate change and urban growth, the law requires Colorado to severely cut back how much water it uses so there will be enough water to provide to the desert Southwest.

Kuhn said that means Colorado is going to have to be creative with how it stores water in reservoirs and decides how new ones are built.

Colorado is just beginning to devise a plan for how to deal with the gap in water supply and demand in the decades to come.

Throughout all the river basins in Colorado, the state is preparing for a 500,000 acre-foot gap – enough water to fill three brimming Horsetooth Reservoirs – between water supply and water demand by 2050.

Gov. John Hickenlooper signed an executive order last Tuesday that mandates that a draft of the Colorado Water Plan land on his desk by December 2014 and that it be finalized the following year.

“It will refine our understanding of what the gap is, what the timing of that is, when we have to have new or transferred water supplies and what are the options for getting those water supplies,” Waskom said.

American Rivers wants to make sure it’s not just Fort Collins and Denver that have adequate water supplies in the future, but also the trout and all the other wildlife that depend on the Colorado River for their survival, said Matt Rice, American Rivers Colorado director.

Water providers should make sure there are adequate high spring flows on the river that scour the riverbed and keep it ecologically vital – flows coveted by water managers because the excess water can be stored in reservoirs for future use, he said.

“This is an issue that we all have to be part of the solution,” Rice said. “The more water that municipalities like Fort Collins use from the Colorado River, the less water there’s going to be in the Colorado River Basin. It starts at the household level. The more that the individual can conserve, the more there will be (for the river).”

- By BOBBY MAGILL, The Coloradoan

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Police released a sketch of the man they believe tried to take a 9-year-old girl earlier this week.

Investigators said a father reported that his daughter was playing in front of their home about 4 p.m. on Tuesday when a man pulled up and asked if she needed a ride.

She said she didn’t and ran inside the home.

By the time her father came outside the driver had sped away. The car is described as a green sedan, possibly a Cadillac, covered in mud.

There was a little girl in a car seat in the back.

The man was described as a heavy-set Hispanic male in his 30s with a goatee. He had a hoop earring in the top of his right ear.

Anyone with information about the man is asked to call Loveland Police Detective Henry Stucky at 970-962-2249.

Kenneth Rascon was sentenced to 12 years behind bars on Friday.

He set fire to the Arvada home in July 2012. His estranged wife and children had just left the home when the fire started but the family pets were still inside. The family dog was killed in the fire and two other pets were injured.

In court Rascon’s defense attorney said he was depressed when he set fire to the home.

Rascon said he was sorry for what he had done and most sorry that he couldn’t apologize to his children.

Because of a protection order Rascon has been prohibited from speaking to his children since his arrest.

This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Downtown Denver Arts Festival. They’re celebrating the event by moving back to the place where it all started- the Denver Performing Arts Complex.

The festival began as an event dedicated to supporting the work of Colorado artists. More than 100 local artists will be represented and selected artists from around the nation will also be showcased at the festival.

The festival is free to visit but CBS4 Critic at Large Greg Moody suggests bringing your checkbook. Last year art fans carried off more than $500,000 worth of Colorado-created art.

The Downtown Denver Arts Festival is Friday through Sunday at the DPAC.

LINK: downtowndenverartsfestival.com

The water level at the lake is down considerably due to two years of drought conditions.

It’s still down about 28 feet from capacity but the manager of the Dillon Marina said the water level is rising quickly.

“Right now it’s coming up about six inches a day in the vertical sense. So as far as the horizonal sense, up on the shore it could be up to a foot,” said Dillon Marina Manager Bob Evans.

The Dillon Marina is open for boating this weekend but there are construction zones.

The work was delayed due to all the snow this spring. The project will improve parking and the boat ramp.

Two doctors in the Denver metro area are facing criminal consequences but there are estimated to be many more who haven’t been caught yet.

Dr. Kevin Clemmer has already pleaded guilty.

He worked at an office building near 44th and Wadsworth in Wheat Ridge.

Clemmer over-prescribed oxycodone dozens of times. At least one case led to a deadly overdose, Ryan Lujan, who was found dead in 2010 as a result of oxycodone use. The prescription was written by Clemmer.

Prosecutors claim Clemmer and his staff made hundreds of thousands of dollars by illegally dispensing the painkiller.

Clemmer will be sentenced in September.

Dr. Joseph Ferrara was recently indicted in connection with the illegal distribution of prescription drugs. He along with five others have been indicted for money laundering and dispensing drugs such as oxycodone, Adderall and Ambien.

The investigation included undercover visits by federal drug agents to the office of Clemmer. Court documents indicate he prescribed large quantities of the pain killer oxycodone after only a limited medical evaluation.

U.S. Attorney John Walsh said the motive for doctors in such cases is money.

“IF word gets out to the addicted community in Colorado that a particular doctor is handing out these prescriptions for a $250 fee the folks will come flocking in and a lot of money results,” said Walsh.

Pharmacies tipped investigators that they were getting prescriptions for the pain killers.

“These drugs, because they are so expensive, $80 or so a pill they quickly run through their resources,” said Walsh.

He said that turns the drug users to cheaper, addictive drugs such as heroin.

In March, Ah Zet Khan, 6, and his brother Za May Khan, 8, were struck and killed at the corner of 14th and Yosemite.

They were crossing the street with their mother, Zamar Bee. She survived but has critical injuries.

A memorial sign was placed at that intersection on Friday.

Family, friends and the boys’ mother were there for the ceremony.

Hancock led the crowd in reading their names and then spoke directly to the hit and run driver.

“Someone knows what happened here to end these two lives tragically. We implore you, we encourage you, we demand that you demonstrate the courage to come forward and help this family, this mother have closure,” said Hancock.

That driver has not been arrested. Surveillance video at the scene showed a white or silver SUV driving away from the crash.

Police said they continue to follow up on leads but are searching for more information.

Under a voluntary program, when mountain snowpack is above average, the operators of Dillon, Green Mountain, Williams Fork, Wolford and Ruedi reservoirs release water to enhance spring peak Colorado River flows for the Colorado pikeminnow and the razorback sucker. The Fish and Wildlife Service said Friday that this year, river flows won’t be high enough to trigger the releases.

Extremely dry conditions in 2012 and below-average conditions in early 2013 have resulted in low reservoir storage and below-average spring runoff from melting mountain snow.

The latest U.S. Drought Monitor shows much of Colorado experiencing some level of drought.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Date: May 25, 2013 at 11:30 a.m.

For more than 14 years, Denver has held an annual Memorial Day Parade and Tribute Ceremony. The event is designed to pay tribute to the men and women who lost their lives in service for our country. The parade starts at 11:30 a.m. and there will be a Veterans Memorial Tribute following the parade at the Veterans Monument. This is a great event to show your support for all of the troops who gave their lives in service and the perfect way to celebrate this important holiday. Make sure to bring your whole family, this is a great opportunity to spark some discussion for your children on the importance of supporting the troops and American history.

LINK: VetFriends.com List Of Other Memorial Day Parades In Colorado

Women on average have higher credit scores and carry less credit card debt than their male counterparts.

The average man carries $26,227 in debt from credit cards, personal loans and auto loans compared to $25,095 on average for a woman.

Men also take out larger home mortgages than women; $187,245 for a man versus $178,140 for a woman.

According to the survey women are also quicker to admit their financial mistakes than men are.

LINK: experian.com

Their report of a possible gunman near campus drew armed officers and worried parents to Thornton High School, as several students hunkered down in classrooms and closets. Other students left the school in single file, holding hands and led by police to buses taking them away from campus. An officer was posted in each bus.

Police later found no gunman or weapons and said everyone was safe.

“We’ve pretty much searched the building,” Thornton police spokesman Matt Barnes said outside the school in the northern Denver suburbs. “We’ve not located anything.”

Police said Friday evening that the investigation remains active, but no one has been arrested.

Around 11:40 a.m. on what was the last day of class before summer vacation, a student told a teacher he had seen someone carrying what appeared to be an assault rifle outside, police said. The teacher looked outside and saw the same thing. A school resources officer was notified, and the school went into lockdown mode.

About an hour later, a parent told police she had picked up a school project with a replica rifle from her son earlier in the day. The student told police his history class project involved a replica rifle, helmet and boots typical of a “Fallen Soldier Battle Cross” sometimes seen at soldiers’ memorial services.

There were some tense moments, though, while officers investigated the potential threat.

Amy Irsik said she sped to the school, crying all the way, after her 17-year-old son David sent her a text saying the school was on lockdown after the report of an armed man. “I love you,” the text ended.

Student Ezequiel Cordova said he left the building at the order of police as an automated message came over the public address system announcing a security problem.

Amanda Zapata held her daughter, Crystal, a little closer after school.

“I thought I would never see my baby again. This is my only little girl. And to think I wouldn’t have her tonight to hold, it was devastating,” said Zapata.

“This was the most frightening last day I’ve ever had. I didn’t expect it. I was sitting there doing my test and a security alert started coming on,” said Crystal.

Freshman Haley Johnson, 14, said she spent about 90 minutes in a supply closet that wasn’t air conditioned, texting her mother and trying to go online to find out if there was a shooter.

Meanwhile, sophomore Jesse Desourdy’s history class locked the door, turned off the lights and gathered against a wall for about an hour.

“I was going to ditch, too,” he said. “I should have, but it was a pretty epic last day of school.”

The school has 2,000 students and 130 staff members.

The incident rattled Thornton, a city of 122,000 about 20 miles north of Columbine High School in the southwest Denver suburbs. Law enforcement was criticized for not moving quickly enough after the 1999 attack at Columbine, in which two teenagers killed 12 students and a teacher before killing themselves.

After the Columbine shooting, police across the country developed tactics for responding officers to aggressively rush onto scenes to stop any suspected gunman.

“We went through so much tragedy all over the country with things like this. This needs to open everybody’s eyes,” said Zapata.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

Nearly 20 donkeys were left abandoned on National Forest Service land by the owner in Otero County east of Pueblo. They were left without food and water.

“They’re good pets if you treat them right and gain their trust,” said Colorado Humane Society spokeswoman Katrina Schou.

They have been transported to the Dumb Friends League Harmony Equine Center in Franktown.

“Some of them need to put on a little more weight. They were a bit thin for the most part their physical condition had not gone downhill yet,” said Schou.

The owner of the donkeys has not yet been identified. He is facing multiple charges including animal abandonment and multiple counts of trespassing on National Forest land.

Investigators don’t believe this was an accident.

“The owner was having some difficulty in the county he lived in and abandoned these animals intentionally on forest land,” said Schou.

They were left in dire situation of dying of dehydration. While their physical condition didn’t deteriorate, if they had not been provided help by the Forest Service and the sheriff’s office they would have died a slow death.”

Instead of death the donkeys are actually creating new life. Days after being rescued from the forest a new donkey, Kenny, was born.

“Kenny was born when we rested overnight from bringing the animals back from Otero County to the Equine Center and he’s a spectacular fun little creature to have around,” said Schou.

The donkeys will be held for a minimum of 14 days at the Equine Center to make sure they are physically ready to leave constant supervision. After that time they will likely be available for adoption.

LINK: ddfl.org

The Colorado Department of Transportation opened Colorado Highway 5 for the season and will remain open every day, weather permitting, from Echo Lake to the top of Mount Evans through Labor Day weekend.

Highway 5 is in good condition with the exception of two locations near Summit Lake where frost heave has damaged the road.

Frost heave is when ice forms beneath the road surface and lifts or “heaves” the road upward, creating a bump.

Signage will be in place to warn drivers and bicyclists of the damage and to use extra caution. CDOT will monitor this area throughout the summer and conduct repairs as needed.

The fire started just before 4 a.m. Tuesday in the Buffalo Run apartments, located at 1245 East Lincoln, just east of Old Town near the intersection of East Lincoln Avenue and South Lemay Avenue.

Firefighters said there are 24 units in the building and that about half were damaged by the flames or by water damage. Officials with the American Red Cross said 37 people were displaced.

PHOTO GALLERY: More Images Of The Fire

“We looked out and there were 20 foot flames coming out,” said Isaiah Lucero, a witness.

Investigators said the fire was caused by someone not properly disposing of a cigarette.

“We had heavy fire involvement that extended up from the second floor to the third floor and into the attack,” Poudre Fire Authority Battalion Chief Jim Pieterangelo said.

Matt Erwin and his girlfriend live in a nearby unit from where the fire started.

“I immediately went in with a fire extinguisher and tried to extinguish the fire but at that point the whole bedroom wall and the roof just pretty much were fully involved in flames,” Erwin said.

(credit: Kris Meis)

When he couldn’t control the flames, Erwin started waking up his neighbors.

“I was breaking down doors down with the fire extinguisher. If the door was locked I just busted it in to make sure there was nobody inside,” he said.

(credit: CBS)

Despite the massive damage to the building no one was hurt.

A judge set bond for Andy DeBartalome at $100,000 on Friday. He faces five counts, including attempted murder, the use and possession of an explosive device and menacing.

Police say a teacher inside Centaurus High School noticed a suspicious package on May 13 in the morning and took it outside. After the school was cleared bomb squads moved in and authorities also did an extensive search of the campus.

Explosives specialists destroyed the device in a dirt field near the school but kept pieces of it for evidence. They said it was possible the pipe bomb could have been detonated remotely.

Prosecutors say other evidence was found at the DeBartalome’s home which indicated he might have had a larger plan in mind. They said the evidence showed DeBartalome has had a long term interest in explosive devices.

DeBartalome’s parents attended their son’s court hearing on Friday. His father is a professor at the University of Colorado and his mother is a businesswoman who was appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper to attract international students to Colorado.

Court documents indicate there is a protection order in place for two teachers, a counselor and the assistant principal at Centaurus High School because of threats to them by DeBartalome.

Prosecutors were pressing to have bond set at a much higher amount of $750,000 but it was settled at $100,000.

If DeBartalome bonds out his parents say that because they are unable to monitor him around the clock he would be released to a wilderness release program in Utah. Employees with that program would pick him up in Colorado and take him to Utah for a program that would last between six and 10 weeks.

He would then be dropped off back with his parents.

DeBartalome is scheduled to be back in court on Aug. 1.

In an arrest affidavit the teen was investigated in February for potential bomb making by the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.

His parents called deputies with concerns their son was making explosives in his room.

Deputies allegedly found “many electronic items taken apart, spare wires, empty bullet casings, rocket motors and fireworks” in the teen’s room.

One of DeBartalome’s friends told investigators the teen considered himself a “dormant terrorist” and had “anti-nationalistic views” and he was obsessed with terrorism and dreamed of giving up his citizenship and going overseas.

In the same arrest affidavit the teen’s mother told police her son wanted to go into counter-terrorism with the British government.

Editor’s note: CBS4 originally was not naming the suspect or showing his image but is doing so now that he faces charges as an adult.

Dr. Kevin Clemmer worked at an office building near 44th and Wadsworth in Wheat Ridge.

Clemmer over-prescribed oxycodone dozens of times. At least one case led to a deadly overdose.

Prosecutors claim Clemmer and his staff made hundreds of thousands of dollars by illegally dispensing the painkiller.

Clemmer will be sentenced in September.

The crash happened at Mississippi and Quebec.

The driver was a bank robbery suspect in a stolen car. Police believe he had a weapon.

Police said the suspect actually bit an officer as they tried to arrest him.

The suspect was rushed to the hospital after the crash.

When tickets for the Tony Award winning production went on sale for last year’s engagement in January 2012 there were long lines and online problems.

This time the Denver Center said things will be different.

When tickets go on sale to the general public June 10 for the October run of Broadway’s hottest show, the Denver Center is ready to sell more seats for a longer run in a shorter amount of time.

“Just to give you a sense of things we started with, our normal server load is three, we looked at what we anticipated the load to be, we upped that to 10 which is twice the size of any other on sale we’ve ever done, we now have 35 servers that will be configured in and responding to load as stuff comes in,” said Denver Center Attractions IT Director Bruce Montgomery.

They’ve also created a video that will be online and on social media beginning next week which will walk customers through the online ticket purchase process and also introduce new features.

“If there are no connections available to the server it will put you in that waiting room queue. What that functionally does is give you a screen that refreshes and checks every minute to see if that queue is available and you can hop in and get tickets,” said Montgomery.

The intention is to make online ticket sales fast and easy.

LINK: denvercenter.org

The Oklahoma City-based arts-and-crafts chain argued that businesses — not just the currently exempted religious groups — should be allowed to seek exception from that section of the health law if it violates their religious beliefs.

The arguments Thursday centered on the Green family, founders of Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. and a sister company, Christian booksellers Mardel Inc. An eight-judge panel peppered both sides with questions about whether the contraceptives mandate is an undue burden on the Greens’ religious belief.

The Green family acknowledges that Hobby Lobby also makes a profit but believes that fact shouldn’t force them to violate their faith.

“Everyone enjoys religious liberty not only people who exercise their religion in a church or a charity but people like the Green family who exercise their religion in their daily businesses,” said Hobby Lobby attorney Kyle Duncan.

They believe emergency contraception is tantamount to abortion. They said if they choose not to provide it under the new health care law they face substantial fines.

“They’re not trying to control anybody else they just don’t want to be involved. It’s wrong for the government to say ‘We’re going to impose penalties on your business,’” said Duncan.

The Department of Justice argues that an exemption for the employer would come at the expense of employees.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains spokeswoman Monica McCafferty said an employer should not have influence over the coverage of birth control.

“I think this could really set a dangerous standard for employers to cherry pick or to determine what type of coverage their employees get based on personal beliefs,” said McCafferty.

Attorney Dan Recht, who is not involved with the cars, said the ruling whatever it is will be groundbreaking.

“This is a very significant case. A monumental case. There’s 50 of these around the country. This issue will definitely end up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court,” said Recht.

It usually takes the court a month or two to make a decision but Hobby Lobby’s attorneys are urging for a ruling as quickly as possible because the company could be fined on July 1 if they don’t comply with the health care law.