NAVAJO NATION FILES $160M CLAIM OVER GOLD KING
window rock, ariz.» The Navajo Nation has submitted a claim of more than $160 million to the federal government over last year’s mine waste spill that fouled rivers in three states.
A cleanup team led by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency triggered the August 2015 spill while working at the Gold King Mine near Silverton.
The 3 million-gallon blowout tainted rivers in Colorado, New Mexico and Utah with tons of toxic heavy metals including arsenic, mercury and lead.
In a letter Monday to the EPA, attorneys say the tribe still awaits more than $3 million in unreimbursed expenses for costs through Sept. 30 to deal with the spill that contaminated the San Juan River.
Man steals shotgun from police vehicle. A shotgun,
a tactical vest and possibly part of an officer’s uniform were stolen from a marked police vehicle parked at a sheriff’s office training facility in Adams County.
The incident happened Monday morning at 4201 E. 72nd Ave., according to the Adams County Sheriff ’s Office. The items were stolen while the victim was attending a class.
A 2005 brown Ford F-150 pickup was spotted after the theft and was pursued. The chase was called off because of the fleeing driver’s dangerous actions.
The truck was stolen Friday in Nebraska. It had a Colorado license plate QTG-450. If anyone spots the truck, he or she should not approach — but call 911.
Denver homeless people, advocates decry “sweeps.”
Before the season’s first major plunge in temperatures, advocates for the homeless stood up before the Denver City Council on Monday, one by one, and decried attempts to clear encampments. Shannon Wolf and Dianne Thiel were among 13 people who spoke passionately, during a public comment session, against recent cleanup actions by public works crews and police. Before the session, advocacy group Homeless Out Loud also had a rally outside the City and County Building to draw attention to the issue.
The speakers put special focus on a cause that goes back four years now: repealing the urban camping ban approved by the council in 2012. City officials say the recent sweeps of encampments downtown and in other areas have not used that law, instead relying on a much older ordinance that allows the removal of items blocking a sidewalk or other public place.
Friends remember teen killed in crash
B westminster» A 16year-old Legacy High School student and band member died when a driver hit him as the boy stood on a median at 112th Avenue and Federal Boulevard on Saturday, police said.
The driver sideswiped a vehicle in the 10300 block of Federal before running into Joren Coates, who was killed instantly, police said.
Police are investigating and haven’t determined the cause of the crash, police spokeswoman Cheri Spottke said Monday. The woman who was driving the vehicle has not been issued a summons, Spottke said.
“He was an amazing 16year-old,” said Cherie Coates, a friend of his family but not related. “He had a huge smile on his face every time you saw him.”
A junior at the school, Joren played saxophone and loved music. “He was in jazz band and wind ensemble,” Cherie said. He also played in the marching band. Staff and wire reports