POLICE DIDN’T FOLLOW POLICY

LONGMONT» City officials concluded Friday that procedures used to establish consent during warrantless searches of the Longmont Housing Authority’s Suites apartments were not consistent with police department’s standards.

The Weld County Sheriff’s Office investigated allegations made by tenants who said they were not told in advance that they had a right to refuse entry by police and K-9 dogs that were accompanying housing authority staff, leading to accusations that Longmont police had participated in unconstitutional warrantless searches.

The city did not release the report, and instead issued a news release Friday about the findings.

Man trapped in silage pile dies.

JOHNSTOWN» The 30-year-old man trapped by a collapsed silage pile south of Johnstown died after he was taken to the hospital.

Weld County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Cpl. Matt Turner said the man’s name would not be released until his next of kin were notified. The Weld County Coroner’s office will release his name and cause of death.

The man was on top of the silage pile and removed the tarp that covered it and tires that held the tarp in place, Turner said. After he climbed down to pick up the tires, the silage pile collapsed on top of him.

Denver police arrest suspect.

Elizario Manuel Herrera Jr., 32, was arrested Friday in connection with a Tuesday night stabbing death in the 4000 block of North Shoshone Street, Denver police said.

The Denver Office of the Medical Examiner Friday identified the victim as Michael Lanford, 55.

Lanford, who died at the scene, was stabbed.

Party chair ponders run for Polis’ congressional seat.

Boulder County Democratic Party chairman Mark Williams is taking a leave of absence from his post while he decides whether to make a bid to succeed incumbent U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, a Boulder Democrat running for governor, instead of seeking re-election to Congress.

Boulder resident Williams is chief executive officer of VUmind and Dynamic Human Solutions, an organizational development consulting business. He will decide by Aug. 31 whether to resume his county chairman’s role or resign to run for Congress.

Democrat Joe Neguse has already announced a run for Polis’ vacated seat. Democrats Ken Toltz and Shannon Watts, both gun-control advocates, are also weighing whether to jump into the race.

Teen gets 6 years in detention for assaulting 71-year-old.

BOULDER»A 16-year-old teen accused of beating a 71-year-old woman in the head with a fire poker after she picked him up hitchhiking has been sentenced to six years in a youth detention facility.

The teen pleaded guilty in June to first-degree assault with a deadly weapon causing serious injuries.

Prosecutors charged him as an adult and dropped a charge of attempted firstdegree murder as part of the plea agreement.

Investigators say the woman brought the boy and two friends to her house in September after picking them up while they were hitchhiking.

The friends told police the teen wanted to knock Kulpa out and steal her car to get back to Boulder.