Pitkin County bans guns for election and holidays

Pitkin County commissioners on Wednesday unanimously banned all firearms from county buildings and polling places until the end of the year.

Janice Vos Caudill, the county clerk, requested the ban because she said she fears her staff members and election volunteers might be confronted with aggressive and possibly violent behavior during the course of the election and the holiday season.

“I’ve experienced the meanness that comes out ( during those times),” she told commissioners at their bimonthly regular meeting Wednesday. “I don’t think it’s reasonable for staff to have to deal with this, and I’m very concerned for their safety moving forward.”

Commissioner George Newman wondered why guns currently were allowed in county buildings ever and suggested making the ban permanent.

“Why not just ban firearms in county buildings moving forward?” he asked.

Pitkin County Attorney John Ely said the board legally could take such action.

However, county manager Jon Peacock and other board members said a permanent firearms ban would require more discussion and public hearings before it could be enacted.

“It’s worth a discussion down the road,” Newman said.

Vos Caudill said she has hired security guards for Election Day polling places at the Aspen Jewish Community Center and the Basalt Regional Library.

The county’s third voting spot — the Snowmass Village Town Hall — is 20 yards from the town’s police station so no security guard is necessary, she said.

Pitkin County sheriff’s deputies and Aspen and Snowmass Village police officers will make regular appearances at the polling places as well.

The firearms ban and Election Day security were prompted partially by a community member who called Vos Caudill with concerns about guns at polling places

on Election Day, she said.

In addition, some election judges from 2016 told her they didn’t want to return this year because of negative experiences four years ago, which added to her concerns.

Vos Caudill said she wanted the ban to last until Dec. 31 because she’s noticed over the years that people take out holidays- related stress and aggression on her staff during November and December.

“I’ve noticed the trend increase each year,” she said.

It’s heartbreaking to watch staff members who have been traumatized by mean, condescending or threatening behavior from customers, Vos Caudill said later in a phone interview.

Commissioner Kelly McNicholas Kury, who is in her first term and previously served as the county’s elections manager, said she could attest to clerks having to deal with “a lot of aggression.”

“It can be scary at times,” she said. “I have seen it.”