Friday, November 18, 2011

CCSO INVESTIGATES GUTTING, OR DISMEMBERING OF 3 CATS AND PUTTING ON GOLF COURSE FAIRWAYS

(PORT CHARLOTTE) The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office is investigating a third incident of a person or persons either gutting, or dismembering cats and placing the body parts on fairways at Port Charlotte Golf Club, 22400 Gleneagles Terrace.

CCSO received a call at 9:49 a.m. Thursday reporting a maintenance worker found a dead cat between the second and fifth fairway. The cat was cut from the throat to the belly region exposing internal organs. The carcass was put in a trash bag and taken to the maintenance area. When deputies arrived they talked to the course superintendent who said this was the third time a dead cat was found on their course. The other two dead cat incidents were not reported to CCSO.

Deputies were told that in early October the superintendent located a cat carcass in the middle of the 14th fairway. It was decapitated, with the legs and tail were cut off. The cat carcass was put in a bag, disposed of, and not reported.

At the end of October two maintenance workers found a cat carcass along the cart path by the first hole green. The cat was cut from the throat to the belly with internal organs exposed. It too was disposed of but not reported.

On Oct 30, CCSO received the first call about the incidents when it was reported that cat legs were found in the middle of the fairway on the first hole. It’s believed the body parts were from a carcass found earlier. Deputies report they were told there was no blood found at any of the locations indicating the cats may have been killed elsewhere and then placed on the golf course.

Animal Control has been notified and the CCSO investigation continues. If anyone has information about this case, please call the CCSO at 941-639-2101, or Crime Stoppers at 800-780-TIPS (8477).

MCC Announces Holiday Schedule

Morgan Community College (MCC) and Centers will be closed on Thursday, November 24 in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. The Fort Morgan campus will be open on Wednesday, November 23, and Friday, November 25, though there are no classes scheduled. However, the MCC Wray, Limon, Bennett and Burlington Centers will be closed on Friday, November 25.

Legacy High Band Getting Ready For Macy's Parade

(Broomfield, CO) -- The Legacy High Band in Broomfield is getting reading for its appearance in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Since the invitation was delivered last spring, in person from a parade official, the band has been busy practicing and raising money for the trip to New York. Legacy is one of only a handful of Colorado high school bands ever to be invited to participate in the parade. The band has won Colorado's top marching-band honors six times since 2006.

Rescued Climber Caught With 'Shrooms'

(Boulder, CO) -- A climber rescued from the First Flatiron trail remains jailed, after he was caught with "shrooms." Deputies said 25-year-old Jon Robert Schuttenberg of Saint Charles, Missouri was arrested Friday after he said, "I don't understand what's going on," and deputies noticed his large pupils. His jacket reportedly contained a greenish-gray mushroom, but Schuttenberg denied it belonged to him.

2012 Powerlifting Championship In Aurora

(Aurora, CO) -- The Masters Bench Press Championship is coming to Aurora next year. Organizers say the event will be the first powerlifting world championship held in Colorado. The ten-day competition is expected to attract two-thousand participants and will be held at the Red Lion Hotel, likely in April.

'Occupy Denver' Protesters Stage Two Marches

(Denver, CO) -- Officials are saying "Occupy Denver" protesters staged two marches yesterday, to mark the two-month anniversary of the movement's inception. During the evening march, some demonstrators were chanting, "We own these streets." No arrests were reported at either the noontime or the evening march.

Teens Face Cruelty Charges In Raccoon's Death

(Boulder, CO) -- Three 19-year-olds in Boulder are being charged with animal cruelty for allegedly beating a raccoon to death with a baseball bat and a machete. Police arrested Nicholas Philip Foti, Lucas B. Holton and August Quinn Noble yesterday for the November 7th incident. Foti reportedly said the animal had been getting into their trash cans.

Rep. Lamborn's oil shale proposal gets a hearing

DENVER (AP) — A Colorado Republican's proposal for promoting oil shale research is getting a hearing.

Rep. Doug Lamborn's proposal was on the agenda for a hearing of the House subcommittee on energy and mineral resources Friday morning.

He wants the Interior Department to offer more parcels of federal land that companies could lease to conduct research on oil shale development.

Companies are already drilling shale formations to extract liquid oil. But they're still researching how to economically produce oil from oil shale, which contains a substance called kerogen that must be heated at high temperatures in an oxygen-free environment before it can release oil.

Judge rules against Gessler in finance case

DENVER (AP) — A Denver District judge ruled that Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler overstepped his authority by raising the financial disclosure threshold for political groups from $200 to $5,000.

Judge A. Bruce Jones said Thursday that Gessler "went beyond his authority" in changing the $200 limit that voters put in the Colorado Constitution in 2002.

Gessler says he will appeal. He argues that his aim is to bring state campaign-finance laws in line with a recent federal appeals court ruling. He says the Jones' decision will add concussion to a complex process.

Colorado Common Cause and Ethics Watch sued Gessler after he made the change in May. They argued that raising the threshold would make it easier for political groups to avoid disclosing financial interests for ballot initiatives.

Colorado union members rally for jobs

DENVER (AP) — Dozens of Colorado union members are urging Congress to support federal transportation projects as a deadline nears for a special deficit-reduction supercommittee to come up with its own plan to cut spending.

The union members and supporters held rallies in Denver and Pueblo on Thursday. Union leaders say they are worried that the super committee next week will recommend even more sweeping budget cuts.

Building and Construction Trades business manager Neal Hall says Colorado's roads and bridges are crumbling, with 128 bridges on the state's poor condition list. He says unemployed construction workers should be put to work to fix them.

The rallies at noon on Thursday were part of a national day of action by unions as Congress debates more budget cuts.

Hickenlooper: Cutting Medicaid not a budget option

DENVER (AP) — Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper says waiving Medicaid spending requirements to alleviate budget pressures like Republicans suggest is not an option.

The Democratic governor told lawmakers Thursday that the majority of spending increases for next year are for Medicaid because enrollment has spiked during the economic downturn. He dismissed Republicans' proposal to explore Medicaid waivers, saying cutting Medicaid is against the law.

Hickenlooper's budget also proposes cutting spending to K-12 schools by about $89 million and higher education by about $60 million. He is asking lawmakers to eliminate a $98.6 property tax break for seniors scheduled to be reinstated next year.

Hickenlooper says the suspending the tax break is necessary to balance the budget.

The governor is proposing $679 million in cuts for a general fund budget of about $7.4 billion.

Dead friend barhopping suspect pleads not guilty

DENVER (AP) — A man accused of driving around Denver with a dead friend in the back of a car and running up a bar tab and withdrawing money from the friend's credit card at a strip club ATM says he's not guilty.

KCNC-TV reports 43-year-old Robert Young pleaded not guilty to identity theft and abuse of a corpse in court Thursday in a case that's bears some similarity to the movie "Weekend at Bernie's."

Young previously told reporters he thought 43-year-old Jeffrey Jarrett was passed out drunk when they found him Aug. 27, not dead. The Denver medical examiner's office ruled that Jarrett died of alcohol, cocaine and prescription drug intoxication.

Co-defendant 25-year-old Mark Rubinson is due in court Friday.

Public Meeting - Adopt International Building Codes

Fort Morgan will conduct a Public Meeting on Thursday, December 1, 2011, at 6:30 pm in City Hall Council Chambers to allow all interested parties to comment on the adoption of the 2009 International Building Codes (the I-Codes).

City staff invites all contractors and interested others to attend and welcomes any comments or concerns regarding this update.

If you are unable to attend this meeting and wish to voice comments or concerns, or if you have questions, please feel free to contact Building Inspector Mike Kirkendall at (970) 542-3908.