He was an actor, playing a role.

He was an actor, playing a role. That's what investigators are saying about the man targeted in a shooting at the Atwood Sinclair Station in August 2012. Eric Morales was shot twice by at least three men, who allegedly were trying to rob him, in front of a gas station. But investigators said this was a setup, because Morales allegedly "scammed" the sister of one of the shooters out of $750, and after the shooting, witnesses said Morales asked a third party to "get rid of the gun as he was bleeding out on the sidewalk," and to dump a bag of meth into the South Platte River. Morales apologized to the court yesterday, and said this near death experience has helped him recognize his wrongs. A judge said he understood Morales used his gun in self defense, but added he put himself in that position by dealing drugs. Morales was sentenced to 2 years behind bars.
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"Permit-happy."

"Permit-happy." That's what Sterling city officials said could happen if a new sidewalk ordinance is taken to the extreme. The city council tabled an ordinance that would have given an outline of what could be put on any sidewalk, "sidewalk area," or "portion of the public right of way." It would also give the city the right to issue a revocable permit to businesses, which some argued, would force them to get a city permit for anything placed on a public right of way. The concern stemmed from one part of the ordinance, which states that "any obstruction, tree, shrub, etc., shall be removed by the owner of the adjacent premises, if the city manager orders it, unless "a revocable permit" was previously approved to use that portion of the sidewalk. The city council will address concerns at their May 28 meeting, .
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There was a changing of the guard at Brush High School

There was a changing of the guard at Brush High School. There were 16 candidates up for the vacant principal seat at BHS, but it was teacher and Interim Director of the building's Response to Intervention, (RtI) program Dan Kennedy, who will fill the position. Kennedy, who has 18 years of experience in education across Colorado, Texas, and New Mexico, was approved at last week's meeting of the Brush Board of Education. While serving as a teacher at BHS from 2005 to May of last year, Kennedy taught U.S. History, Economics, Government, Civics and Current Issues.
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The Suncor spill north of Denver is still posing a threat to water supplies

The Suncor spill north of Denver is still posing a threat to water supplies. After 18 months of cleanup around Suncor's oil refinery, contamination of the South Platte River is diminishing, but concentrations of cancer-causing benzene in the water remain six times higher than the national safety standard. The spill, detected in November 2011, still ranks among the toughest environmental challenges in the region. Another oil and gas industry spill this year tainted Parachute Creek in western Colorado. Spills from industry pipelines and storage facilities at 12 other locations have contaminated groundwater with benzene, as well, prompting the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to hold companies accountable for the big spills, ordering a quick of all benzene from soil, water and air.
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Less people are committing crimes in Ft. Morgan, or they're not getting caught

Less people are committing crimes in Ft. Morgan, or they're not getting caught. A report released this week, showed fewer prisoners were held at the Morgan County Jail last year, with the average daily population at about 93 prisoners, down from 111 in 2006. But, those inmates were more difficult to handle, according to the annual report presented to commissioners Tuesday. Records showed that 186 inmates had chronic, long-term mental illness, and jailers were on suicide watch, 71 times, with two or three watches simultaneously. Officials say this reflects the fact that the jail is handling more and more mentally ill people, who are usually there on relatively minor offenses.
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