RACIAL INJUSTICE-KKK MAYOR

Denver area casts votes to rename neighborhood with KKK ties

DENVER (AP) — A Denver neighborhood will vote on a list of nine names to replace its current association with a former mayor known for his Ku Klux Klan connection. The options are detailed on a site run by the neighborhood organization, Stapleton United Neighbors. The neighborhood was named for former Denver Mayor Benjamin F. Stapleton and was built on the site of the former Stapleton International Airport. Stapleton was mayor for a total of 20 years between 1923 and 1947 and was a member of the KKK. The community board began with a list of 331 names and has since narrowed it down to nine.

COLORADO WILDFIRE

Wildfire forces hundreds of evacuations west of Denver

EVERGREEN, Colo. (AP) — A wildfire burning in the foothills west of Denver has prompted authorities to tell hundreds of residents to leave their homes. The fire started Monday afternoon and is burning in rugged and steep terrain west of Evergreen. No structures have burned, and no injuries have been reported. It’s not yet clear what caused the fire. Jenny Fulton, a spokeswoman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, says three evacuation orders were issued for “well over a thousand homes.” Several helicopters are on the scene, and a tanker is dropping slurry on the fire, which has burned about 30 to 40 acres.

CANNABIS SALES

Legal cannabis sales in Colorado reach all-time high in May

DENVER (AP) — Cannabis sales in Colorado set a new monthly record in May, reaching their highest level since broad legalization in 2014. State data compiled by The Denver Post shows that dispensaries sold over $192 million worth of cannabis products that month. The figure is up about 29% from April and 32% from May 2019. Sales at both medical and recreational marijuana shops hit monthly all-time highs. In all, the cannabis industry has sold more than $779 million in products so far this year and paid more than $167 million in taxes and fees to the state.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-ELECTION ASSISTANCE

Ready or not: Election costs soar in prep for virus voting

WASHINGTON (AP) — The November election is coming with a big price tag as America faces the coronavirus pandemic. The demand for mail-in ballots is surging, election workers are in need of training and polling booths might have to be outfitted with protective shields. But long-promised federal aid to help election officials is stalled in Congress. State officials say they need more money to create a pandemic-ready voting system. Lawmakers are set to debate the funding in the coming weeks, after approving $400 million in help earlier this year. Key Senate Republicans seem likely to support another round of aid despite opposition from President Donald Trump.

FATHER ARRESTED-LAWSUIT

Colorado man hit with Taser in daughter’s hospital room sues

A Colorado man who was hit with a Taser and then arrested in his daughter’s hospital room has filed a federal lawsuit against the officers and their departments. In Monday’s lawsuit, C.J. Andersen alleges that the Colorado Springs Police Department and the Teller County Sheriff’s Office have a history of failing to discipline officers who violate people’s constitutional rights. The lawsuit says Anderson’s 19-month-old daughter was hospitalized after accidentally being hit by his fiancee’s car outside their home last year. The officers suspected child abuse and wanted Andersen to give them his fiancee’s phone. According to the lawsuit, the suspicions were groundless. The agencies said they couldn’t comment on ongoing litigation.

NATION’S CAPITAL-PSYCHEDELICS

Activists seek to decriminalize ‘magic’ mushrooms in DC

WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite pandemic conditions that made normal signature-gathering almost impossible, activists in Washington, D.C., say they have enough signatures for a November ballot initiative that would decriminalize natural psychedelics such as certain mushrooms. Activists presented more than 36,000 signatures to the Board of Elections. They claim the plant-based psychedelics can successfully treat depression, trauma and addiction. The initiative would direct the police to treat such natural psychedelics as a low law-enforcement priority. But even if it passes, supporters acknowledge it will probably be blocked by Congress, which retains the right to alter or even overturn D.C. laws.

BEAR ATTACK

Bear that attacked woman near Colorado Springs euthanized

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Wildlife officials have euthanized a mother bear that attacked a woman near Colorado Springs. The Gazette reports the woman encountered the bear as she was walking home near downtown Manitou Springs late Thursday. The bear charged and knocked her to the ground from behind when she tried to escape, ripping her shirt and clawing her back. The woman was not seriously hurt and did not seek medical care. Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials say two cubs were captured and will be cared for at a rehabilitation center until they can be released into the wild.

LAKE DEATH

Man drowns after falling from boat in Lake Pueblo

PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) — Authorities say a man drowned after falling out of a small fishing boat in southern Colorado’s Lake Pueblo. KOAA-TV reports 68-year-old Robert Charles Taylor fell into the water Monday morning, and people passing by on a pontoon boat on the west end of the lake pulled him out. Another boat took the man to a boat ramp, where a Colorado Parks and Wildlife officer and park ranger performed CPR until an ambulance arrived. Taylor died at the scene. Authorities say his death marked the fifth drowning at the lake this year.