Law Enforcement Briefing
At the BCC hearing, Sheriff Ted Mink presented to the board the Law Enforcement Authority report.
Sheriff Mink briefed the board on SMART Jeffco (Strategic Management and Accurate Response Tactics). SMART aims to use available resources from within the Sheriff's Office and other county departments to solve crime and quality-of-life problems in the community. A highlight from the report included meeting with Fun City at Fun City's request. Crime Prevention deputy Gordon Neuenfeldt met with Fun City staff to discuss how it could make a positive contribution to the community through outreach and events.
Sheriff Mink also shared several highlights from patrol, criminal investigation and community service activities. Some of these include:
Squatter refuses to leave his former home. Over several months, deputies had attempted to evict 50-year-old David Lee Rothe from his former home at 5330 South Zinnia Court. The property had been sold to another buyer in June, yet Rothe refused to leave. On November 23, as Civil Unit deputies tried again to evict him, he barricaded himself inside the home. The regional SWAT team responded; after three hours SWAT negotiators were able to convince him to exit the home. A few days later Rothe returned to the property. Neighbors saw him and contacted the Sheriff's Office. Deputies charged him with trespassing, obstruction government operations and resisting arrest.
"No Shoot" map causes confusion and frustration. Confusion about the county's designated "no shoot zone" has been in the forefront this fall. A large (and in some cases aggressive) elk population in Evergreen has prompted some residents to legally shoot some of the animals. Residents angry about this have referenced a 1996 Jeffco BCC resolution and map declaring some county areas "no shoot zones." However, the 1996 resolution has no associated ordinances or fines and cannot be enforced on private or state/federal property.
State law states that shooting a gun on private property requires that the shooter take proper precautions to prevent danger to person or property and to prevent the escape of projectiles. State hunting regulations also permit killing of elk on public land with associated permits and safety precautions. Deputies are sometimes called out and asked to enforce the county's "no shoot zones" but cannot. This can be very frustrating for residents-especially those living in agricultural or rural neighborhoods-who believe that the no shoot map is law.
Jason Dahl memorial vandalized. On October 13 or 14, someone vandalized the memorial honoring United Airlines captain Jason Dahl (killed on 9/11) at the intersection of Tamarade Drive and Valley Parkway. The vandal broke the wings off the bronze eagle featured on the memorial. Capital Dahl was a resident of Ken Caryl Ranch. The Ken Caryl community is offering a $1,500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the party responsible for the vandalism.
Christmas Crusade. About 400 children from Jeffco received holiday gifts from deputies via the KYGO Christmas Crusade for Children. Through the program, deputies nominate children in need and KYGO listeners donate gifts. Deputies then deliver the gifts on or before Christmas.
For more information about the Sheriff's Office, visit www.jeffco.us/sheriff.
In October 2009, the airport advertised a Request for Proposals (RFP) to buy or lease approximately 400 acres on the southwest side of its property. The RFP was broken up in to two phases. The first requested information and qualifications of the bidders themselves, while the second phase requested proposals on the actual project to develop the southwest property. Urban Frontier was unanimously recommended by the evaluation committee.