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Colorado’s New Semiautomatic Firearm Law Takes Effect Aug. 1
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Colorado’s New Semiautomatic Firearm Law Takes Effect Aug. 1

By Marissa Ventrelli | The Denver Gazette A Colorado law passed in 2025 established new requirements for individuals planning to purchase semiautomatic weapons. Here’s what residents should know before Senate Bill 003 goes into effect on Aug. 1. From a ban to a training course For decades, advocates have been pushing for a ban on semiautomatic weapons with detachable magazines, which they have described as “assault weapons,” though efforts escalated following the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. After the 2012 movie theater shooting in Aurora, the Colorado legislature passed House Bill 1224, which prohibited the sale, transfer and possession of ammunition magazines capable of holding more than 15 rounds. However, some advocates wanted mor...
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Colorado Faces Long Fire Season As Crews Gain Momentum On Major Blazes
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Faces Long Fire Season As Crews Gain Momentum On Major Blazes

By Justin George | The Colorado Sun Procession along I-70 scheduled Monday for pilot killed fighting Gold Mountain fire. On Sunday, firefighters worked across Colorado and prepped for monsoon weather. As firefighters work to fortify containment lines on wildfires burning across Colorado, a procession is set for Monday to escort the body of helicopter pilot Nicholas Dale from Montrose to Denver International Airport.  Dale, 56, of Canada died July 12 when his helicopter crashed into Silver Jack Reservoir while fighting the Gold Mountain fire near Ouray.  A small convoy of about 10 emergency vehicles is scheduled to leave Montrose at 7 a.m. Monday from Cripping Funeral Home and will travel north to Grand Junction then east on Interstate ...
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Civil Lawsuit Claims Neglected Power Lines Sparked Aspen Acres Fire
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Civil Lawsuit Claims Neglected Power Lines Sparked Aspen Acres Fire

By: James Gavato | Denver7 RYE, Colo. — Four people have filed a civil lawsuit against the San Isabel Electric Association, claiming the company is allegedly responsible for the Aspen Acres Fire and the damage it caused. All four people who filed the lawsuit live in either Pueblo or Custer counties. The lawsuit alleges that on the morning the Aspen Acres Fire started, June 29, 2026, a witness reported seeing a large tree leaning on a power line in the area. It goes on to say another witness videotaped a fire burning near a power line in the Aspen Acres subdivision. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT DENVER7
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Douglas County Replaces Flock Cameras With $22.8 Million Axon Public Safety System
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Douglas County Replaces Flock Cameras With $22.8 Million Axon Public Safety System

By: Nicholas Fogleman | The Denver Gazette The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is abandoning the controversial Flock Safety camera system, joining a growing number of Colorado law enforcement agencies that have raised concerns about data privacy and ownership. The Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday approved a nearly $22.8 million contract with public safety technology company Axon that will replace the county’s network of Flock Safety license plate reader cameras and add a countywide drone response system. The package includes 100 Axon Outpost license plate reader cameras, replacing the county’s existing 50 Flock cameras, as well as a network of “first responder drones” stationed throughout the county. Officials said the technology will improve emergency res...
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Colorado charter school prepares to deploy first active-shooter response drones
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Colorado charter school prepares to deploy first active-shooter response drones

By Olivia Young | CBS Colorado A school in Douglas County will be the first in Colorado to install a drone active shooter suppression system. John Adams Academy is a public charter school currently being built in Sterling Ranch. The school is preparing to open to students this August. It will be the first school to open in the growing community, and the first school in Colorado to use drones to protect students from active threats. Tuesday, county leaders were expected to approve $200,000 in security funding for the school. They didn't end up voting on the funding, but the drones will still be taking to the halls of John Adams Academy. "We were looking for technology that could enhance the response time for our first responders and give real-time critical information i...
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The case for Flock cameras: A proven tool Colorado shouldn’t abandon
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

The case for Flock cameras: A proven tool Colorado shouldn’t abandon

By Booker Lightman | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Police departments across Colorado have installed AI-powered Flock cameras to help them catch criminals. Not everyone is grateful. The fiercest opposition has come from the political Left, often driven by fears the cameras will aid ICE. These concerns led Denver to drop its contract with Flock, while a bill in the state legislature that would have required warrants for most searches of license plate data died in April after pushback from law enforcement.  Some on the Right have joined the anti-Flock crusade, concerned about the cameras’ supposed threat to privacy. Flock critics often claim the cameras are unnecessary and that the proper solution to crime is to hire more police officers. The people best placed to ...
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Rye Evacuations Continue As Aspen Acres Fire Nears 100,000 Acres
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Rye Evacuations Continue As Aspen Acres Fire Nears 100,000 Acres

By: Savannah Eller and Nick Smith | The Denver Gazette The wait has no end in sight for evacuated residents of Rye, near where the Aspen Acres fire continues to burn in rough, tinder-dry terrain to the west. While about 6,400 people have been able to return to communities like Colorado City, Wetmore and Beulah, Pueblo County Sheriff David Lucero told attendees at a community meeting Tuesday night that conditions were not yet safe for an additional 3,000 displaced people. “I wish I had the answer,” he said. The problem, explained Brad Washa, operations section chief with the Alaska Complex Incident Management Team, is fuel and weather. He said the part of the fire burning near St. Charles Peak is finding extremely receptive fuel in Engelman spruce trees, many of ...
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Firefighting Pilot Nicholas Dale Remembered After Fatal Colorado Helicopter Crash
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Firefighting Pilot Nicholas Dale Remembered After Fatal Colorado Helicopter Crash

By: Christa Swanson, Jesse Sarles | CBS Colorado A 56-year-old Canadian pilot who crashed into a Colorado reservoir in a firefighting helicopter and died over the weekend has been identified. Nicholas Dale, a frontline federal contracted fire aviation pilot from Sooke, British Columbia, was killed on Sunday when his aircraft crashed into the Silver Jack Reservoir in western Colorado. He was involved in the battle against the Gold Mountain Fire. His body was later recovered from the aircraft, a K-MAX helicopter. The Gunnison Sheriff's Office says the National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA are investigating the crash. The sheriff's office said in a news release it "offers its deepest condolences to Mr. Dale's family, friends, and fellow wildfir...
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Disaster Declaration Issued as Routt County Wildfires Threaten Communities
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Disaster Declaration Issued as Routt County Wildfires Threaten Communities

By: Eugene Buchanan | The Denver Gazette Kris and Jenn Shea of Steamboat Springs were lucky. When the evacuation orders came for their home near the new “Green Ridge Fire” — which erupted near Stagecoach Reservoir, about 15 miles south of Steamboat, on Sunday at 1:45 p.m. and quickly spread to 94.3 acres by that evening — they were both out of town. Jenn was in Buena Vista, and Kris was fishing in Florida. But their friends were there to rally support and grab their belongings.  Fortunately, it didn’t come to that as the order was soon rescinded. But for Kris, it was touch-and-go with the fire spotting just a mile or two away.  “It was pretty surreal,” said Kris, who owns Cruiser’s Sub Shop. “I was in the middle of the Gulf and felt a little handcuffed. My wi...
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