DENVER (KKTV) – A billboard aimed at recruiting for a Wyoming sheriff’s office was posted in Denver and is generating both support and opposition.

“Work in Wyoming where breaking the law is STILL ILLEGAL & cops are funded!” The billboard reads in part.

The billboard was put in place by the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, which is located on the south side of Wyoming and borders Colorado.

“SHERIFF KOZAK SENDS A CLEAR MESSAGE TO DENVER LAW ENFORCEMENT: JFK established May 12-18th as National Police Week to honor those cops who have paid the ultimate sacrifice and to thank those who serve their communities,” a social media post about the billboard from the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office reads. “National media reported the City of Denver, on the other hand, decided to defund the police $8 million to fund immigrant shelters and restrict the ability for cops to enforce traffic laws, such as expired plates or safety equipment violations. During Police Week, the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) unveiled a billboard in downtown Denver to let those frustrated officers know they can “Work in Wyoming where breaking the law is still illegal and cops are funded!” Sheriff Kozak thanks his community for supporting law enforcement and welcomes those who have a desire to do their job to join LCSOwy.org”

The following statement was sent to KKTV 11 News from a spokesperson from the Media Relations Unit for the Denver Police Department:

“Denver Police salary and benefit information is detailed here, but a primary advantage for working for Denver Police versus the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office is that the top pay for the officer rank is $24,575 more annually than the top pay for a LCSO deputy sheriff, and the pay gap increases at higher ranks,” the statement reads. “Beyond base salary DPD officers have numerous opportunities to earn even more through uniformed secondary employment work (working Nuggets, Broncos and Avalanche games, and more).”

The following salary table comparing the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) to the Denver Police Department was shared by Denver Police:

The Denver Police Department also pointed out that the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office praises Denver in its own recruiting materials. On the sheriff’s office website, it reads in part, “Adventure awaits you in the Rocky Mountains or the bustling City of Denver, each within an hour’s drive.”

The Denver Police Department also cited a recent study by WalletHub that identifies Colorado as the 4th best state to be a police officer, compared to Wyoming which ranks 24th.

According to Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak, the recruiting strategy of “Work in Wyoming where breaking the law is STILL ILLEGAL” has been part of a digital campaign in the Denver area for about a year. Sheriff Kozak credits the hiring of 72 people in about a year to that campaign. As of Tuesday, his sheriff’s office had 25 open positions, 17 in the jail and eight for patrol.

Sheriff Kozak says the billboard in Denver cost about $2,500 and the contract is for 30 days, but he believes donations may result in that billboard not costing the taxpayers anything. They may extend that time, but he added it was money well spent as they are receiving about 20 to 40 applications per day compared to about five or ten a month before the campaign started.

The Denver Mayor also responded to the billboard.

“The City of Denver’s adjustment to the Denver Police Department’s budget was carefully crafted with safety leaders and Mayor Johnston to ensure there would be no impact to the department’s public services,” a statement from Mayor Mike Johnston reads. “To say that Denver is ‘defunding the police’ is a willful mischaracterization of the budget reductions, which actually just delays the purchase of new furniture and shifts the funding source for one cadet class. In fact, Mayor Johnston has invested millions to add 167 new police recruits to our force in 2024, and will continue to invest in public safety to ensure every Denverite is safe in their city.”

Click here to apply to the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office.

Click here to apply to the Denver Police Department.

Watch a raw interview with Sheriff Kozak below on the topic:

Copyright 2024 KKTV. All rights reserved.

The National Park Service says a missing New Mexico man who is “believed to have attempted travel down the Colorado River with his dog on a wooden raft” has been found dead inside Grand Canyon National Park. 

Thomas Robison, 58, of Santa Fe, was discovered by park rangers in the Colorado River on Friday, according to the NPS.  

The agency previously said on April 21, a champagne 2001 Toyota Tacoma belonging to Robison “was found abandoned at Lee’s Ferry in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area” and that his whereabouts were unknown at the time. 

“It is believed he may have attempted to go down the Colorado River with his dog, who is a Welsh Corgi, on a self-made raft,” they said. 

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Robison’s body is now being examined by the Coconino County Medical Examiner and the NPS is investigating the incident. The NPS says “initial information” indicates that the body is of Robison. 

The cause of his death is unclear. 

It comes after an Arizona hiker died on a popular Grand Canyon hiking trail in November 2023 in what was the 10th death that year at the national park. 

The NPS identified that hiker as 65-year-old James Handschy of Oracle, Arizona. 

Handschy had set off for a hike from the South Rim to the river and back along the Bright Angel Trail, the agency said, a roundtrip of about 18 miles. 

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The homemade raft that Robison, 58, is believed to have set off on in an attempt to travel down the Colorado River, NPS officials say.

In September 2023, another Grand Canyon hiker died while trying to walk rim to rim in one day, officials said. 

Ranjith Varma, 55, of Manassas, Virginia, was attempting to trek from the South to North Rim on Sept. 9 when he became unresponsive along the North Kaibab Trail, approximately one mile south of Cottonwood Campground, the National Park Service said. 

Rangers responded to the emergency call about the hiker in distress and deployed a helicopter with search and rescue personnel, the NPS said. 

The NPS says Robison’s body was found inside Grand Canyon National Park on Friday, May 10. (NPS)

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Bystanders performed CPR until the rangers arrived. 

Fox News’ Stephen Sorace contributed to this report. 

The Poudre School District is seeking feedback from the community as it plans to close schools in the Fort Collins area due to rapidly declining enrollment. PSD initially announced the plans to consolidate or close some schools in 2023, but that announcement was met with backlash and protests from the community. The district later asked several dozen volunteers from the community to create a commission that would be in charge of proposing consolidation and closure ideas to the school board in 2024.

That group of volunteers has completed their initial survey, and the district has released the list of options the volunteers landed on. Now, the district is asking the community to provide feedback on the list of options before May 19.

“Parents are freaking out,” said Emily Kent, a parent in southeastern Fort Collins.

Kent doesn’t have children in the school district right now but will next school year. Kent, who attended Linton Elementary School as a child, said she intentionally moved her family to the same community with the plan of her kids attending that very school.

Linton was not initially listed in the schools facing closure in the list released in 2023. Because of that, families in that neighborhood felt their school was safe from the changes. So that is why many felt completely caught off guard by the district’s recent announcement that has Linton being closed on nearly all of the options the public can comment on.

“Everyone is shocked. We feel blindsided,” Kent told CBS News Colorado’s Dillon Thomas. “We wouldn’t have bought our house here if this neighborhood school wasn’t available to us.”

Kent said Linton, which is a Title I school, is beloved in the community for being diverse and easily accessible by foot. Kent said nearly 90% of students at the school walk to class each day. She said she fears students would be placed in dangerous situations while trying to commute to other schools if Linton is closed.

“This is not an easy thing. This is not something anyone wants to do. It is something that is a financial reality that as enrollment goes down, funding goes down,” said Emily Shockley, spokesperson for PSD.

The district is planning listening sessions for June 4. Community members can sign up for the sessions online.

Shockley said the district will be hosting sessions where school board members will be in individual rooms at Rocky Mountain High School to listen to the community’s input.

When asked what parents should do, given they only have until May 19 to weigh in on the committee’s proposals, Shockley said it was important for them to vocalize their concerns to the volunteer committee before they present their conclusions to the school board.

“(Parents) should absolutely take that questionnaire. That is the best way to get a response to the committee to look at while they are shaping those final scenarios to the board,” Shockley said.

It is expected that the PSD board will make a final decision on which schools to close or consolidate by June 11.

Kent said she feels other schools had months to prepare for their arguments, while Linton was left to scramble during the 11th hour.

“The other schools and those families have had a long time to rally, to cry, to write their senators. We feel really stuck,” Kent said.