Colorado

Hunting groups sue Colorado wildlife commissioners over mountain lion hunting op-ed ahead of election

Published

1 year ago

December 11, 2024

Hunting groups sue Colorado wildlife commissioners over mountain lion hunting op-ed ahead of election

Two influential hunting organizations are suing members of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission saying they violated Colorado Open Meetings Law and spread false information about mountain lion hunting prior to last month’s vote on Proposition 127, which would have banned the hunting and trapping of mountain lions, lynx and bobcats.

When the proposition failed by a margin of less than 5 percentage points, it marked the first time since 1992 that Colorado voters rejected a wildlife ballot proposal and stirred hope among some of a bridging of Colorado’s urban-rural divide.

But Safari Club International and The Sportsmens Alliance Foundation sued commissioners Jessica Beaulieu and Jack Murphy as well as former commissioner James Pribyl in Denver County Court over an opinion piece published in The Durango Herald on Oct. 12, supporting the proposition.

Beaulieu and Murphy both represent outdoor recreation and parks utilization on the commission.

The piece criticized lion hunting as a “highly unpopular, unscientific and unwarranted abuse and exploitation” of wildlife that “in no way contributes” to the “bright future of ethical outdoor recreation” in Colorado.

It also called out “a small lion-hunting industry” that guarantees 100% trophy lion harvest, the needless killing of female lions, and CPW itself, for offering cougar hunting “to serve mountain lion hunters alone, for a recreational opportunity.”

A sign in opposition to Colorado Propositions 127 and KK is posted along the fence line of the Blue Valley Sportsman’s Club in Grand County on Oct. 8, 2024. (Jason Connolly, Special to The Colorado Sun)

The Safari Club and the Sportsmen’s Alliance are alleging Beaulieu and Murphy violated Colorado’s Open Meetings Law because the column was written while the commission was actively considering a revised mountain lion management plan for the Eastern Slope. The management plan passed unanimously Nov. 15 after extensive public comment opposing the plan.

The lawsuit also alleges Murphy and Beaulieu had to have discussed writing the column that “flatly — and falsely — criticized Colorado’s current mountain lion and bobcat management programs” outside of a public meeting.

“But the hunting of mountain lions and bobcats is ‘public business’ under the Open Meetings Law,” the lawsuit alleges, and “the CPW Commissioners had these discussions without appropriate public notice and opportunity to participate.”

And the plaintiffs, calling the op-ed itself “a meeting under the Open Meetings Law,” say it harmed them because it put “false information into the public discourse.”

The organizations are asking the court to find Murphy and Beaulieu violated the law and to prohibit them from doing it again.

Neither hunting group responded to requests for comment.

“Commissioners can speak as private citizens”

In an Oct. 24 email to The Colorado Sun after the op-ed was published, CPW spokesperson Travis Duncan said the commissioners had not broken any laws.

“Voting Commissioners are not DNR employees, they are unpaid volunteers, so they do not fall under DNR’s HR personnel rules,” he wrote. “As the Commissioners were speaking as private citizens, this subject was not before the commission as an item of business and no open meeting law violation occurred.”

Jeff Roberts, executive director of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, said that although the open meetings law says a meeting is open when two or more members of a state public body discuss public business, Colorado courts say there must be a demonstrated link between the content of a meeting and the public body’s policy-making responsibilities.

So because commissioners are not involved in deciding whether hunting of mountain lions and bobcats should be prohibited, he said, there was no link between the commissioners’ opinions in the op-ed and the commissions’ work.

A paper published by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University in October, argues that “accepting a government office — including an elected or appointed position — does not divest a speaker of all First Amendment rights.”

But Dan Gates, executive director of Coloradans for Responsible Wildlife Management, believes the plaintiffs are justified in suing the commissioners.

In an email to The Sun, he said Coloradans for Responsible Wildlife Management hopes “all appointed individuals adhere to the requirements of public process and procedures and protocols” because “while having a personal opinion is one thing, how one conveys or represents that opinion or how it was worked on with others, might be another matter.”

Beaulieu and Murphy told the commission they had no part in the letter writing during opening remarks at the Nov. 14 meeting.

“At no point did I communicate with commissioner Murphy about writing the op-ed or pending commission business, including the East Slope Mountain Lion Plan,” Beaulieu said.

“There was no collusion. We simply signed off on a letter. We did not talk about it at all. Not one single word was written by either one of us,” Murphy added.

Pribyl and advocates drafted the letter

Ellen Stein, opinion editor at The Durango Herald, said the letter came via email from Julie Marshall, public relations director for Animal Wellness Action, the group behind Proposition 127.

Marshall told The Sun Pribyl, the former commissioner, “and experts from the campaign” wrote the letter after which Beaulieu and Murphy were each sent drafts.

“Jess got a copy to see if she agreed in substance and wanted to add her name,” Marshall said. “Jack also got a copy separately and was offered the same thing to sign on. No seated commissioners met together ever. No seated commissioners were ever on the same email ever. They acted entirely alone in their own capacity as citizens. There is nothing nefarious or illegal here.”

“Safari Club is engaging in lawfare to attack on baseless grounds and chill speech because of the substance of the issue alone,” she added. “That is anti-democratic.”

Commissioner Marie Haskett, who represents sportspersons and outfitters, submitted her own letter to the editor in the Rio Blanco Herald Times on Oct. 10 urging a no vote on Prop. 127.

Colorado Sun reporter Jason Blevins contributed to this report.

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Colorado

Windstorm batters Colo., leave tens of thousands without power; restoration expected by Saturday night

Published

2 hours ago

December 20, 2025

Press Room

Windstorm batters Colo., leave tens of thousands without power; restoration expected by Saturday night

BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. — Colorado’s foothills were hit by hurricane-force winds Friday morning, with gusts reaching 112 mph in Boulder County. The storm caused damage, outages, fires, and travel disruptions, but no injuries were reported.

Earlier in the week, on Wednesday afternoon and evening, a previous windstorm brought gusts up to 109 mph, knocking down trees and power lines and sparking fires near Yuma.

No serious injuries were reported from the fires near Yuma. Authorities believe no homes were lost. All fires were contained by Thursday night after burning just over 14,000 acres.

Power outages

Xcel Energy carried out another public safety power shutoff (PSPS) on Friday in response to hurricane-strength winds in the Front Range foothills, as crews worked around the clock to restore power to thousands of customers after initiating a Wednesday PSPS.

Xcel said PSPS conditions subsided as of 5 a.m. Saturday. However, about 57,207 Xcel customers were still without power.

Xcel Energy

The utility company said it’s aiming to restore power to customers by 10 p.m. Saturday, but warned that the outage could extend into Sunday for some customers.

“The safety of crew members is paramount as they work to restore power. Xcel Energy asks customers to help keep crew members safe as they work diligently to restore power as quickly as possible,” wrote Xcel Energy in a release.

Xcel said it has identified 396 customers who have been without power since the initial outage on Wednesday. The company said these customers are being prioritized as restoration efforts continue followed by other high-needs areas.

xcel crews power shutoff_dec 18 2025.jpg — Xcel Energy workers toil to repair power lines on a street closed after hurricane-force winds whipped through the metropolitan area and interrupted service to residents Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Xcel set up resource centers and charging stations in Evergreen, Gilpin County, Lakewood, and Idaho Springs.

On Saturday, Gov. Jared Polis urged residents to avoid directing their frustration at Xcel’s frontline crews over ongoing outages, saying workers are working long hours to restore service.

“As many Coloradans await the return of power to their homes and communities, I want to urge everyone not to take their frustrations with power being out on the hardworking men and women who make up the Xcel crews. The company and its crews are working around the clock to ensure our safety and to restore power. While I have expressed great frustration with Xcel and there’s much room for improvement in communications about what’s going on and timelines, I am grateful for Xcel’s frontline workers and all those people working to restore people’s power. Please thank them if you see them,” Polis said in a statement.

CORE Electric Cooperative, which provides power to parts of Clear Creek, Jefferson, and Park counties, said that 9,281 customers lost power during Friday’s storm.

CORE said the return of service for most members will likely not occur until later in the day on Saturday, as more favorable weather will help with restoration efforts. However, strong winds are still expected, and many trees have been weakened during the storm.

Damage and closures

Reports of downed trees, power lines, and street poles in and around Boulder and across the foothills during Friday’s wind event flooded emergency dispatch.

In Longmont, Friday’s windstorm severely damaged the roof of Longmont Climbing Collective, 155 Pinnacle Street, prompting the closure of the business as crews work to replace the roof.

Longmont Climbing Collective said in a Facebook post that it hopes to reopen Sunday or Monday, but it may take longer. No injuries were reported.

Downed trees and street poles blocked roads and trails across Boulder County, causing major closures, including portions of CO 72, CO 93, US 36, and CO 128. But some reopened by nightfall.

In the Allenspark area of Boulder County, a propane tanker on CO 7 rolled over after hitting black ice on Friday, trapping the occupants and prompting an evacuation and the closure of the highway.

According to the Allenspark Fire Protection District, high winds and leaking diesel fuel at the crash scene made the situation particularly sensitive and extended the time needed to resolve it.

Due to concerns about possible propane leakage, residents and businesses were evacuated. However, no propane leakage was ultimately found.

No major injuries were reported.

Friday’s storm also closed schools across Boulder and Jefferson counties, as well as Evergreen.

Here are the top 10 wind speeds recorded on Friday from the National Weather Service:

112 MPH — 3 NW Marshall, Boulder, CO
110 MPH — Sunshine, Boulder, CO
102 MPH — 2 WNW Niwot, Boulder, CO
99 MPH — 1 NE Crisman, Boulder, CO
97 MPH — 1 S Wallstreet, Boulder, CO
96 MPH — 2 SW Hygiene, Boulder, CO
95 MPH — 1 NE Crisman, Boulder, CO
95 MPH — 3 S Carter Lake, Larimer, CO
94 MPH — 3 N Berthoud Pass, Grand, CO
92 MPH — 5 N Boulder, Boulder, CO

DIA impacts

Friday’s strong winds created a rough start to the December holiday travel season at Denver International Airport.

FlightAware reported more than 1,200 delays at DIA on Friday—the most nationwide—along with more than 80 cancellations.

A plane takes off at Denver International Airport.

On Saturday, the numbers dropped considerably, resulting in only 88 reported delays.

Several pilots reported moderate-to-severe or even severe turbulence on Friday.

The Federal Aviation Administration defines turbulence as “severe” when it “causes large, abrupt changes in altitude and/or attitude. It usually causes large variations in indicated airspeed. Aircraft may be momentarily out of control.”

Back‑to‑back windstorms batter Colorado, leave tens of thousands without power

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Colorado

Avs’ home heater continues as Colorado beats Winnipeg 3-2 in chippy win

Published

14 hours ago

December 20, 2025

Press Room

Avs’ home heater continues as Colorado beats Winnipeg 3-2 in chippy win

The Avs on home ice remain as close to invincible as a sports team can get.

Colorado beat Winnipeg 3-2 on Friday at Ball Arena, improving to 14-0-2 in Denver. The win extended the longest home point streak to start a season in franchise history, and the Avs’ 12th straight victory at home is the longest in the NHL this season and second-longest streak in franchise history.

“When other teams play here, it’s tough to come into this building,” defenseman Josh Manson said. “When the fans get behind us, momentum shifts. We score a goal, they get loud, the building gets rocking and the momentum starts to carry and we can feel it. And from there, we can start pouring it on.”

The Avs didn’t play perfect on Friday, giving up a shorthanded goal and battling through several Winnipeg surges after reigning Hart Trophy and Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck settled into the game.

But as they have all season, Colorado found a way to win in front of the Avs faithful in a game featuring four scuffles, highlighted by a fist fight between Manson and the Jets’ Tanner Pearson. The Avs’ only home losses this year came in a pair of 5-4 shootout setbacks, to Dallas on Oct. 11 and Carolina on Oct. 23.

Since then, Colorado’s been a sure bet to prevail at “The Can.”

“This was one of our better defensive efforts of the year — physical, and we spent some time in the D-zone in the second period and didn’t give up any dangerous chances five-on-five really,” Avs head coach Jared Bednar said. “Made a mistake on the power play, made a mistake on the penalty kill, but besides that I liked our game tonight.”

The Avs started fast against struggling Winnipeg, which has battled injuries and inconsistencies while looking like a shadow of the team that won last season’s Presidents’ Trophy. Colorado blitzed Hellebuyck with a number of quality shots in the first 10 minutes, then finally broke through with Brent Burns’ goal.

“Right from the drop of the puck, we were taking it to them,” Manson said. “… (During this stretch of home dominance) we’ve set the pace on teams.”

Burns, the oldest active NHL player, wristed one home from behind the right playoff circle as his shot deflected off the skate of a Winnipeg defender to make it 1-0.

Five minutes later, Colorado made it 2-0 thanks to a highlight-reel combination between Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas. MacKinnon, tied with Edmonton’s Connor McDavid for the NHL points lead entering the night with 58, made a precise pass that split two defenders and found Necas streaking down the center of the ice. Necas beat Hellebuyck on the bottom right shelf.

“When we beat them up ice, we’re capable (of finishes like that),” Necas said.

But in the second period, Hellebuyck tightened up, turning away several scoring chances as the Jets killed three Avs power plays and the crowd buzzed off of Manson’s fight with Pearson.

After both players went to the penalty box just under three minutes into the period, the jumbotron cam jumped from Manson to Pearson, with the former getting met with deafening cheers and the latter with a chorus of boos.

“(That) gets you fired up a little bit,” Parker Kelly said.

But on Colorado’s third man-advantage of the period, the Jets stole the momentum back with a short-handed goal.

Off a Hellebuyck save, Alex Iafallo possessed the puck and cleared up ice high off the glass. Morgan Barron outskated Cale Makar down the ice to retrieve the bouncer, then beat Scott Wedgewood one-on-one with a backhanded shot to quiet the crowd and make it 2-1 with 37 seconds left in the frame.

“We weren’t worried after that,” Manson said. “If anything, I was thinking in my mind, ‘We’re going to go get one here at the start of the third period.’”

The Avs did just that.

Less than two minutes into the third, Colorado grabbed the mojo right back. Manson blasted a shot from up near the blue line, which deflected off a screening Kelly and past Hellebuyck for a 3-1 lead.

“I saw it go to low to high and I just tried to beat my guy to the net,” Kelly said. “(Manson) was walking down mainstream. Honestly, I was just there to try and provide a screen. I thought (Manson) was going to rip it. I don’t know if it got tipped, but the shot was along the ice and my stick was on the ice. Just tried to get a little touch on it.”

But the Jets quickly answered about 90 seconds later, capitalizing on a hooking penalty on Devon Toews as Mark Scheifele scored just seven seconds into Winnipeg’s power play to again make it a one-goal game.

Midway through the period, the Avs had a goal wiped off the board. Kelly deflected the puck into the net off a shot by Samuel Girard, but Kelly used high-sticking to do it, negating the score.

From there, Wedgewood and the Colorado defense held on as the Avs notched their 56th and 57th points of the season. Wedgewood made 20 total saves, including two saves in the final minute to seal the win for Colorado (25-2-7).

“We got heavy around the net, and Wedgie played great between the pipes,” Manson said. “We were making good decisions with the puck at the end of the game… We made smart plays and didn’t force anything in the last eight, 10 minutes of that game.”

The longest home win streak in Avs history came during their championship season in 2021-22, when Colorado won 18 straight in Denver from Nov. 11 to Jan. 30.

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Colorado

Several Colorado highways temporarily closed due to high winds

Published

1 day ago

December 19, 2025

Press Room

Several Colorado highways temporarily closed due to high winds

BOULDER, Colo. (KKTV) – Several Colorado highways are closed due to high winds reaching up to 80 MPH in some locations.

According to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), the closures currently in place include:

CO 93 both directions from 64th Ave (Arvada) to CO 170.
CO 72, both directions from CO 7 to Ward Road.
US 36, both directions from Boulder to Lyons.
CO 128, both directions from CO 93 to McCaslin Boulevard.

Transportation officials said the winds may also cause traffic signal outages.

If traffic lights are experiencing a power outage, CDOT said drivers must treat it as a four-way stop:

Come to a complete stop at the stop line or before entering the intersection.
Vehicles proceed one at a time, in the order they arrived.
If two vehicles arrive at the same time, the driver on the right goes first.
Always yield to pedestrians and cyclists already in the crosswalk.
Make eye contact when possible and proceed cautiously – do not assume others will stop.

Drivers are also encouraged to reduce speeds, keep both hands firmly on the steering wheel, and be alert for debris, downed signs and sudden gusts. High-profile vehicles, such as trucks, vans and vehicles towing trailers, are encouraged to avoid travel when closures or restrictions are in place.

CDOT also reminds commercial drivers to ensure tire chains are properly secured and not dragging, which can create sparks and increase wildfire risk during dry, windy conditions.

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