Colorado
SCOTUS rules against Navajo Nation in drought-plagued Colorado River case
The Supreme Court rejected a Navajo Nation lawsuit Thursday over access to the drought-plagued Colorado River.
The high court determined by a 5-4 vote that a treaty signed more than 150 years ago did not require the federal government develop a plan to ensure the tribe had adequate water supplies.
“In short, the 1868 treaty did not impose a duty on the United States to take affirmative steps to secure water for the Tribe — including the steps requested by the Navajos here, such as determining the water needs of the Tribe, providing an accounting, or developing a plan to secure the needed water,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in his majority opinion, which was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Amy Coney Barrett.
Justice Neil Gorsuch joined liberal justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson in dissenting.
In the Navajo Treaty of 1868, the US government agreed to “‘set apart’ a reservation for the ‘use and occupation of the Navajo tribe.’”
Lawyers for the Navajo Nation argued this language amounted to assurances they would be provided with an ample water supply.
“The promise of a permanent home necessarily implies certain benefits for the Tribe (and certain responsibilities for the United States). One set of those benefits and responsibilities concerns water. This Court long ago recognized as much,” Gorsuch wrote in his dissent.
In the 1908 Winters v. United States case that Gorsuch referenced, the high court concluded that the establishment of a reservation implied tribes had certain water rights.
Lawyers for the tribe further contended that they simply wanted the government to evaluate the Navajo’s water needs and draft a plan to remedy it.
Attorney Shay Dvoretzky argued the tribe merely sought its “fair share” of water through a ”fair process.”
Meanwhile, the Biden administration and allied states countered that a ruling in favor of the Navajo Nation could open a Pandora’s box leading to a bevy of lawsuits from other tribes with similar demands, or upend existing water agreements between states.
Further complicating the matter is the already low water levels of the Colorado River, with has led to disputes between multiple Western states over access.
“If there is any silver lining here it may be this,” Gorsuch added, “the Court does not pass on other potential pleadings the Tribe might offer, such as those alleging direct interference with their water rights. Importantly, too, the Court recognizes that the Navajo ‘may be able to assert the interests they claim in water rights litigation, including by seeking to intervene in cases that affect their claimed interests.’”
Before the case made its way to the Supreme Court, it was dismissed in a federal trial court.
An appeals court gave it the green light to continue, but now the high court’s decision has reversed that.
The Colorado River flows near the northwestern edge of the Navajo Nation, whose massive reservation covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.
Roughly a third of residents in the reservation, the largest in the US, do not have running water, according to the tribe.
Colorado
'Thanksfest' giving back more than a meal to Colorado Springs families in need
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – This weekend was Thankfest, an event started by Vaughn Littrell, to give back to families in need. This year 250 families got all the ingredients they needed for Thanksgiving and more.
The families were chosen ahead of time through the CPCD Head Start Program. They help serve our community’s most vulnerable children and families.
The giveaway was a chance for families to come down and do some shopping for free. It was more than just getting food, families also received all the kitchen tools they would need to cook too.
It wasn’t just food either. Clothes and shoes were also available for those who needed them.
“Some of our families are in really, really bad situations. They need they need help. You know, and it’s this is a this is a tangible way that we can do something. We can’t do everything, but you can do something. We’re excited to be able to bless these families,” Vaughn Littrell told KRDO13.
Vaughn says he started the giveaway with just a few families. He says he knows what it is like to struggle, and wants the giveaway to keep growing so he can help more people.
KRDO NewsChannel 13 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation.
Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here
If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here.
Colorado
I-70 closed near Vail, Silverthorne for safety concerns, weather hazards
Interstate 70 closed near Vail and Silverthorne on Sunday for “safety concerns” as snow battered the Colorado mountains, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
The eastbound interstate was closed between Exit 180 for East Vail and Exit 190 for Vail Pass Summit, about 1 mile west of Copper Mountain, as of 6 p.m. Sunday, CDOT officials said.
CDOT cameras in the area of the closure showed snow-covered roads and white-out conditions.
Westbound I-70 was also closed at 6 p.m. Sunday between Exit 216 for U.S. 6 near Loveland Pass and Exit 205 for Colorado 9 near Silverthorne, according to CDOT.
Multiple Waze users reported “weather hazards” in both closed sections of I-70.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.
Colorado
Shedeur Sanders shoves referee, ‘lucky’ to avoid ejection as frustrations boil over in Colorado loss
There was certainly a scenario Saturday night where Colorado would’ve needed to navigate the final 20 minutes of its upset loss to Kansas without star quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Sanders, the son of Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders and a projected top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, shoved referee Kevin Mar after taking a sack on third down with Colorado trailing by nine in the third quarter, and he was “lucky” that didn’t result in an ejection, Fox rules analyst Mike Pereira said on the broadcast.
“There’s no question that he does,” Pereira said when asked about Sanders shoving Mar. “Look, I get why he’s upset because people are almost climbing over him after he was down, but, you know, the officials can use their hands all they want to try to keep order. But you cannot come back as a player and push an official.
“In the chaos, the officials don’t see it, but he’s lucky that he wasn’t ejected from the game.”
After the sack, Sanders approached Mar from behind — who was surrounded by a cluster of players — and shoved the longtime official with his right arm.
By that point, three other referees had moved closer to the scuffle and attempted to separate the players and Sanders while protecting Mar.
Sanders, who finished 23 of 29 for 266 yards and three touchdowns during No. 16 Colorado’s 37-21 loss, wasn’t penalized on the play, but his frustrations had started to boil over.
The game featured plenty of physical hits, with Colorado’s College Football Playoff hopes at stake and Kansas attempting to claw its way toward becoming bowl eligible.
At one point in the first half, defensive end Dean Miller lowered his head and flung himself toward Sanders’ knees while he attempted a pass.
“I mean, I just don’t know how that’s legal overall,” Sanders told reporters after the game when asked about Miller’s hit. “I ain’t understand that, but, you know, it is what it is. There was a couple plays like that.”
The Buffaloes trailed 17-0 at one point but managed to trim its deficit to two points early in the third quarter, when Travis Hunter — also projected as a top pick in the upcoming NFL draft — and Sanders connected on a touchdown pass.
But Devin Neal accounted for the final two touchdowns, providing the Jayhawks with some cushion and ensuring Colorado was on its way to ending the night in a four-way tie atop the Big 12 standings.
Deion said after the game that Colorado had become “intoxicated with the success.”
“We started smelling ourselves a little bit,” Deion said, according to ESPN. “… We got intoxicated with the multitude of articles and the assumption that we’re this and the assumption that we’re that. And we did not play CU football. Therefore, we got our butts kicked. It is what it is.”
-
Business1 week ago
Column: Molly White's message for journalists going freelance — be ready for the pitfalls
-
Science5 days ago
Trump nominates Dr. Oz to head Medicare and Medicaid and help take on 'illness industrial complex'
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump taps FCC member Brendan Carr to lead agency: 'Warrior for Free Speech'
-
Technology7 days ago
Inside Elon Musk’s messy breakup with OpenAI
-
Lifestyle1 week ago
Some in the U.S. farm industry are alarmed by Trump's embrace of RFK Jr. and tariffs
-
World1 week ago
Protesters in Slovakia rally against Robert Fico’s populist government
-
News7 days ago
They disagree about a lot, but these singers figure out how to stay in harmony
-
News1 week ago
Gaetz-gate: Navigating the President-elect's most baffling Cabinet pick