Coroner: Medical problem killed woman, not wreck
Frisco – A Summit County woman found frozen in the ice on Dillon Reservoir apparently died of a health problem, according to coroner Joanne Richardson.
Patricia McCormick, 62, had been missing since November after her delivery truck apparently skidded off a road and tumbled into the reservoir.
As snow and ice have thawed, searchers first found the truck last week in about 35 feet of water and then McCormick’s body entombed in the ice Wednesday.
McCormick did not drown and did not suffer trauma in the wreck, which threw her from the vehicle, Richardson said. She appears to have died of a medical problem that led to the crash.
BOULDER COUNTY
Deputies locate missing CU instructor
A missing assistant professor from the University of Colorado at Denver who is accused of sexual contact with a 14-year-old boy was found Thursday.
About 11:45 a.m., Boulder County deputies found Mark Baertschy, 35, inside his van in a parking lot near Rainbow Lakes.
He appeared to be in good health, according to the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.
Baertschy was arrested March 31 on suspicion of having sexual contact with the boy over a two-year period.
He disappeared after his release from jail April 1.
The conditions of his release were that he appear for an appointment with Community Justice Services for pretrial supervision.
Baertschy was taken to the Boulder County Jail because authorities say he violated the conditions of his release.
COLORADO
Environmental official takes D.C. position
The state director of environmental programs is leaving Colorado for a job in Washington.
Howard Roitman, who has led the environmental side of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for three years, announced his resignation Thursday. He will leave next month to become deputy executive director of the Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials.
Roitman has worked for the department since 1987. He previously managed its uranium mill- tailings and Superfund oversight programs and its hazardous-materials and waste- management division.
CENTENNIAL
Venue change denied for Saudi pair’s trial
A judge refused Thursday to move the trial of a Saudi couple accused of keeping an Indonesian woman as a virtual slave.
Attorneys for Homaidan Al- Turki and his wife, Sarah Khonaizan, told a judge that newspaper articles about the case were biased and would hurt their chance for a fair trial in Arapahoe County.
State District Judge Mark Hannen said he had reviewed the articles and determined they wouldn’t have a significant effect on potential jurors.
A federal indictment released in June said the Indonesian woman was paid less than the equivalent of $2 a day over four years to cook, clean house and care for the couple’s five children. The indictment also said she was sometimes lent out to work for four other families.
Prosecutors also alleged that Al-Turki sexually abused the woman repeatedly.
ENGLEWOOD
Woman seriously hurt in apartment blaze
A woman was burned “over a large portion of her body” in a apartment fire in Englewood early Thursday afternoon, said investigator John Hoehler.
Police and firefighters were sent to the three-story apartment building at 3690 S. Fox St. at 12:50 p.m.
A woman was found lying on the ground outside the building, conscious but with “significant” burns, Hoehler said. The woman was taken to University Hospital for treatment. Her name wasn’t released.
The building was evacuated, and the fire was contained to a first-floor apartment and quickly extinguished, Hoehler said. The cause is under investigation.
EL PASO COUNTY
Driver evades guards at Peterson Air Base
A woman drove her sedan up on a sidewalk Thursday and past stunned guards at Peterson Air Force Base, home to the headquarters of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, nearly reaching the hangars and runway before being stopped by military police, authorities said.
Arlene Johnston, 62, drove between 2 and 3 miles through the base, coming to within a half mile of the flight line, 21st Space Wing spokesman Stefan Bocchino told The Gazette of Colorado Springs. Johnston’s 2004 Nissan was boxed in by military police, and she was taken into custody without further incident.
