Moussaoui begins sentence at Supermax federal prison
Florence – Convicted Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui began serving his life sentence at the nation’s most secure prison Saturday after U.S. marshals flew him overnight to southern Colorado from Virginia.
Marshals brought Moussaoui, prisoner No. 51427-054, before dawn to the Supermax federal prison, where he will spend 23 hours a day in his cell and have little to no contact with the other notorious criminals.
“He has now begun serving his sentence of life without the possibility of release,” the U.S. Marshals Service said in a statement.
Moussaoui was the only prisoner aboard the small jet operated by the agency as he flew with a special team of deputy marshals to Florence, about 90 miles southwest of Denver.
Among the inmates at the prison are Ramzi Yousef, Eric Rudolph, Ted Kaczynski and Terry Nichols. Also held there is Richard Reid, the would-be shoe bomber who Moussaoui said was to help him fly a fifth plane into the White House on Sept. 11. 2001. The Bureau of Prisons said Supermax houses 398 “of the nation’s most violent, disruptive and escape-prone inmates.”
CLEAR CREEK COUNTY
Avalanche takes man on 1,000-foot tumble
A 54-year-old California man was lucky to escape with his life after riding an avalanche about 1,000 feet down Torreys Peak in Clear Creek County on Saturday afternoon.
Brian Smith of Santa Monica, Calif., was climbing with his stepson when the 45-foot-wide snowface broke free beneath him at 3:40 p.m.
He suffered several broken bones and was removed from the mountain by a Flight for Life helicopter to St. Anthony hospital in Denver, but his injuries were not life-threatening, said Lt. Rick Albers of the Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Department.
“He’s very lucky,” Albers said. “It’s known by locals for being a dangerous area. The area is called Dead Dog Couloir.”
Three climbers from Wyoming witnessed the fall and raced to help Smith.
Smith cartwheeled down the slope and made several hard landings, said Greg Williams, 36, of Cheyenne.
“It was pretty graphic, it really was,” he told 9News. “We thought he was dead.”
JEFFERSON COUNTY
Denver cop acquitted of “road rage” counts
A Denver police officer has been acquitted of all charges related to alleged “road rage” in August.
Michael D. Ryan, 40, was off-duty at the time of the incident on West Hampden Avenue near South Simms Street. He had been charged with three counts of felony menacing.
Summonses were issued for both of the adults in the other car. Christine Frappied, 24, was charged with throwing missiles at Ryan’s vehicle. She pleaded guilty in November.
Christine Urioste-Smedley, 56, pleaded guilty to a minor traffic offense in January.
DENVER
Woman in ambulance crash in fair condition
A woman who gave birth after being seriously injured in an ambulance accident that killed two people has been upgraded to fair condition, hospital officials said.
Kelsey Schlichenmayer had been transported to Swedish Medical Center by helicopter on Tuesday after she was injured in an accident near Sterling involving her ambulance and a tractor-trailer on Interstate 76.
Schlichenmayer’s son, born the same day, has also been upgraded to fair condition.
JEFFERSON COUNTY
Teacher accused of sex assault on teen
A Jefferson County high school teacher has been arrested in connection with a sexual assault on a 16-year-old girl, according to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.
Justin Scott Flansburg, 24, of Highlands Ranch was taken into custody Thursday afternoon. He is now out on $10,000 bond, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
A Douglas County resident told the Sheriff’s Office about the alleged incident.
An investigation determined that a sex assault occurred in April at a Highlands Ranch home.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Bush OKs bill to allow widow to live in park
President Bush has signed a bill that will allow an 83-year-old widow to keep her summer home inside the boundaries of Rocky Mountain National Park.
The measure gives Betty Dick “life estate” rights to use part of the land where she and her late husband spent summers since the 1970s.
Rep. Mark Udall, Sen. Ken Salazar and others in Colorado took up Dick’s cause after the National Park Service threatened her with eviction.
Dick and her husband’s understanding was that they got the property for life. Dick says the government later changed the terms to 25 years. She was still using the cabin when the 25-year term ended in July.
Under the legislation, Dick will be allowed to hold 8 acres for life and continue paying $300 a year.
DENVER
New administrative leaders hired at DU
The University of Denver has hired several new administrators, including a provost, vice chancellor and law dean.
Interim provost Gregg Kvistad will take the permanent job as chief academic officer, DU chancellor Robert Coombe announced last week.
Ed Harris, executive director of development at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, will become DU’s new vice chancellor for university advancement.
Jose Roberto Juarez Jr. becomes DU’s first Hispanic law dean.
Juarez was a professor and associate dean for academic and student affairs at St. Mary’s University School of Law in San Antonio.
Rodney Smith, director of business development for theaters and arenas for the city and county of Denver, has been hired to direct university events, a new position at DU.
BOULDER
Teen’s science project grabs top Intel award
A 17-year-old Fairview High School student was one of three teenagers to take top honors at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Indianapolis on Friday and received the $50,000 Intel Foundation Young Scientist Scholarship.
Meredith MacGregor studied the “Brazil-Nut Effect,” when a container of granular material is shaken, particles separate by size with the largest rising to the top – such as Brazil nuts in a can of mixed nuts.
One of the most significant implications of understanding this effect is in the mixing of compound pharmaceuticals to ensure particles of different densities are evenly combined as they are packaged for human consumption, fair officials said.
MacGregor excelled among a worldwide pool of 1,482 competitors from 47 countries, regions and territories.
More than 585 students received scholarships and prizes.
