LOVELAND – A Loveland man arrested at a President Bush rally in Greeley two years ago – and acquitted by a jury on charges of harassment and resisting arrest – filed a lawsuit in federal court Monday.
The civil lawsuit by Michael McCarthy accuses Weld County authorities of violating his First and Fourth Amendment rights. Weld County Deputy John Tucker “subjected him to an intrusive, unjustified and illegal search and seizure without any basis for believing he was engaged in criminal activity,” the lawsuit said.
Attorney Lee Christian argues McCarthy was arrested for his politics as a Kerry supporter during an October 2004 Bush rally at Island Grove Park in Greeley. He carried a sign that read “Veterans for Kerry” and got in a tussle with Tucker. Tucker, the lawsuit says, “became a partisan in the political debate” arguing with protesters.
McCarthy seeks compensation for emotional distress and loss of reputation and unspecified punitive damages.
MORE BRIEFS
ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK
Mountain byways close for snow season
Signs that winter has officially arrived in the high country can be found in the seasonal closures today of the highway over Independence Pass and Trail Ridge Road – two of Colorado’s highest mountain byways.
“After recent snowfall accumulation at high elevations in the park, with the accompanying wind and ice, as well as the forecast for periodic storms at high elevations, we have decided to officially close Trail Ridge Road for the season,” park Superintendent Vaughn Baker said in a release. “The snow continues to blow and drift at higher elevations, making snow clearing operations extremely hazardous.”
The average winter closure date for Trail Ridge has been Oct. 23, the park said.
Colorado 82 between Leadville and Aspen was closed Friday with the intention of reopening the road and keeping it open until the annual Nov. 7 target date, the Colorado Department of Transportation said in a release.
But weekend snow and wind created white-out conditions and a forecast for more wind means that plows are unable to safely travel the road.
The closure runs from just east of Aspen about 18 miles to Twin Lakes. The annual target date for reopening the road is May.
GARFIELD COUNTY
5 missing hunters all found safe
Four separate searches for missing hunters in Garfield County ended well with all the hunters located and only one needing medical attention for mild hypothermia.
The first missing hunter was reported Saturday just after 8 p.m. when 64-year-old Louis Beres did not return to his hunting camp north of New Castle. Beres was located the next morning walking down a U.S. Forest Service road. He was reported in good condition.
Later that Saturday night, Chris Lee, 40, was reported missing after he did not return to camp. He was located via a talk-about radio in a drainage in the Deep Creek area and was flown to a hospital for treatment of mild hypothermia.
Early Sunday morning, Tracy Floyd, 31, and his nephew Oliver Floyd, 18, were reported stuck in a steep ravine on the Roan Plateau where they had gone to retrieve an elk. Both hunters were able to hike out of the ravine before searchers reached them.
Three hours later, Kevin Cole, 37, was reported missing from the camp he had left the day before. Cole was found walking down a road in the Uncle Bob Mountain area about two hours after the missing report was filed.
AURORA
Man charged with sex assault on 75-year-old
Authorities have charged a suspect in a sex assault of a 75-year-old female that occurred earlier this month.
The suspect, Travis Kirk Bland, 22, was connected to the sex assault through forensic evidence taken from him while he was jailed on an unrelated theft charge, Aurora police said.
The victim was sexually assaulted the afternoon of Oct. 11 inside a residence in the 2500 block of South Worchester Court, police said.
Police investigators also are looking into the possibility that Bland might be connected to the sex assault of a 19-year-old woman on Oct. 2, in a parking lot in the 1400 block of South Geneva Way, according to a news release.
Bland was booked into the Arapahoe County Detention facility on charges of sex assault and kidnapping, and bail was set at $2 million.
DENVER
Man gets 17 years for ’04 assaults near DU
A 42-year-old man found guilty of assaulting two women near the University of Denver campus in March 2004 was sentenced Monday to 15 years in prison and an additional two years in the county jail, the Denver District Attorney’s Office said.
Andrew Plancarte, of Denver, continued to claim his innocence in court before a Denver district court judge said he was still a danger to the community and sentenced him.
On March 25, 2004, a 32-year-old woman was assaulted in her home near the campus. A short time later, a 20-year-old woman was attacked nearby.
