Two people were injured and taken to a hospital after their helicopter crashed Wednesday while trying to take off for a sightseeing tour, according to North Metro Fire Rescue spokeswoman Wendy Forbes.
Fire crews and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office responded just after 4:30 p.m. to a call of a downed helicopter at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport. There were three passengers and a pilot on board, Forbes said.
The two injured passengers were transported to Exempla Good Samaritan Medical Center with minor injuries, Forbes said.
The Jet Ranger helicopter is owned by Rotors of the Rockies of Broomfield, she said.
The cause of the crash was unclear.
Additional local news briefs:
MOFFAT COUNTY
Ritter counters county on Vermillion Basin
Gov. Bill Ritter restated his reasons for opposing drilling in the Vermillion Basin on Wednesday in a letter to Republican Moffat County commissioners who had criticized his stance.
“Because of its limited recoverable gas resources, and because of its pristine status as one of Colorado’s truly special places, we believe the Vermillion Basin should remain off limits for oil and gas drilling,” Ritter wrote.
Ritter’s request not to lease the land for drilling sparked a spat with Moffat County commissioners, who contended that drilling would bring millions of dollars into the local economy.
DENVER
Man pleads guilty in 2-year-old’s death
Peter L. Begay pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court on Wednesday to involuntary manslaughter in the beating death of a 2-year-old boy on the Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation.
Begay, 36, wept while giving his plea to Chief Judge Edward W. Nottingham and said he blacked out and hurt Davery Oshley because he was upset that he had been laid off from his construction job.
“I don’t really remember too much,” Begay told the judge of the Nov. 28, 2005, homicide. “I woke up in a real quick snap.”
Davery died from blunt-force injuries caused by being forcefully thrown on the floor.
Begay’s relationship to the child was not disclosed in open court or in court records. His attorney declined to comment.
Begay faces 10 years in federal prison when Nottingham sentences him Oct. 19.
AURORA
D.C. visitors to tackle convention security
A congressional subcommittee is coming to the Denver area next week to tackle the complicated questions surrounding security during Denver’s hosting of the 2008 Democratic National Convention.
Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., and other members of the Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing, and Terrorism Risk Assessment will hold a field hearing at the Aurora City Council chambers Aug. 10.
Subcommittee members are expected to question officials from Denver and Aurora police, the state police and Denver’s Office of Emergency Management.
The public hearing starts at 10 a.m. and is expected to last two hours.
GOLDEN
Activist may sue over property-tax plan
Conservative activist Jon Caldara is pushing ahead with efforts to sue the state over Gov. Bill Ritter’s plan to freeze property-tax rates for school districts statewide.
Caldara, president of the Independence Institute in Golden, said Wednesday that he plans to unveil details at a news conference at the Capitol today.
The institute has hired Richard Westfall, former solicitor general for the state, and it plans to file open-records requests with school districts and county clerks to obtain records related to those districts’ previous elections waiving constitutional limits on revenues.
DENVER
New rules stricter for getting Colo. ID card
The Colorado Department of Revenue’s new rules for getting a state-issued identification card or driver’s license took effect Wednesday.
Those rules require applicants to prove their full legal name, identity, age and lawful presence in the United States.
Current Colorado license holders should have few problems renewing, but new residents from some states will be required to provide extra proof of their legal residence in the country.
The requirements are also posted at the department’s website at www.revenue.state.co.us/mv_dir/formspdf /DR_2300_ID_Requirements.pdf.
TRINIDAD
Sen. Salazar to attend Piñon land meeting
Sen. Ken Salazar will meet in Trinidad on Tuesday with county commissioners from southeastern Colorado to discuss the Army’s proposed plans to expand the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site by more than 400,000 acres.
The meeting is set for 1:30 p.m. at the Las Animas County Courthouse, 200 E. First St., Room 201.
DENVER
Man charged with forgery, stealing bikes
A 43-year-old man was charged Wednesday with theft, forgery and other charges for allegedly stealing expensive mountain bikes and scooters from various Denver stores.
Todd Michael Brunette faces six theft counts, three forgery counts, three identity-theft counts, four pawnbroker violations and two criminal impersonation counts, according to a news release from the Denver district attorney’s office.
Brunette presented false identification when taking the bikes and scooters for a test ride and then rode away with them, later selling or pawning the items, prosecutors said.
