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THIS SUMMER’S HIGH NOTES: CONCERT GUIDE 1C Voice of the Rocky Mountain Empire

FRIDAY, MAY 27, 2016

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Scripps National Spelling Bee

Just was gnat to be After swatting down word after word, Colo. 8th-grader falls in 15th round

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POT TAX REVENUE

Retail sales aiding causes Homelessness, college tuition, potholes and more are addressed. By Carlos Illescas The Denver Post

Thirteen-year-old Sylvie Lamontagne, an eighth-grader from Lakewood, reacts after correctly spelling a word during Thursday’s rounds of the Scripps National Spelling Bee in National Harbor, Md. Cliff Owen, The Associated Press By Mark Matthews The Denver Post

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or the second year in a row, Colorado’s Sylvie Lamontagne outlasted nearly 300 competitors to make the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee in National Harbor, Md., ultimately finishing in fourth place Thursday night by knocking down tongue twisters from “comitatus” and “shubunkin” to “ptyalism.” The eighth-grader’s shot at the trophy was undone in the 15th round, however, by “chaoborine,” a type of gnat. Just before 11 p.m. Eastern time, a lengthy duel between the last two spellers — Nihar Janga, 11, of Texas, and Jairam Hathwar, 13, of New York — ended in a tie. Nihar is the youngest winner ever, and

Jairam is the younger brother of 2014 cochampion Sriram Hathwar. The winners will each receive a trophy and will split more than $42,000 in cash and prizes. It was the third straight year with cochampions. Bee organizers had tried to make the contest tougher, forcing the last two spellers to go through three times as many words as in previous years. Twice, Jairam misspelled a word, only to see Nihar follow up with a miss of his own, and the roller coaster continued. “We’re very proud,” said Sylvie’s mother, Suzanne McClung, a high school chemistry teacher. “She’s just done so well. She

has put in an immense amount of work, and it’s definitely paid off.” Before the finals, which were broadcast live on ESPN, 13-year-old Sylvie described the whole bee experience as a rush — good and bad. “It’s scary and it’s fun at the same time,” said Sylvie, a student at Creighton Middle School in Lakewood. To prepare, she said she would spend hours studying on a computer program called Quizlet — sometimes testing herself for as long as 12 hours on a Saturday, while “obviously making exceptions for the times I have a lot of homework,” she said. And breaks for Harry Potter, too. She’s an avid fan of the series, and her favorite SPELLING » 8A

DENVER & THE WEST

BUSINESS

NATION & WORLD

MURDER SUSPECT IN ROSENBERG’S DELI CASE IS ARRESTED

FOR MOST OF STATE, SOCIAL SECURITY WON’T BE ENOUGH

ANTIBIOTIC-RESISTANT BACTERIA STRAIN WORRIES OFFICIALS

Authorities have arrested a suspect in a fatal shooting and subsequent fire at the building housing the popular Rosenberg’s Bagels and Delicatessen this month. Brian Scott Pattison, 30, is accused of first-degree murder and first-degree arson. »2A

There are only five counties in Colorado where residents make enough from Social Security payments to cover basic living expenses, according to SmartAsset. In most of the state, retirees will need another source. »12A

For the first time, researchers have found a person in the United States carrying bacteria resistant to antibiotics of last resort, an alarming development that the top U.S. public health official says could mean “the end of the road” for antibiotics. »16A

From small towns that barely dot the map to the state’s largest urban areas, revenue from retail marijuana sales is helping communities address homelessness, send children to college, patch potholes, secure water rights and fund an array of projects. Aurora is using $1.5 million of its revenue from pot sales and fees to address its homeless issue. Money also is going to road improvements and a new recreation center. Adams County has earmarked more than $500,000 for scholarships for low-income students. Wheat Ridge keeps its revenue in the city’s general fund, and it’s used in a variety of areas. The same goes for Northglenn, where five marijuana stores generated $730,000 in 2015. The money will go toward water purchases and capital improvements to infrastructure and city facilities. TAX » 10A

EL EC TIO N 2 0 1 6

Trump reaches magic number of delegates By The Associated Press

bismarck, n.d.» Triumphantly armed with a majority of his party’s delegates, Republican Donald Trump unleashed a broadside attack Thursday on Hillary Clinton’s prescriptions for energy, guns, the economy and international affairs, shifting abruptly toward the general election with his likely Democratic opponent locked in a divisive primary contest. The New York billionaire shrugged off signs of discord within his own campaign hours after sewing up the number of delegates needed to clinch the GOP TRUMP » 18A

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A massive, newly discovered sponge rests at a depth of about 7,000 feet off the shores of Hawaii. NOAA

Sponge blob, rare glance: Scientists soak up big find By The Associated Press

honolulu» Researchers in Hawaii have been absorbed by a sea creature they discovered last summer, and their findings are pretty big. The team of scientists, on a deep-sea expedition in the waters off Hawaii, discovered what they say is the world’s largest known sponge. The creature, roughly the size of a minivan, was discovered about 7,000 feet down in a marine conservation area off the shores of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. The rare sponge,

with a bluish-white color and brain-like appearance, stunned scientists when it appeared in the remote cameras attached to their underwater rover. Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Hawaii studied the sponge for about a year before releasing their findings. The animal was found in the waters of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, which is the largest protected conservation area in the United States and one of the largest in the world.

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Ancient marsupial dined on snails whole — shell and all. By Sarah Kaplan The Washington Post

Australia’s Riversleigh World Heritage Site — a limestone cave filled with countless skeletons, remains of poor creatures that plummeted in over the course of millions of years — is a who’s who of weird extinct animals. From its depths, scientists have uncovered fossils of the Thingodonta, a woodpecker-like marsupial that used its teeth to gnaw bugs out of tree bark. They’ve found evidence of an extinct tusked kangaroo relative, whose scientific name is Balbaroo fangaroo. They’ve excavated the remains of drop crocs, ancient crocodiles that attacked their prey by dropping out of trees. And they discovered the gigantic Dromornis, affectionately known as the “Demon Duck of Doom,” which at 10 feet tall was among the biggest birds in the world. Now, scientists say they have a small but appropriately strange new creature to add to the collection: The malleodectes mirabilis, or “wondrous hammer biter” — a ferret-sized relative of modern Tasmanian devils that subsisted on a diet of escargot. “Malleodectes mirabilis was a bizarre mammal, as strange in its own way as a koala or kangaroo,” University of New South Wales paleontologist Mike Archer, the lead author of a study on the fossil published in Scientific Reports, said in a statement. These creatures were equipped with huge, hammer-like premolars that allowed them to eat snails whole — shell and all — the likes of which researchers have never seen in a mammal before. In the four decades that Australian scientists have been excavating at Riversleigh, they’ve uncovered

isolated bits and pieces of these strange snail eaters. But it didn’t become clear that they were looking at an entirely distinct family of animals until they discovered the skull of a 15-million-year-old malleodectid baby encased in the cave’s limestone floor. “The juvenile malleodectid could have been clinging to the back of its mother while she was hunting for snails in the rocks around the cave’s entrance, and may have fallen in and then been unable to climb back out,” University of New South Wales paleontologist Suzanne Hand said in the statement. From its jaw, Archer could tell that the animal was on the cusp of adulthood: just beneath its baby teeth, a row of adult teeth was waiting, about to emerge. Teeth are some of paleontologists’ best tools for identifying fossils, since they say so much about who a creature was: how large it grew, how old it was and, most importantly, what it liked to eat. So all those pearly whites gave Archer and his team a pretty good sense of how the creature fit into the larger marsupial family tree. They decided that the malleodectids were their own family (in the taxonomical sense of the term), cousins of established groups like the dasyuridae (which include Tasmanian devils) and the myrmecobiidae (which comprises a single species, the numbat). But the malleodectids have no hope of a family reunion. They went extinct not long after the juvenile from Archer’s study died, thanks to a period of intense climate change that transformed Australia’s rain forests into dry grasslands. If the baby malleodectid has any siblings, they’re probably buried in the ground as well. At a spot he calls “New Riversleigh,” Archer thinks he might have found one. Whether or not that creature turns out to be a relative is a story for another study.

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SPORTS

College Football »2B

A PERFECT BUFF

Liufau has not thrown a pick

rapids: Colorado’s players aren’t fazed by uphill battle in playoffs against Los Angeles Galaxy. » 4B

World Series Game 7 Cubs 8, Indians 7 (10)

CUBBOOM! Chicago blows away the past to win title in explosive Game 7

The Cubs celebrate after defeating the Indians 8-7 in 10 innings in Game 7 of the World Series early Thursday at Progressive Field in Cleveland. Ezra Shaw, Getty Images By Ronald Blum The Associated Press

cleveland» The wait till next year is finally over. The Chicago Cubs are World Series champions. Ending more than a century of flops, futility and frustration, the Cubs won their first title since 1908, outlasting the Cleveland Indians 8-7 in 10 innings of a Game 7 thriller in a game that ended early Thursday EDT.

“It’s the best thing I’ve ever heard,” Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant told Fox-TV after the game. “This trumps everything. I’m out here crying. I’m so happy, I can’t even really put into words how this feels.” Added Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo: “It happened. Chicago, it happened. We’re world champions. I can’t believe it.” Lovable losers for generations, the Cubs nearly let this one get away, too. All-star closer Aroldis Chapman blew a three-run lead

Siemian’s “C”: for captain or grade as quarterback?

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he Broncos keep telling young quarterback Trevor Siemian he’s the man. He was named Wednesday as a new team captain. “That’s pretty cool,” Denver coach Gary Kubiak said. Now we find out if Siemian can be the man to lead the Broncos to victory in the Black Hole, against rising star Derek Carr and the Oakland Raiders, with first place in the AFC West on the line. “It’s going to be loud. It’s going to be a divisional game, so it’s going to be a

with two outs in the eighth when Rajai Davis hit a tying homer. “Everything was going perfectly until Davis hit the home run,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. “Then all of a sudden, you really have to go to Plan B, C and D. There was no quit in the dugout. It was incredible to be part of that whole moment.” Indeed the Cubs, after tormenting their fans one more time, came right back after a 17-minute rain delay before the top of the 10th.

Denver Post Columnist

tough game in a tough environment,” Siemian said. “Everybody is looking forward to the challenge.” We hear the message: Kubiak wants and intends Siemian to be his starter for KISZLA » 6B

SERIES » 3B

Raiders, finally good again, coming for Broncos’ crown By Cameron Wolfe The Denver Post

MARK KISZLA

Cubs right fielder Jason Heyward was praised by teammates after the game for calling a team meeting during the delay. “I just had to remind everybody who we are, what we’ve overcome to get here,” Heyward said. “Remind them that I’m proud of them. Every time we got asked to do something this year, we answered it.” Sure enough, Ben Zobrist hit an RBI double and Miguel Montero singled home a run to make it 8-6. Davis delivered an RBI single

It has been 14 years since the Oakland Raiders were good. Not one current Broncos player was in the NFL. The Raiders’ then-starting quarterback, Rich Gannon, was tearing up the league. The Houston Texans were completing their inaugural season. Current Broncos safety Will Parks was 8 years old. The year 2002 was the last time the Broncos’ biggest rival had a winning record, and the last time it reigned atop the

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AFC West. Now, behind young, explosive quarterback Derek Carr and receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree, the Raiders (6-2) are back. They care little about their losing past and are on a mission to keep the Broncos (6-2) from winning their sixth consecutive division title. The Broncos-Raiders rivalry will return to prominence Sunday night at Oakland. “We never liked the Raiders. We just don’t like them. It’s always been the same way regardless of what their record is,” RAIDERS » 6B

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NATION & WORLD ROOF COMPETENT TO STAND TRIAL IN CHURCH SHOOTING columbia, s.c.» A judge has ruled that Dylann Roof is competent to stand trial for the killing of nine black worshippers at a South Carolina church. Judge Richard Gergel made the ruling Friday after a two-day hearing behind closed doors earlier this week. The hearing was needed after Roof’s attorneys questioned earlier this month whether he could help them on the eve of jury selection in his death penalty trial. Gergel says jury selection will begin Monday. The judge sealed his reasons for finding Roof competent, saying that information could keep him from having a fair trial. The 22-year-old white man is charged in federal court with hate crime, obstruction of religion and other counts for the deadly June 2015 attack at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. The Associated Press

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AUTHORITIES SEEK TWO IN ABDUCTION redding, calif.» Authorities were searching Thursday for two women suspected in the abduction of a California mother who turned up safe near an interstate three weeks after she disappeared. Early indications were that Sherri Papini had been released by her captors, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said at a news conference. Papini was bound when was released near Interstate 5 in Yolo County and was able to somehow flag down a passing motorist, Bosenko said. Papini, a 34-year-old mother of two children, disappeared after leaving home to jog. She suffered unspecified injuries during her ordeal and was treated and released from a hospital, Bosenko said. Authorities gave few other details about Papini’s reappearance before dawn. Bosenko said the investigation was ongoing. “We had not given up hope,” the sheriff told reporters. “We are very thankful on this day that she was found safe and reunited with her family.” Law enforcement officials were looking for two armed women in a dark sports utility vehicle in connection with the disappearance. Family members previously said they believed Papini was abducted. They called her a “super mom” who would never abandon her family. Papini vanished Nov. 2. Her cellphone and headphones were found near where she was last seen. Her husband reported her missing when she failed to pick up their two young children from day care.

HUNTING TERRORISTS

Obama expands elite military unit’s power By Thomas Gibbons-Neff and Dan Lamothe The Washington Post

washington» The Obama administration is giving the elite Joint Special Operations Command — the organization that helped kill Osama bin Laden in a 2011 raid by Navy SEALs — expanded power to track, plan and potentially launch attacks on terrorist cells around the globe, a move driven by concerns of a dispersed terrorist threat as Islamic State militants are driven from strongholds in Iraq and Syria, officials said. The missions could occur beyond the battlefields of Iraq, Syria and Libya where Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) has carried out clandestine operations. When finalized, it will elevate JSOC from being a highly-valued strike tool used by regional military commands to leading a new multiagency intelligence and action force. Known as the “Counter-External Operations Task Force,” the group will be designed to take JSOC’s targeting model — honed over the last 15 years of conflict — and export it globally to go after terrorist networks plotting attacks against the West.

Creating a new JSOC entity this late in President Barack Obama’s tenure is the “codification” of best practices in targeting terrorists outside conflict zones, according to officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity. It is unclear if President-elect Donald Trump will keep this and other structures set up by Obama. The new JSOC task force could also offer intelligence, strike recommendations and advice to the militaries and security forces of traditional Western allies, or conduct joint operations, officials said. In other parts of the world, with weak or no governments, JSOC could act unilaterally. The global focus is reminiscent of when U.S. forces first went after al-Qaeda in the months after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. As approaching U.S. troops forced militants to flee their safe havens in Afghanistan and scatter across the globe, the United States followed in pursuit, using CIA assets to grab suspected al-Qaeda operatives in dozens of countries, sometimes capturing, imprisoning and torturing them under murky legal authority. Some in the Pentagon hope to see the task force work in tandem with the CIA, elevating a sometimes distant relationship to one of constant coordination to track and go after

suspected terrorists outside of traditional war zones. Officials hope the task force, known throughout the Pentagon as “ExOps,” will be a clearinghouse for intelligence coordinating and targeting against groups or individuals attempting to plot attacks in places like the United States and Europe. According to officials familiar with plans, the task force will initially draw on an existing multinational intelligence operation in the Middle East that tracks foreign fighters, called Gallant Phoenix, and one of JSOC’s intelligence centers in northern Virginia. The White House, asked to comment on the plan, issued a statement that did not use JSOC’s name, but acknowledged the role Special Operations forces play in tracking foreign fighters away from the battlefield. “These forces on the ground, operating in close concert with our partners, have gathered critical intelligence off the battlefield, and have shared that information with our coalition partners and allies,” the statement said. “This informationishelpingusrampupactionsagainst(Islamic State) leaders and operatives planning attacks, track foreign fighters returning to their home countries and improve law enforcement actions aimed at interdicting potential plotters.”

Fir’s family starts Christmas season

The Associated Press

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THIS DAY I N H ISTO RY Today is Saturday, Nov. 26, the 331st day of 2016. There are 35 days left in the year.

IN THE NATION

1789: Americans observed a day of thanksgiving set aside by President George Washington to mark the adoption of the Constitution of the United States.

IN THE WORLD

2011: In a friendly-fire incident that further strained relations between the United States and Pakistan, U.S. forces launched airstrikes that mistakenly killed 24 Pakistani troops at two posts along the Afghan border.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

Tina Turner Impressionist Rich Little is 78. Singer Tina Turner is 77. Actor Scott Adsit is 51. Actress Kristin Bauer is 43. Actor Peter Facinelli is 43. Actress Jessica Bowman is 36. Pop singer Natasha Bedingfield is 35. Singer Aubrey Collins is 29. The Associated Press

The official White House Christmas tree, a Balsam-Veitch fir measuring 19 feet tall and 12 feet at its base, arrives at the White House in Washington on Friday. It was grown by Dave and Mary Vander Velden of Oconto, Wis. Alex Brandon, The Associated Press

Michelle Obama, nephews welcome “great” tree to White House By Darlene Superville The Associated Press

washington» Michelle Obama kicked off her family’s final Christmas season at the White House on Friday by receiving a 19-foot Balsam-Veitch fir from Wisconsin as the official White House Christmas tree. Joined by two young nephews instead of her teenage daughters, the first lady said she’s ready and excited for the holiday. “Christmas begins. The holidays start,” Mrs. Obama exclaimed after “accepting” the tree from Dave and Mary Vander Velden, owners of the Oconto, Wis., farm where it was grown. “We’re ready. Our last one. We’re excited about it.” The Vander Veldens won the National Christmas Tree Association’s annual contest, earning the honor of supplying the White House with its official Christmas tree. Contest winners have provided the White House tree annually since 1966. A group of White House and other officials visited the Vander Veldens at their Whis-

pering Pine Tree Farm in September to choose the perfect tree. Late Friday morning, a horse-drawn wagon pulled the tree up the White House driveway. After a visual inspection, Mrs. Obama sought the opinions of her “replacement kids” — nephews Austin and Aaron Robinson. “It’s great,” 6-year-old Austin said. “It’s great. Should we accept it?” she asked. “Yes,” he said. Mrs. Obama explained that the appearance by her nephews “is what happens when you get teenagers,” referring to 18year-old Malia and 15-year-old Sasha, the daughters who in past years have joined her for the tradition of receiving the Christmas tree on the morning after Thanksgiving. “One’s asleep,” she said, gesturing toward the White House. “These two are up,” she added, referring to the sons of her brother, Craig Robinson, who was visiting with his family for Thanksgiving. Malia and Sasha also skipped their father’s traditional pardon of a Thanksgiving turkey this week; Austin and Aaron subbed

for them, too. The tree will be trimmed so it can fit inside the White House Blue Room, where it traditionally stands, tethered to the ceiling, as the centerpiece of Christmas at the White House. Mrs. Obama typically has it decorated to honor the U.S. military, which she has championed as first lady. First lady Lou Henry Hoover started the custom of a Blue Room tree, decorating the first one in 1929, according to the White House Historical Association. The tradition of selecting a theme for the Blue Room tree began in 1961, during John F. Kennedy’s administration. That year’s tree was decorated with objects depicting characters and toys from “The Nutcracker.” The tree’s delivery Friday also marked the start of an intense period of round-theclock work through the weekend by scores of volunteers who help decorate the public rooms of the White House for Christmas. Mrs. Obama plans to give military families the first look at the decorations on Tuesday.

NATION & WORLD

SPORTS

PANEL: CANADA SHOULD PERMIT RETAIL POT SALES

IAN DESMOND SAYS HE CAN THRIVE AT FIRST »1B

»15A

Voice of the Rocky Mountain Empire

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2016

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6

PREDATOR-CONTROL PUSH

Lions and ire and bears An e≠ort to kill the carnivores to revive deer is being decried. By Bruce Finley The Denver Post

E

ight-year-old Kylie Perkins, right, helps adjust the helmet strap of her friend, Kailey Hunter, 7, as the two learn how to ride their new bikes on the playground at Summit Elementary School in Aurora on Tuesday. The nonprofit Wish for Wheels organization, which provides new bikes and helmets to low-income or underserved kids, joined forces with Bicycle Village stores to distribute bikes to 50 first-graders at Summit. Employees from all five Front Range Bicycle Village shops volunteered to purchase and assemble the bikes. Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post

STUDY O N SK IING SAFET Y

Helmets protect youths – but may invite risky runs By John Ingold The Denver Post

To look at helmeted children gliding down Colorado’s ski slopes like bundled-up lollipops is to see an image of careful safety. But, for years, researchers have debated about how effective helmets are at preventing head injuries — especially concussions and other closed-head traumas. Do helmets actually keep kids safe on the slopes? Now, a new study by doctors at Children’s Hospital Colorado and the University of Colorado School of Medicine is adding to a growing body of research that shows helmets are important in lessening the severity of head injuries that kids may suffer while skiing or snowboarding — but only up to a point. The study is scheduled to be published in February in the Journal of Pediatric Surgery. “Wearing a helmet is not going to prevent fatal injury,” said Dr. Steven Moulton, a surgeon at

Children’s who is one of the study’s authors. “But what it is going to do is lower the risk of sustaining a serious injury.” Moulton and the paper’s other authors looked through 16 years of data in a trauma registry kept by Children’s. Nearly 550 kids had come into Children’s during that time after suffering a head injury while skiing or snowboarding. Just over half of them were wearing a helmet at the time of injury. But those kids who were helmeted suffered less-serious head injuries than those who didn’t. “Those who do not wear a helmet while skiing or snowboarding sustain a significantly greater burden or injury and more severe head injuries,” the study’s authors write. That may seem like an obvious conclusion, but, for years, it has not been. A few previous studies showed an increase in head injuries as helmet use rose on the slopes. Some HELMET » 10A

LIFE & CULTURE

A Colorado push to euthanize mountain lions and bears as a predator-control experiment to revive declining deer is facing a barrage of criticism from scientists and conservation groups as state commissioners prepare for a Wednesday vote. The latest to challenge Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s $4.5 million scheme are Colorado State University wildlife biologists who contend the proposed killing contradicts the agency’s own science. They accuse CPW officials of kowtowing to hunters who favor sacrificing lions and bears to increase deer-hunting opportunities. “We find it surprising that CPW’s own research clearly indicates that the most likely limiting factors for mule deer are food limitation, habitat loss and human-induced disturbance — not predators,” CSU biologists Joel Berger, Kevin Crooks and Barry Noon wrote in a Saturday letter to CPW commissioners. The biologists point to vast deer habitat in Colorado that has been fragmented by roads, damaged by PREDATOR » 8A

T R EVO R T IC E 1968-2016

TREATS THAT AREN’T AT ALL COOKIE-CUTTER RECIPES Some holiday cookie recipes are passed down, from mother to daughter or granddaughter. Or passed over the fence, from neighbor to neighbor. Some are clipped out of the newspaper. We share nine of our favorites. »1C

Online. Watch Denver Post page designer Lori Punko demonstrate how to decorate cookies like a professional. »denverpost.com/food Business. Holiday shipping deadlines start this week, with Thursday being the cutoff for Postal Service ground service. »12A

CorePower Yoga founder leaves behind “legacy” By Emilie Rusch and Jesse Paul The Denver Post

CorePower Yoga founder Trevor Tice, a pioneer in the industry who helped bring a less esoteric, more fitness-oriented vision of yoga to the masses, was found dead Monday in his San Diego home. San Diego police say the 48year-old entrepreneur’s death is considered suspicious but have provided few details. An autopsy is expected to be completed within the next day. The yoga community was left TICE » 10A

INS I D E Business » 12-14A | Comics » 5-6C | Lottery » 2A | Markets » 13A | Movies » 4C | Obituaries » 17A | Puzzles » 5C,7C

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8A» NEWS

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PREDATOR «FROM 1A oil and gas drilling and rendered inhospitable for wildlife by other development. “We do not understand why compelling scientific findings based on research conducted in Colorado by CPW researchers is not being used to better inform management actions to benefit mule deer,” they wrote. “This seems both illogical and a waste of public funds. The scientific consensus is clear and compelling – predator control is a costly and ineffective management tool to increase mule deer populations.” Colorado wildlife commissioners are scheduled to vote Wednesday on predator-control tests in the Arkansas River Basin near Salida and in the Piceance Basin near Rifle that would entail killing up to 15 more mountain lions and 25 more bears a year. If the commissioners vote yes, state wildlife crews would use cage traps, culvert traps, foot snares and hunting dogs to immobilize mountain lions and bears. Those caught would be shot. The state’s proposal says killings would carefully target bears and lions in areas where predators may be the primary problem for deer. Colorado’s deer population has fallen 110,000 short of the 560,000 deer that wildlife managers deem optimal. CPW officials declined to comment on the CSU letter. They also declined to discuss their proposal. An agency spokeswoman referred to a 19-page Friday memo, sent by four agency researchers to wildlife commissioners, in response to a previous letter of opposition from scholars and scientists.

“CPW is well-aware of the importance of predators in ecological systems … and our track record demonstrates our appreciation for the value and role of these species (e.g., the reintroductions of Canada lynx and black-footed ferrets). We are proposing brief manipulations of thriving predator populations in order to gather valuable information for the future management of both predator and prey,” the memo says. “CPW recognizes the public’s interest in wildlife and its responsibility to manage wildlife for the use and enjoyment of all the people of this state and its visitors. CPW believes these research projects are entirely consistent with that responsibility. … CPW simply seeks additional information regarding the interaction of predator and prey species in Colorado, which it believes will be of value for consideration as part of future science-based management decisions.” State wildlife officials this year did not oppose plans to allow up to 15,000 new oil and gas wells in the heart of critical deer habitat in northwestern Colorado, even though agency researchers have acknowledged oil and gas development hurts deer. A regional

CPW manager recommended restricted winter activity. But national conservation and hunting groups did raise concerns about the impact on deer of those federal Bureau of Land Management oil and gas plans, which cover areas where lions and bears may be euthanized. The Humane Society has led opposition to Colorado’s push for predator control. “Colorado’s mountain lions and black bears are being threatened by the very agency we trust to protect these iconic native carnivores,” Humane Society state director Aubyn Royall said. “We want CPW to spend time and money on repairing mule deer habitat, addressing the primary cause of mule deer population decline — rather than spend millions on predator management.” On Thursday, state commissioners received another letter of opposition from a coalition of wildlife conservation groups including the Cougar Fund, the Boulder Bear Coalition, the Center for Biological Diversity, the Endangered Species Coalition, the Audubon Society, WildEarth Guardians and the Sierra Club. Faced with declining deer, CPW managers in recent years cut the number

6

of deer hunting licenses they issue to fewer than 7,000 for the two areas where bears and lions would be killed. That’s down from more than 28,350 a decade ago. CPW officials did not respond to questions about the revenue impact of dwindling deer. The agency faces a fundamental problem because it relies heavily on revenues from fishing and hunting licenses to survive within state government, said CSU’s Noon, who with Crooks has collaborated with CPW researchers on past projects. “CPW’s management objective should be to sustain all of the native wildlife species of Colorado. The species most at-risk are large-bodied mammalian predators,” Noon said. “I understand why CPW views their constituency as

fishermen and hunters because most of their revenue comes from licenses. They should receive much more significant state funding. Today, they’re too dependent on the sale of licenses in order to carry out their operations. It’s something that should be taken up by the state legislature.” Killing lions and bears to try to help deer is expected to alter the ecological balance across the 3,971 square miles where this predator control would be tested, but the killing probably would not have a significant statewide population impact. Yet Colorado wildlife managers lack solid estimates for the statewide mountain lion and bear populations. They’ve said there is no way to know whether bear and lion numbers are increasing or decreasing because these animals are hard to count

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and surveys are costly. CPW officials have estimated Colorado has 17,000 bears, based mostly on extrapolations, with the lion population at around 4,500. Hunters play a role, killing up to 1,364 bears and 467 mountain lions a year — more than in other Western states and twice as many as a decade ago. Colorado ranked third, behind Idaho and Montana, with hunters killing 3,414 mountain lions between 2005 and 2014. If commissioners approve predator control after agency research in 2004 and 2009 found that predators are not the main problem, they could trigger a public backlash, Crooks said. “It will lessen the credibility of our state wildlife agency if they’re pursuing actions that don’t have a strong scientific basis,” he said.

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Did you own property near and downwind from the former Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant (in Jefferson County, northwest of Denver, Colorado) on June 7, 1989? Are you an heir of someone who did? If so, you could get money from a proposed $375 million class action settlement. A $375 million Settlement has been proposed in a lawsuit against the former operators of the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant. The lawsuit claims that Rockwell International Corp. and The Dow Chemical Co. caused the properties owned by the Class Representatives and the other class members in the Property Class Area (see map at www.RockyFlatsSettlement.com) to be contaminated with plutonium, a hazardous radioactive substance, which caused the properties’ values to be less than they otherwise would have been and which substantially interfered with Class Members’ use and enjoyment of their property. The case is Cook et al. v. Rockwell International Corp. and The Dow Chemical Co., Civil Action No. 90-00181-JLK (D. Colo.). The parties have agreed to settle to avoid additional delay and uncertainty in a case that already is over 26 years old but, before any money is paid, the proposed settlement must be approved by the Court.

Who is a Class Member? The Property Class (or “Class”) includes all persons and entities that owned an interest (other than mortgagee and other security interests) in real property within the Property Class Area on June 7, 1989 (one day after a famous FBI raid of the plant site). If you are an heir of someone (or the successor of an entity) who owned property on June 7, 1989 in the Property Class Area, you may also file a claim.

What Does the Settlement Provide? Defendants will pay $375 million (the “Settlement Fund”) to pay Class Members and to pay attorneys’ fees (not to exceed 40% of the Settlement Fund) and costs and expenses. Also, Class Counsel will ask for service awards totaling $780,000 to the Class Representatives for their efforts during over 26 years of litigation. Additionally, the Settlement Fund will pay for the cost of Notice and settlement administration. The remainder (the “Net Settlement Fund”) will be divided among Class Members.

What are my options? To get a share of the Net Settlement Fund, you must file a claim by June 1, 2017. Payments will be calculated as a percentage of the Net Settlement Fund based on the value of the property owned and located within the Class Area as of June 7, 1989. You may opt out of the Class and Settlement by March 1, 2017. If you opt out you will not receive any money if the Settlement is approved, but you retain your right to pursue your own lawsuit with your own lawyer. Your own lawyer can advise you about whether your claims may be barred by the statute of limitations. If you do not opt out, you can object to any part of the Settlement on or before March 1, 2017. If you do not opt out, you will remain in the Class and be bound by the terms of the Settlement. A public hearing will be held on April 28, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. MDT, in Courtroom A802 at the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, Alfred A. Arraj United States Courthouse, 901 19th Street, Denver, CO 80294. The Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate. If there are objections, the Court will consider them. If the hearing time/date changes, it will be posted at www.RockyFlatsSettlement.com. After the hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement. You or your attorney may attend the hearing at your own expense, but you don’t have to. This is a summary only. For more information, including a longer Notice, the Settlement, the claim form, the proposed Plan of Allocation, the motion for attorneys’ fees, reimbursement of costs and expenses and for service awards, and a list of important deadlines, visit www.RockyFlatsSettlement.com or call 1-844-528-0187.

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