January 13th 2026
Trail set in Morphew murder case after suspect enters plea.
Barry Morphew made an appearance yesterday in Alamosa District Court to enter a not
guilty plea to one count of first degree murder in connection with the death of his wife,
Suzanne, who went missing in May of 2020. Morphew's defense attorney entered the not
guilty plea and also said that Morphew waives his right to a speedy trial. Morphew's trial
is currently set to begin on October 13th. A status conference is set for March 9th with a
motions hearing set for July 6th. Suzanne Morphew went missing in 2020 from the
couple's Chaffee County home. Barry Morphew was arrested and charged with her
murder in May of 2021, however that case was dismissed. Suzanne's remains were
found about 50 miles south of the Morphew home in the Moffat area of Saguache County
in the San Luis Valley in September of 2023. Last June, a grand jury returned an
indictment to charge Barry Morphew with murder.
First victim identified in Pueblo County explosion.
The man who died in an explosion at a home in Eastern Pueblo County last week has
been identified as 79-year-old Daniel Dale Conner, according to The Pueblo County
Coroner. The woman who died has not yet been identified, however, the coroner's office
says the woman's identity will be released at a later time. The couple died last Thursday
after an explosion took place around 2:45pm in the home located near 57th Lane and
Cherry Road. When sheriff's deputies arrived on scene, the found the structure fully
engulfed in flames. The investigation into the cause of the explosion remains ongoing.
Avalanche triggered in RMNP over the weekend.
The Colorado Avalanche Information Center says that a group of skiers and
snowboarders is safe now after the got stuck in an avalanche at Rocky Mountain National
Park over the weekend. The avalanche reportedly occurred in haiyaha couloir when a
group reported ski cutting the upper chute, which triggered the avalanche. One of the
skiers got caught in the slide. He was carried down and was briefly buried under the
snow. He dislocated his shoulder while grabbing a tree. A second skier was also caught
as the group attempted to help the first skier. The group was able to safely exit the area,
according to the CAIC.
Rocky Ford firefighters respond to structure fire yesterday.
Rocky Ford firefighters responded to a structure fire on north Main Street about 1am
yesterday morning. Firefighters doused the blaze using handlines. The building was not
occupied and there were no injuries connected to the fire. Crews remained on scene to
monitor the structure through the night. The incident remains under investigation.
CPW announces expansion of CO range riding program.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife is expanding the Colorado range riding program and has
opened requests for proposals for the 2026 season through the Colorado vendor self
service. The RFP's will be open through February 6th with interviews taking place later
in February and contracts awarded in early spring. In 2025, the Colorado range riding
program contracted 11 riders and focused on Northwest Colorado. With continued wolf
dispersal, CPW is hoping to expand the program into the southwest and increase the
number of contracted riders. An information session will take place this Friday, January
16th, at 10am at the CPW Grand Junction office in the hunter education building, and also
online. For more information, go to the CPW website at cpw.state.co.us and search on
"2026 range riding season".
January 12th 2026
CO and other states file lawsuit over freeze of federal family assistance programs.
Colorado, along with the States of California, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, have
filed a lawsuit against The Trump Administration after it froze some benefits for low-
income families. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that the
freeze is related to fraud concerns, however, officials in the five states say the move is
unconstitutional and violates regulations linked to federal aid programs. The states are
asking a court to halt the funding freeze. The freeze impacts the child care and
development fund, which helps families access childcare in Colorado. The lawsuit says
the Trump Administration has not given any "legitimate justification" for stopping the
funds. A judge in the case on Friday paused the freeze for 14 days.
CSP announces 2025 marked third consecutive year of decline auto thefts.
The Colorado State Patrol announced on Friday that 2025 marked the third consecutive
year of a decline in auto thefts in Colorado. CSP says that Colorado saw a 34% decline
in auto theft within the past year compared to 2024, representing a 61% reduction in auto
theft incidents since 2022. CSP says that the top cities where auto thefts occur are
Denver, Aurora, Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Lakewood. The vehicles most often
stolen in 2025 were Chevrolet Silverado, Hyundai Elantra, Hyundai Sonata, Ford F-150
and GMC Sierra. CSP urges Coloradans to continue their theft prevention routines,
including locking their car and taking their keys or faub every time.
Two people found dead after house explosion in east Pueblo Last Thursday.
Two people were found dead following the house explosion east of Pueblo in the Boone
Area of Pueblo County last Thursday. According to The Pueblo County Sheriff's Office,
law enforcement and fire crews responded to a report of an explosion near 57th lane and
cherry road around 2:45pm Thursday. When deputies arrived, they found a structure
fully engulfed in fire. An adult male and adult female were in the home at the time of the
explosion. After firefighters extinguished the fire, they found one of the individuals. The
second person was found Friday Morning. Neither has been officially identified. The
Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control and The Pueblo County Sheriff's
Office were on scene Friday investigating the cause of the explosion.
Snow totals from First major winter storm of the season.
The first major winter storm of the 2025-2026 winter season last Thursday and Friday
brought impressive snowfall with it, especially for January, which tends to be a drier
month in Colorado. Storm totals around our area include 6 inches for Alamosa, 3 inches
in Trinidad, 6.5 for Walsenburg, 10.2 in Rye, 6 in Colorado City, 4.8 in Pueblo, 13.3 in
Colorado Springs, 4 inches in Westcliffe, and 6.5 in Monument.
CPW informing CO residents of new firearms safety program.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife is informing Colorado residents about the new firearms
safety program, and is gathering feedback before the program begins on August 1st. The
new program is required under SB25-003, also known as the semiautomatic firearms &
rapid-fire devices bill, which was signed into law on April 10th of last year. Beginning
August 1st, individuals will be required to take a firearms safety course before purchasing
or transferring specified semiautomatic firearms. CPW is responsible for the
implementation of the training portions. CPW has launched a webpage dedicated to
outlining the legally required program requirements and timelines. Visit the webpage by
going to cpw.state.co.us/specified-semiautomatic-firearms.
January 9th 2026
Vote to override President Trump's AVCA veto failed yesterday.
A hail mary effort to overturn President Donald Trump's veto of the "finish the arkansas
valley conduit act" has failed in The House of Representatives. The measure
unanimously passed in both the House and Senate before it was vetoed by President
Trump. Yesterday, The House took a vote on whether to override the veto. The vote
would have needed a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers. The House vote to
override failed. The act would have reduced the payments that communities within The
Arkansas River Valley would make for the construction of a clean water pipeline from
The Pueblo Reservoir. It would have removed interest payments and extended the
repayment period to 100 years. Trump called the project unviable and said more than
$249 million has already been spent, however, total costs are estimated to be $1.3 billion.
Trump said the act would have landed further burden on federal taxpayers.
Multiple agencies respond to structure explosion in Pueblo County yesterday.
Multiple agencies responded to the scene of a structure explosion in Pueblo County
yesterday afternoon. According to The Pueblo County Sheriff's Office, law enforcement
and fire crews responded to a report of an explosion near 57th lane and cherry road in
eastern Pueblo County around 2:45pm. Upon arrival, deputies found a structure fully
engulfed in fire. Firefighters got the fire under control and there is no threat to the public.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. No further information was made
available.
Trinidad inmate pronounced dead after hanging himself.
Mitch Hall, 65, of Trinidad, was pronounced dead on December 26th after the apparently
hanged himself in his cell at The Las Animas County Detention Center in Trinidad. Jail
personnel reportedly found hall "unresponsive" about 7:40pm on the 26th. The Las
Animas County Sheriff's Office has requested that The Colorado Bureau of Investigation
investigated the death. No foul play is suspected at this time. Hall was booked into the
jail on December 24th and was facing possible charges of second-degree assault, resisting
arrested, obstructing a peace officer, disorderly conduct and public indecency.
Fremont County Sheriff's asking for assistance in locating hit and run vehicle.
The Fremont County Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help in located a vehicle
that they say was believed to be involved in a hit and run in Canon City on Wednesday
night. The hit and run took place in the 1300 block of Sherman Avenue in Canon City.
The Sheriff's office says it believes the vehicle involved in the crash was a 2014 to 2018
Subaru forester with front passenger side damage. If you have seen the vehicle in
question or have information regarding the crash, you're asked to contact Fremont
County Deputy Will Sanders by calling 719-276-5555.
Colorado Law Enforcement to hold Winter Blitz DUI enforcement period.
Preliminary data shows that 234 people died in crashes involving an impaired driver in
Colorado last year. While impaired driving-related fatalities are down 18% since 2022,
impaired driving remains a leading contributing factor in Colorado traffic deaths. To
prevent impaired driving-related crashes, The Colorado State Patrol and 59 local law
enforcement agencies will hold the heat is on winter blitz DUI enforcement period now
through January 21st. Drivers may see saturation patrols, sobriety checkpoints and
additional law enforcement officers on duty dedicated to arresting impaired drivers and
keeping Colorado roads safe. While most Coloradans make the responsible choice and
always drive sober, last year 34% of traffic deaths involved an impaired driver, which is
higher than the national average of 30%, according to the national highway traffic safety
administration.
January 8th 2026
U.S. FWS asking CPW to address WRP compliance issues.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services has sent a letter to Colorado Parks and Wildlife saying
that fish and wildlife will make moves to take over the gray wolf reintroduction program
in Colorado unless CPW addresses compliance issues. The letter points out two issues.
The first is that the Biden administration completed a 10(j) rule allowing Colorado to
translocated wolves from Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Eastern Oregon and Eastern
Washington, and North-Central Utah, but not from Alaska or Canada. In January of last
year, CPW released 15 wolves from British Columbia. The second issue is that a
Colorado Wolf that traveled into New Mexico was returned and re-released in Grand
County, which Grand County Commissioners say violates Colorado's wolf restoration
and management plan. The letter states that these actions were "contrary to the terms of
the [10j] rule". A timeline of events between December 12th, 2023 to present day, as well
as a summary of the two issues has been requested. Fish and Wildlife has given CPW 30
days to comply, which CPW says it intends to do.
CDPHE releases data showing flu cases decreased in the last week.
New data from The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment shows that
flu cases in Colorado went down last week, compared to the rest of December. For the
week ending January 3rd, there were 12.38 flu hospitalizations in Colorado per 100,000
people. That’s down slightly from the week ending December 27th, when there were
13.95 flu hospitalizations in Colorado per 100,000 people. The data remains relatively
high, however, compared to the same time frame in previous flu seasons. Flu cases are
expected to spike again in the coming weeks as children return to school from winter
break.
State of Colorado gives PCC grant to train new aviation technicians.
The State of Colorado has given Pueblo Community College more than $400,000 to train
45 students to be aviation maintenance technicians, something that is a big need in the
aviation industry. PCC will use the money to create the curriculum and buy the
equipment for students. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the aviation industry
needs to fill at least 12,000 of these jobs each year. PCC will use the Pueblo Memorial
Airport as its classroom and plans to start the program this fall.
New ASB appointees announced.
Cristalray Dominguez and Chris Ivers have been appointed to fill the two vacancies on
The Alamosa School Board. Dominguez will fill the vacancy for the district 4 board seat.
Ivers will represent those living in District 6. Both appointments were approved at
Tuesday's school board meeting. Dominguez and her husband, Jamie, operate shooting
stars cultural and leadership center. She has worked with The Alamosa School District to
host its family center in south Alamosa. Ivers works for The Rio Grande Water
Conservation District as the program manager for subdistricts 4 and 5. District 4 covers
South Alamosa. District 6 covers the eastern part of Alamosa.
Mountain travel expected to become hazardous as Winter storm moves across Colorado.
Mountain travel across Colorado is expected to become increasingly hazardous beginning
this afternoon as a winter storm moves across the state, bringing the potential for
significant snowfall in the mountains through tomorrow. Between 6 and 11 inches are
possible in the mountains, according to The National Weather Service. Lesser amounts
of snow are expected in the lower elevations. Snowfall rates are expected to increase
overnight tonight, with snow continuing tomorrow, especially across higher terrain.
Drivers should expect snow-covered and icy roads across the state, especially on
mountain passes. Information on specific roadways in Colorado can be found by going
to cotrip.org.
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