Durango City Attorney Mark Morgan has bullied The Durango Herald newspaper into removing a guest column as well as the Opinion Editor’s column it published that were both written in response to the city government’s handling of a citizen ballot initiative. Columnist Joe Lewandowski wrote a column about a citizen’s group that was outraged by the actions of ICE agents in the fall of 2025. Alarmingly, the ICE agents operated in Durango while masked and displaying no identification, detaining a father and his two children…
Doctor Andy Siratnak was “very clear in his opinion” that the injuries that Asiah Begay suffered, and those that he believes caused her death, were from non-accidental injuries as a result of child abuse, according to Investigator Luke Harrington, a deputy at La Plata County Sheriff’s Office. Harrington wrote a Supplement for the case report that was created while investigating the cause of Begay’s death in 2018. “He stressed his concerns over the several bruises on the body,” said Siratnak, according to Harrington’s Supplement. “He…
When Local News Network accepted a $10,000-dollar payment from the City of Durango for consulting its grant recipients, it may have compromised its ability to objectively report on the recipients and the city grant. Specifically, the Local News Network was hired by the City of Durango as a consultant to develop and implement a Creative Business Consulting Program for recipients of the Lodgers’ Tax: Arts and Culture grants. Historically, the City of Durango Lodgers’ Tax Arts and Culture program was created in 2021 after voters…
Monica Leann Dale told officers with Farmington Police Department that she was a victim of domestic violence. On the side of the road, she asked the police for a ride to the home of a family member; they refused to give her a ride. Then, she got hit by a truck and was tragically killed. This is a story about the rights of domestic violence victims, the lack of transparency and compassion among officials at Farmington Police Department, and the dangers of walking in the…
A reversal without any explanation to approve the registration of a Turning Point USA chapter at Fort Lewis College came from the student government following their decision last week to deny the group’s registration as a student organization. This, after the Turning Point USA’s chapter founder filed a written appeal of the denial as well as public backlash against the student government’s alleged viewpoint discrimination. Video obtained from Bernie Lake shows the Associated Students of Fort Lewis College (student government) holding an emergency meeting on…
At Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado, the student government rejected the registration application of a prospective Registered Student Organization (RSO) whose viewpoints some students find objectionable. Specifically, the Associated Students of Fort Lewis College (ASFLC) denied the application of Turning Point USA at their meeting on October 29, 2025. Students with Turning Point USA applied for registration so that they have permission to use the campus community platform app known as Skyhub. Following the rejection by ASFLC, a fundraiser for the organization on GoFundme…
Current and former employees of Durango Dance and Cafe au Play, two organizations in Durango, Colorado, have expressed their concerns with possible tax fraud occurring there related to payroll and fundraising. Specifically, at Durango Dance, former employee Melinda (Harmony) Morris alleged that her boss, Miriam Morgan paid Morris from Morgan’s personal account on Venmo. Then, after Morris separated from her job at Durango Dance, Morris alleged that Morgan sent her a W-2 that didn’t look accurate. However, since Morris had not received any regular payroll…
Durango Dance employee Melinda (Harmony) Morris was excited about her new job until she found out that her paycheck was rejected by the bank due to insufficient funds in the company’s bank account. Durango Dance, LLC is a business in Durango, Colorado that provides a place for children and adults to attend dance classes. It’s Registered Agent is Miriam Morgan. “My first check that I got from her didn’t bounce,” said Harmony Morris. “But then again we’re talking like a $100 some odd dollar check.…
A Farmington Officer who was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated, and driving while intoxicated with minors in the vehicle had three of his charges downgraded and an open container charge disappeared before having to appear in court. Have you ever wondered how cops are treated by the criminal just us system when they’re charged with the same types of crimes that private citizens are commonly charged with? Here’s a breakdown of how two men were treated differently by law enforcement and district attorneys after…
Emails sent to the Fort Lewis College President’s Office prior to a contentious lecture about the influence of traders on Navajo weaving were both for and against the presentation being allowed to proceed. Ultimately, either the organizers or the employees at the school cancelled the speech at the last minute in the morning of the day when the lecture was scheduled to occur (4/17/2025). Unfortunately, the speech was not rescheduled, and censorship prevailed. Chuck Carson, the President of the Professional Associates Executive Team, refused to…
Fort Lewis College cancelled a presentation in the Life Long Learning Lecture Series about Navajo weaving. This, after the acting president received emails of preemptive opposition from the public, according to the lecturer. Specifically, the talk by Jackson Clark II was going to be about the efforts made by traders working with Navajo weavers to save the art form back in the 1880s and beyond. The presentation was canceled in the morning of the day when the lecture was scheduled to occur (4/17/2025). Clark is…
A City of Durango web page published on March 14 and emailed to its subscribers appears to be providing biased facts in favor of, but no facts against a referred measure on the April 1, 2025 election ballot. Namely, the web page about the ballot issue titled City offers facts on upcoming ballot measure vote was published by city officials under the guise of a “news flash.” A link to the City’s web page of biased facts was also posted to their Facebook page. Generally,…
A racial hiring policy at Durango School District 9R is being cloaked as diversity, and it appears to be a potential target of an Executive Order from President Donald Trump. Specifically, Trump’s order seeks to eliminate federal funding or support for illegal and discriminatory treatment and indoctrination in K-12 schools, including based on gender ideology and discriminatory equity ideology. “My Administration will enforce the law to ensure that recipients of Federal funds providing K-12 education comply with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination in various contexts…
Summit County Sheriff’s Office staff is quoting non-existent language from multiple Colorado Revised Statutes to justify them requiring a copy of a photo ID in exchange for them providing copies of criminal justice records. The unconstitutional requirement was discovered after I filed a request for records related to specific case numbers. Most recently, “Support” Services Commander Thom Whelan quoted non-existent language from C.R.S 24-72-305.5, a law that was intended to regulate the use of records to obtain information for solicitation. From the email of the…
Vaccine Coordinator and former Covid-19 Testing Site Manager of Mercy Hospital in Durango, Colorado, has died of what is family believes to be a cardiac arrest. However, the Autopsy Report done by the local pathologist said that the cause of death was a toxicity caused by Kratom. Specifically, the cause of death written on the Autopsy Report was mitragynine toxicity. Kraig Jordan Jones, 41, of Durango, had the opportunity to take part in Mercy’s community COVID-19 vaccination clinics. Of course, use of the COVID-19 “vaccine”…
Drug pipes designed for smoking crack, crystal meth, pills and heroin were given to me by La Plata County Public Health Officials. August 26, 2024, at Schneider Park in Durango, Colorado. La Plata County Public Health Officials Sierra Roe and Nathan Aguilar are delivering meth pipes, crack pipes, heroin pipes, water and packets of electrolytes to people along the Animas River Trail. They’re pulling the supplies behind them in a wagon cart. Information on the County’s website describes what they’re doing as a Harm Reduction…
A personal benefit to the business interests of City Councilor Jessika Loyer (formerly Mayor Jessika Buell) emerged when she was awarded a commercial lease agreement to operate her two businesses out of an office space that’s also leased by the City of Durango. Loyer is a City Councilor for the City of Durango in Colorado. Specifically, Loyer operates her business Lucky Services and Marketing Concepts Squared out of the second floor of Durango Welcome Center at 802 Main Avenue in Durango, according to their respective…
Ann Marie Swan left her job as the Durango Herald Opinion Editor for undisclosed reasons following revelations that she received a thing of value when acquiring a home on a lot that was developed using city of Durango tax dollars. Another employee at the Durango Herald told me at the end of August in 2024 that Swan had resigned, but they would not elaborate further other than to say that it was a complicated story. Swan’s acquisition of her home raised questions as to how…
A Fort Lewis College “peace” officer is detained in La Plata County Jail following an arrest warrant that resulted from him allegedly assaulting and kidnapping his common law wife. After a Temporary Protection Order was issued against him, he also allegedly violated the Order by attempting to call the victim. He was then charged with a misdemeanor. Garrett McCoy, 35 years old, was a police officer at Fort Lewis College up until he got arrested and was jailed on the domestic violence-related charges in March…
