VOLUME 36 | ISSUE 1
WEEK OF JANUARY 4, 2024
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Women farmers network in Greeley Hired guns Colorado wants to hire lawyers to prosecute gun crimes in federal court, some of which are no longer illegal BY JESSE PAUL THE COLORADO SUN
“Throughout time, you know the product and how it works, and the respect comes from that,” Miller said. Double Diamond M is a livestock and meat company. Miller is a third-generation American living in Colorado. Miller and her husband Alex have raised livestock all of their lives since 1989. But in 2013, the Millers’ life changed; her husband Alex was in a car accident. “He worked in insurance and got into a head-on car collision. He wasn’t the same, and I couldn’t work after that,” Miller said. Miller said it put her in the position to care for him and myself, trying to figure out what she should do for a living. “I already knew about running a cattle ranch, and it was what we decided to do. God gives you specific things in life,” Miller said. Miller runs her ranch with her daughter Megan, 22, and her son Wyatt, who’s 13. Her husband Alex helps when he can.
Colorado’s governor and attorney general are asking the legislature for $600,000 to hire a group of attorneys who would be loaned out to the federal government to prosecute gun crimes in federal court. Proponents say the initiative would target only the most dangerous offenders. But it would also let attorneys paid for by the state pursue cases that are no longer illegal under state law. The Colorado legislature in 2021 rolled back a blanket prohibition barring people convicted of felonies from purchasing or possessing guns. Instead, only those convicted of committing the state’s most serious crimes, like murder, rape, assault, robbery, arson and child abuse, can’t have a firearm. Felony convictions for drug crimes and car theft, for instance, no longer trigger the ban. Under federal law, however, a person convicted of any felony crime is still barred from buying or possessing a firearm or ammunition and faces a 10-year prison sentence if found guilty. The money being requested by Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, alongside Gov. Jared Polis, would go toward paying four state lawyers to operate out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Colorado. They would act as federal prosecutors specifically focused on gun crimes, including firearms’ possession charges against those socalled previous offenders. There are four lawyers from the Denver City Attorney’s Office and one lawyer from the Aurora City Attorney’s Office who are already doing just that as part of a program created by U.S. Attorney Cole Finegan, the top federal prosecutor in the state. They started their work earlier this year and have already taken on dozens of cases. Finegan said the initiative is aimed at getting the most dangerous people in the state off the street as efficiently as possible by asking judges to jail them pending trial and then by leveraging the stricter prison penalties that accompany federal criminal convictions. “When I took this job, one of the things that was really shocking to me was simply how much violent crime we have in Colorado and how many guns we have in Colorado,” said Finegan, who was appointed by President Joe Biden.
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Women ranch and farm operators at the Women in Ag conference on Nov. 17 & 18. BY BELEN WARD BWARD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
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A Colorado effort to build a supporting network of women in agriculture kicked off in Greeley in November. More than 50 women attended a two-day Colorado Women in Ag Conference, drawing women from across Colorado involved in agriculture operations from small farms to large cattle ranches. Weld County hosted the conference Nov. 17 and 18 at Island Grove Event Center in Greeley. “The goal of the conference was to bring together women in agriculture and build a network to support their efforts,” said Hannah Swanbom, Director of Weld County’s Colorado State University Extension Office. “I’m proud to say this was a strong first step in reaching that goal.” The event featured many speakers, including Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture Kate Greenburg and Colorado State University Interim Vice President of Extension and En-
gagement Kathay Reynolds, with the goal of education and support for Colorado women in agriculture to remain solid and sustainable. According to Colorado State University Extension, half of all primary or secondary farm operators in Colorado are women, and that number is growing. Swanbom, who also worked in the agricultural industry, said women experience challenges navigating agriculture. “It can be intimidating to ask questions or obtain resources as a woman in agriculture,” said Swanbom. “Having a conference for women, where they can be in a positive and encouraging environment, is a strong step toward helping women be successful in whatever facet of agriculture they are involved in.” Jane Miller owns the Double Diamond M Ranch in Brighton and knows what it’s like navigating in a world of agriculture dominated by the world of men to prove that she knows the industry and the product to be respected.
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