Englewood Herald

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July 30, 2020

ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO

A publication of

EnglewoodHerald.net

VOLUME 100 | ISSUE 23

SPECIAL REPORT

Colorado’s public health officials are under attack Workers face threats, vandalism, job loss amid COVID-19 crisis BY JESSICA GIBBS | COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA AND JESSE PAUL | THE COLORADO SUN

Joni Reynolds, the head of Gunnison County’s public health department, entered kind of a routine as the coronavirus crisis descended on Colorado earlier this year: Long hours. Sleepless nights. A police escort home. A wave of threats over her efforts to keep her community safe amid the pandemic made her fear for her safety. There were also suspicious packages left outside her house and sent to her office, both of which were unsettling but weren’t dangerous. “References to Nazism. Calling me Mrs. Hitler,” Reynolds said, recounting the contents of the hate mail she received. “Calling me vile names — curse words. Threatening harm to me, my family, my home. Assuring they would remove me from my job and take ‘all my worldly possessions.’” SEE OFFICIALS, P4

Exemption from COVID-19 rules, which allowed larger crowds, is at risk of being revoked BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Training tactics Englewood officers undergo 400 hours of basic academy classes, said Chad Read, a sergeant for the department. As required by the Colorado Peace Officer Standards and Training, every year, each officer must complete 24 hours of additional training.

As the spread of coronavirus worsens in Arapahoe County, leaders hope businesses that benefited from an exemption to the state’s social distancing rules will take greater precautions to prevent losing progress on reopening. “We need your cooperation and assistance to help reverse the trend by encouraging your staff and patrons to follow the established variance guidelines as closely as possible,” says a letter from the county to the industries that were included in the exemption. Those are gyms, restaurants, houses of worship and the county’s only indoor mall — the Town Center at Aurora, near East Alameda Avenue and Interstate 225. Also known as a “variance,” the exception allows counties around the state to tweak the state’s restrictions on activities and businesses in Colorado’s safer-at-home order, the policy that came after the stay-athome order. In mid-July, about one-fourth of Colorado’s counties stood to lose

SEE POLICING, P8

SEE VARIANCE, P7

Health workers collect patient information from people waiting to be tested for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, outside the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s lab in Denver’s Lowry neighborhood on March 11. PHOTO BY JOHN INGOLD/THE COLORADO SUN

Englewood Police discuss issues in virtual town hall Public joined event as city reviews its police department BY JOSEPH RIOS JRIOS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Training, hiring issues, use of force, homelessness and more were topics of discussion at a July 22

Arapahoe County asks for businesses’ help in saving variance

virtual town hall held by Englewood Police. The meeting was hosted as Englewood continues to review its police practices, training and expectations in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer in May. Residents participated in the town hall by calling in and asking questions of police officers. Here are some of the topics Englewood Police discussed with the com-

INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 10 | LIFE: PAGE 12

munity at the virtual town hall.

WHO’S THE BEST? PERIODICAL

Here’s our annual look at the region’s best businesses, services, attractions and more, as chosen by our readers.

INSIDE THIS EDITION


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