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October 21, 2021
JEFFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
JeffcoTranscript.com
VOLUME 38 | ISSUE 13
Guilty verdicts in deadly I-70 trucker trial Jurors convict driver on 27 counts BY BOB WOOLEY BWOOLEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Fassero said the reservoir’s proximity to Bear Creek and Turkey Creek would allow for immediate capture of any available water flows that could be legally stored (as opposed to having to store it offstream somewhere and having to pump it for use). He said the relatively high elevation of the reservoir makes it possible to use gravity to deliver stored water. “Based on those opportunities, we developed objectives for this study,” he said. The first objective would be evaluating the availability of existing storage in the reservoir. Another objective would be to
It took jurors less than a day to convict Rogel Aguilera-Mederos on more than two dozen counts — including four counts of vehicular homicide — for causing a deadly crash that occurred April 25, 2019 on eastbound I-70 near Lakewood. Twenty-eight vehicles including four semi trucks were damaged in the accident that swiftly turned into an inferno. The day before closing arguments were made, Aguilera-Mederos had taken the stand in his own defense. A native Spanish speaker who emigrated from Cuba in 2015, he testified through an interpreter. Despite ongoing confusion during questioning, attorneys on both sides of the case were able to elicit answers from the defendant. In the end, jurors agreed with prosecutors that Aguilera-Mederos was responsible for the accident and should be held accountable. Aguilera-Mederos, who was just 23 at the time of the crash, blamed malfunctioning brakes for the accident. Admittedly inexperienced in mountain driving, he said he performed necessary steps like
SEE BEAR CREEK, P13
SEE VERDICTS, P6
An illustration depicts Bear Creek Lake at 22,000-acre feet of storage. The darker blue in the center shows the current footprint COURTESY OF KATIE GILL of the lake.
Public weighs in on Bear Creek Lake expansion Residents give input into Feasibility Study process
MORE INFO
BY BOB WOOLEY BWOOLEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
The CWCB Feasibility Study Memo and USACE Project Management Plan can be found at cwcb.colorado.gov/events/ public-scoping-bear-creek-lake
A virtual meeting held Oct. 14 gave folks a chance to comment on the proposed expansion of Bear Creek reservoir. A feasibility Study for the project being conducted by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) is currently underway. At the onset of the meeting, host, Christopher Fassero, USACE, said folks would have a chance to hear about the study’s objectives, oppor-
tunities, constraints and considerations. “These are things on which we would like public input,” he said. The opportunities he was speaking about referred to an expanded reservoir’s ability to store more water supply, store agricultural augmentation water and prevent the area downstream from the reservoir, from running dry in periods of drought.
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 14 | LIFE: PAGE 16 | CALENDAR: PAGE 19 | SPORTS: PAGE 34
NEW PROMISE
Treatments mean shorter recovery from scoliosis P16