$1.00
Week of June 9, 2022
JEFFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
JeffcoTranscript.com
VOLUME 38 | ISSUE 46
Fentanyl bill signed into law before session ends Lawmakers were able to find compromise before legislative clock ran out STAFF REPORT
On May 11, Colorado legislators approved House Bill 22-1326 with less than two hours remaining in
the 2022 session. To push the bill over the finish line, a House and Senate conference Committee was appointed to create a compromise that could pass both chambers. It was ultimately passed in the House by a vote of 35-30 and in the Senate by a vote of 27-8. HB 22-1326 was signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis on May 25. In general, the bill creates tougher
penalties for fentanyl distribution and provides more treatment options for dependent users, while funding drug education. It also provides money for Naloxone, a drug that reverses opioid overdose. The bill, an attempt to deal with the state’s growing fentanyl crisis, was contentious, largely because of a provision that could potentially make possession of up to 4 grams of the exceedingly deadly drug, a
misdemeanor. In the weeks leading up to the vote, law enforcement agencies warned against passing the bill without more stringent possession penalties. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser provided written testimony about the bill, which he supported, with reservations. SEE FENTANYL, P3
In the aftermath: Communication is key Talking to your children about recent mass shootings BY BOB WOOLEY BWOOLEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Hazel Miller and special guest vocalist Kimyana Lee hit all the right notes at Lakewood’s Rockin’ Block Party. PHOTO BY BOB WOOLEY
Lakewood’s Rockin’ Block Party: a rollicking good time BY BOB WOOLEY BWOOLEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Hazel Miller is always something special. But her performance — a tribute to women —
at Lakewood’s 2022 Rockin’ Block Party was an inspired night of R&B, soul and rock and roll that put a smile on virtually every face. The crowd, filled with every-
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 14 | LIFE: PAGE 16 | CALENDAR: PAGE 19 | SPORTS: PAGE 28
one from toddlers to seniors, sung along, danced, snacked, played and smiled through a set featuring classics from Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones SEE BLOCK PARTY, P2
DEVASTATION TO DELIGHT Artists forge wonderful works from wildfire’s remains P16
In 1949, a 28-year-old man named Howard Unruh walked through his Camden, New Jersey neighborhood with a 9mm pistol he’d purchased at a Philadelphia sporting goods store and fatally shot 13 people and injured three more. His crime, often referred to as a “walk of death” is notable as one of the first lone wolf mass killings in the U.S. where an automatic weapon was used. But a 1966 University of Texas mass shooting was the first to capture the nation’s attention in a broad way, when student and former Marine sniper Charles Whitman, 25, barricaded himself inside the campus clock tower with a small arsenal of weapons and ammunition. From his deadly perch, Whitman fatally shot 14 people and injured an additional 31 on the SEE SHOOTINGS, P6
