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MorningMagazine_2024-10-14 Jack Dawson
Colorado Parent Uncover’s Child Custody Expert’s Fake Credentials
A Colorado woman who worked on child custody cases and as a state-licensed addiction counselor was indicted by a grand jury for using fake credentials to obtain her state license.
The Colorado Attorney General’s Office filed the 15-count indictment against Shannon McShane, with charges including forgery, perjury, and attempt to influence a public servant. All charges against McShane are felonies.
The psychologist stated on multiple documents to have graduated from the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom. A Colorado father uncovered McShane’s false and “unverifiable” PhD in psychology, and reported it to the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies back in 2023.
The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies verified that her documents were false and suspended her in June of 2023. She was jailed within a week of the grand jury’s criminal indictment. On October 2, she posted a $50,000 bond.
Bridge across U.S. 50 and the Blue Mesa Reservoir to open 24/7 starting next week
Drivers will be able to take the U.S. 50 bridge in Gunnison County at all hours starting this week.
The Colorado Department of Transportation says their crews have made “significant progress” on the structural repairs to the Middle Bridge over the Blue Mesa Reservoir. The bridge shut down in April when a 3-inch crack was found along a steel beam.
Starting this Wednesday, a pilot car will guide all traffic across the one-lane bridge. Crews will continue final repairs between 11:30 p.m. and 6 a.m. to prepare the bridge for two-way traffic come winter. CDOT says this will likely lead to longer wait times for late-night travelers. Heavier vehicles, like semi-trucks and charter buses will be allowed to cross the bridge one at a time. The bridge has been a critical route for Montrose, Gunnison and Hinsdale Counties.
County Road 26 – which has acted as a detour since the bridge shut down – can continue to be used as an alternative route as long as weather allows. Pilot cars will no longer guide traffic across the road.
Boulder City Council moves forward with plans to set a citywide minimum wage
Boulder City Council has approved an ordinance that would set a citywide minimum wage, beginning in 2025.
The Council voted in favor of the ordinance last Thursday, and – if passed – it will set the city’s minimum wage at $15.57. The proposed wage is 8% higher than the state’s minimum – $14.42.
This move to create a minimum wage follows a 2019 state law that gave cities the authority to set their own wages. Boulder Reporting Lab says Boulder has been working with neighboring cities including Longmont, Lafayette, Louisville, and Erie, to coordinate a regional approach – but Boulder is the only city moving ahead with a formal ordinance at this time.
Even with the increase, Boulder’s minimum wage will be the lowest in the state, below other local minimum wages in the region like Boulder County and Denver.
The city would see annual increases of 8% for two years, followed by adjustments tied to the consumer price index. Boulder Reporting Lab says this would likely keep Boulder’s minimum wage well below Denver’s in the coming years.
At the Thursday City Council meeting where the ordinance was passed, some councilmembers expressed their hopes that raising the minimum wage will help more people who work in Boulder afford to live in the city.
A final vote is scheduled for November.
CPW stops looking for fifth Copper Creek wolf pup
Colorado Parks and Wildlife has given up on finding the fifth Copper Creek wolf pup, after 19 nights of searching. The operation was suspended last Thursday, due to declining temperatures that CPW says make it unsafe to move the animal.
The pup – estimated to be about six months old – was left behind in Grand County when the rest of its pack was relocated last month.
Though they’re stopping their on-the-ground search, CPW will continue to watch game cameras and look for evidence of the pup. That’s all according to The Colorado Sun.
Wildlife managers captured the wolf pack back in early September, citing its link to multiple livestock deaths. The male adult wolf of the pack died four days after it was captured. CPW said the death was unrelated to its capture.
The state plans to release the adult female and the four captured pups back into the wild in December or January, around the same time they plan to release their next batch of wolves as part of the highly-contentious wolf reintroduction plan.
CPW asks anyone in the woods in Grand and Summit counties to report any potential sightings of the pup to the agency’s Hot Sulphur Springs office at 970-725-6200.
Colorado State Patrol pedestrian crash data
Colorado State Patrol is looking into a disproportionate number of pedestrian crashes in areas with seasonal traffic, according to Boulder Reporting Lab.
State Patrol Chief Matthew C. Packard said that pedestrian-involved crashes increase in summer and peak in autumn. In a new report, the Patrol said that Larmier and Montrose counties, among others with seasonal and tourist traffic, saw frequent pedestrian crashes.
Packard didn’t mention Boulder County specifically; however, Boulder Reporting Lab says that the county is about the same size as Larimer and saw more pedestrian crashes than Larimer over the past 15 years – and in 2023 alone.
Boulder saw its fourth fatal traffic death this year in September. The City of Boulder’s Vision Zero Action Plan seeks to eliminate serious crashes by 2030.