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MorningMagazine_2025-01-15 Jack Dawson
Two Students file lawsuit against CU Boulder for allegedly violating free speech
Two students from the University of Colorado Boulder have filed a lawsuit against the school, for alleged violations of their free speech and due process rights.
Mari Rosenfeld and Max Inman were banned from campus for almost two months, following their participation in a pro-Palestine protest on Oct. 3. During the protest, which was organized by Students for Justice in Palestine (SJPP), participants entered a campus career fair hosting military and defense contractors, and chanted for several minutes before being ordered to leave.
The lawsuit alleges that the school’s decision to ban Rosenfeld and Inman from campus prevented them from engaging in First Amendment protected protest, and strained them financially since they both held on-campus jobs that they could no longer attend to in-person.
Both of the students’ cases with the dean’s office for reportedly violating the student code of conduct are still ongoing, as the lawsuit develops.
Following the Oct. 3. protest, the Students for Justice in Palestine student organization was also placed in bad standing by the University.
According to The Daily Camera, a CU Boulder spokesperson said the University has not yet been served the suit, and therefore will not yet publicly comment.
Marshall Mesa Trailhead underground coal fire extinguished
Underneath the Marshall Mesa Trailhead, a coal mine fire that’s been burning for more than a century has finally been extinguished by the Division of Mining Reclamation and Safety (DMRS).
Mining at the site ended in the early 1900s, but the coal remaining underground has been burning ever since.
DMRS began digging into the site in November of last year, overall excavating over 180,000 cubic yards of material according to CBS News Colorado.
The 2021 Marshall Fire, which destroyed over 1,000 Boulder properties, started near the trailhead. However, it was determined that the underground coal didn’t cause the destructive fire.
The site is one of 14,000 abandoned mines in Colorado and 40 known burning sites in the state.
DRMS has two more projects planned for 2025 to extinguish underground coal fires in Fremont County and Craig.
New bill would allow cities and counties to take over rundown housing
Colorado cities and counties would be able to temporarily take control of run–down apartment complexes under a new bill.
Senate Bill 20 was introduced last week on the first day of the state legislature’s 2025 session, strongly backed by Colorado Democrats.
The bill seeks to address the growing issue of poorly run buildings in the state, often run by inattentive or irresponsible landlords and property owners.
The measure would allow local officials or the Colorado Attorney General’s Office to ask a judge to issue a temporary authority or a court appointed caretaker to apartment complexes with unfixed issues for at least six months.
The caretaker would use rental payments to fix the issues at the property before turning it back over to the owner.
The bill is expected to be opposed by the Colorado Apartment Association, according to The Denver Post.
The measure has not been assigned an initial committee hearing date yet.
Denver extends severe cold weather shelters
The City of Denver is extending its severe weather shelter activation into next week, prior to ahead of an arctic blast heading to the region this weekend.
The city will keep their Cold Weather Shelters open until at least 11 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 21. – over a week longer than initially planned.
Temperatures arriving Friday are expected to be 20 to 40 degrees below average with a chance for snow, cold air, and high winds.
Temperatures are to drop below zero and wind chills are expected anywhere from — 10 degrees to -20 degrees.
Unsheltered people face great risk in such low temperatures. Some potential places to stay warm are as follows…
- For individual men – Denver Rescue Mission Lawrence Street Community Center, 2222 Lawrence St.
- For individual women – Samaritan House, 2301 Lawrence St.
- For youth ages 15-20 – Urban Peak, 1630 S. Acoma St.
- Families in need of shelter should call the Connection Center at 303-295-3366.
And for more information about shelter access, listeners can visit denvergov.org/findshelter or text INDOORS to 67283 for updates.