An officer in the Cortez Police Department was shot and killed in the line of duty on Wednesday. The officer conducted a traffic stop on South Broadway around 11:30 a.m., during which he was shot and injured. The suspects fled in their vehicle but were quickly located. One suspect was shot by police and died at the scene, the other was taken into custody. The officer, who has not yet been identified, was taken to Southwest Memorial Hospital and later died from his injuries. And on Tuesday, the Cortez City Council passed a resolution in support of a grant to fund archaeological surveys of Carpenter and Geer natural areas to identify prehistoric sites. The city’s Historic Preservation Board recommended that the city apply for the grant from the Colorado Historical Society. A preliminary survey conducted in 1993 by the city found six areas of interest in the Carpenter area alone. Geer has never been studied.
Chris Clements is a former news reporter for KSJD. He had previously covered literary arts as a reporter for The Chautauquan Daily in Chautauqua, New York, and graduated with a degree in English from Arizona State University. At KSJD, Chris has collaborated with KUNC (northern Colorado NPR) on water conservation stories, and had his spots regularly featured on NPR's national newscasts.