WHAT'S THE SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY FEE FOR?

Pulling us out of the mainstream grandcountyuncensored.com January 20, 2012 || Volume 2, Number 2 || Free

PAGE 2

(Above) Giving guns to ninetime convicted felons (who also happen to be on the lamb) since at least 2009; your illustrious Grand County Sheriff. (Image Courtesy: In Fear of Retaliation)

In January 2008, three snowmobilers went missing in Eagle County only two would make it out alive. What began as an overnight camping trip turned into something else entirely. Hypothermia was listed as the official cause of death for the snowmobiler, a Kremmling resident, and the Summit County Sheriff commended the men's families for their help with rescue efforts. One of the snowmobilers, in particular, sticks out. Over the next year he would be charged, first with fraud and then with assault with a deadly weapon. The first charge was made and dropped in Grand County the second charge came while visiting his home in Florida in May of 2009, accompanied by an order not to leave the state of Florida until the trial. One month later, he was back in Colorado. After he stopped payment on a $14,000 check for back rent on his Grand County residence, his landlord had had enough and kicked him out. On June 17, 2009, the landlord went over to the house to check on the progress of the move. Finding a full moving trailer and an open duffel bag on the porch but no one around, the landlord made a lawful entry into his own property to check on the condition of the home. Noticing a few high dollar items missing, he proceeded to take three guns that had been left in a closet and headed home to call the sheriff. Unfortunately for our hapless landlord, he got beat to the punch. Craig Morris is no stranger to law enforcement. His record spans 30 years, with convictions ranging from battery on a law enforcement officer to grand theft and uttering a forged instrument.(Source: naplesnews.com) In Grand County, he was charged with fraud in late April. The charges were dropped. [Go figure!] Eight days later, in Collier County, Florida, he was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The charges stemmed from an incident where Morris attacked a man trying to reposses three ATV's that he hadn't been making payments on. That's when he was orderd not to leave the state until trial. Back in Colorado one month later [where was Dog the Bounty Hunter?], Morris called the sheriff to report three guns, a gold Rolex and nearly $1,000 in cash had been "stolen" by his landlord this is where the story runs off the rails. The FBI maintains the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). According to them, "The

WHEN THE SHERIFF'S YOUR PAL, CRIME PAYS!

Opinion and Commentary By Reggie Paulk

(Above) Craig Morris, 46, will serve five years probation and have to take an anger management course as part of his no contest plea Thursday. Morris was charged with aggravated battery using a deadly weapon for hitting Robert Knapp with a baseball bat once outside Morris' Naples home in 2009. He faced up to 15 years in prison on the charge. (Source: naplesnews.com) National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or NICS, is all about saving lives and protecting people from harmby not letting guns and explosives fall into the wrong hands. It also ensures the timely transfer of firearms to eligible gun buyers." That's interesting. I remember something about fraud charges being filed against the complainent. Our sheriff has 24 hour access to the NICS database, and his office may have run a check when charges were filed against Morris in April, 2009. That means you could assume that he was duly informed of Morris's impressive criminal history. So why in God's name did he not send a deputy to retrieve the weapons from Morris? Did he run the serial numbers to check if the guns had been used in the commission of a crime? Who knows. But what about the Rolex? Apparently, the watch wasn't really stolen but it was fun to add it in there just for the heck of it to make things a bit more difficult for the landlord. A landlord who, apparently, was a much more brazen criminal in the first place. I mean, what's the use of due process in a backwater county like ours? On page 500 of the 6th edition of Black's Law Dictionary, "Due Process of law implies the right of the person affected thereby to be present before the tribunal which pronounces judgement upon the question of life, liberty, or property, in its most comprehensive sense to be heard, by testimony or otherwise, and to have the right of controverting, by proof, every material fact which bears on the question of right in the matter involved. If any question of fact or liability be conclusively presumed against him, this is not due process of law." Blacks Law Dictionary, 6th Edition, page 500." Continued...

COLLIER COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE, FL

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FIREARMS, EXPLOSIVES AND IMITATION CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES

When does a revolver become an explosive? And when does a doctor's prescription become cocaine or an imitation controlled substance? Why, in the sheriff's underground realitybending school of policing, of course! If you can't get your man using the testimony of a ninetime convicted felon with a multistate history of violence, to include making bomb threats, you'll just have to begin using your imagination. [Give that guy his guns back. Oh, you already did!] Get a warrant. Heck, get three warrants because you'll need them when you don't find what you're looking for the previous two times. And take picturesespecially of vitamin bottles, empty ash trays and game rooms. Most criminals, at one time or another, have probably had runins with those three items. When you do happen upon a properly labeled prescription bottle in a cabinet, be sure to report it to the Colorado Beureau of Investigaion as an "imitation controlled substance," so you can add the proper 'padding' to the report. And when you confiscate a legal revolver, you should report it as an 'explosive,' so the person may never again travel abroadeven when they are eventually acquitted of the ridiculous charges.

WHAT IS THE EAST GRAND TECHNOLOGY/MATERIAL FEE FOR?

With two children in the East Grand School District, I recently received a letter admonishing me for not paying a total of $140 for a "required student fee... adopted by the Board of Education." The letter doesn't directly address the consequnces of not paying the fee, although there's a notsosubtle threat of having report cards withheald should I not comply. On January 12th, I sent the following email to each member of the board as well as the district secretary: "Dear Members of the Board, I've recently received a letter stating that I have not paid the Materials and Technology fee imposed by the district last year. Before paying this fee, I'd just like some clarification as to its purpose. Please reference Colorado Statute "2232117. Miscellaneous fees. (2)(c) "Any fee collected pursuant to the provisions of this subsection (2) shall be used for the purpose set forth in the resolution of the board authorizing the collection of such fee and shall not be expended for any other purpose. A complete list of fees, how the amount of each fee was derived, and the purpose of each fee shall be made available by the board upon request." Please also reference subsection (3) Whenever a board or public school publicizes any information concerning any fee authorized to be collected pursuant to this section, the board or school shall clearly state whether the fee is voluntary or mandatory and shall specify any activity from which the student shall be excluded if the fee is not paid. If you would be so kind as to provide a complete list of fees, how the amount was derived, and the purpose of the fee as required in the statute, I would appreciate it. It would also be helpful to see the line items the money has been spent on so far this year." One week later, I'd still not received a single response. I reiterated my question and finally received a response from Tom Sifers saying he'd been out of town and would get to it... NEXT WEEK. I then figured, while I was waiting, I'd request the recording from the August 16th board meeting where the fee was discussed. Luckily, I was at the meeting because when I made the request I immediately received the following response from board secretary Sarah Berggren: "Hi Reggie, Per State law [CRS 2232108(5)(c)], meeting recordings remain on file for 90 days, so unfortunately the tapes from the August 16, 2011 meeting are no longer available. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance." Touche. I'm reassured to know the school district can immediately recall the law concerning the destruction of public records, but has still failed to comply with a law that requires proper accounting when student fees are assessed. So how do the meeting minutes reflect the exchange between myself, other members of the public and the board? Here's the excerpt from the August 16th minutes: "Much discussion about field trips, student fees, and programming ensued." Now that's professional! My recollection of the student fee discussion is a little different than a one sentence summary. In fact, business manager Donette Schmiedbauer pointed out that the student fee collected over the 20102011 school year hadn't been spent on technology or materials at all. A substantial outside grant had taken care of the district's needs for that year and some time beyond. The funds were just sitting there burning a hole in the district's pocket. Of course, that didn't sway the district from extending the fee. Citing the difficulty of dealing with the public should they withdraw, then reinstate the fee, Nancy Karas and the board agreed to keep it in place. Hey, another Grand County political body ignorning the law! To the members of the board: You've taken the job. Study the law and understand the implications of your decisions. Stop acting like amateurs, and start being the professionals the community elected you to be.

By: Reggie Paulk

WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?

We have a sheriff who uses his position of authority to play around with people's lives as he sees fit. Deputies have literally been told to "F@&$" with people the sheriff dislikes. It's called harassment, and if you or I do it, we get to spend time reflecting by ourselves in a publiclyfunded hotel called a jail. When the sheriff or his deputies do it, people either suffer in silence or pack up and leave the county. But the sheriff only gets away with it because others turn a blind eye. Our district attorney (DA) is the top law enforcement official in the county. Today, DA's with integrity are rare birds indeed. You got to read about our DA in last week's paper. Do you really think she's going to bring a case against the Grand County Sheriff's Department given her history? Nope. So what recourse do we, as citizens, have? It's called jury duty.

THE TRUE POWER OF THE INDIVIDUAL

With so few people, Grand County's votingage citizens probably receive one or two jury summons per year. When you first lay eyes on that light pink and blue summons, your reaction might be to groan. From now on, you could see it as a potential opportunity to let the law enforcement leadership in Grand County know what you think about their complete lack of integrity. A single juror holds the entire force of our nation's law in their hands. The case they hear must be proved beyond even a shadow of doubt, and that is a very difficult thing to overcome if you truly think about it. A single juror, with the simple act of a 'nay' vote, will hang an entire jury nullifiying the trial and making dismissal of all charges probable. Beyond that, there's no legal obligation for a juror to convict even if the evidence is overwhelming. If you've ever seen the movie 12 Angry Men, you've seen a portrayal where one dissenting voice took an openandshut murder case and eventually lead to acquittal. When you're presented evidence by a prejudiced police force, backed up by a prejudiced district attorney, how could doubt not cloud your mind? Over the last few weeks, I've presented clear evidence that the rotting, stinking edifice that is the sheriff's department needs a complete overhaul. If you're tired of the corruption and think three more years is too much, you have a completely legal means at your disposal to protest. It's painless, costs nothing and allows you to send a clear message to those who think they hold all the cards NOT GUILTY!
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Contact the editor: reggie.paulk@gmail.com (303)5527963