The Steamboat Pilot & Today

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 7:10 a.m.
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Butchering…”He'll look into it”.

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 7:20 a.m.
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“The accident caused about $1,100 worth of damage to the Routt County vehicle.”

Bustos paid the ticket. Great, that's nice. How big of Bustos.

The real question should be: Who paid for the $1,100. worth of damage to the county owned vehicle which was being used for personal use out of state!.

Oh, that's right, he axed the ElderWatch program. Guess the old grannies around town are only worth a set of spark plugs.

id04sp (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 7:37 a.m.
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Dundalk,

Give us one name, or if you don't want to use names, one bona fide case where the elder watch program actually resulted in the “rescue” of an elderly person from some peril.

Give us proof that Bustos did not conduct official business as part of his trip to Utah.

Have Routt EMTs ever stopped for personal reasons while riding in a county vehicle? Coke and Slim Jims at the 7-11, perhaps?

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 7:54 a.m.
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Id:

Of course you know I can't mention any names in regards to the Elder Watch program, as they are or have been patients in the hospital and there is such a thing known as HIPPA. I do however know of cases where someone has either had a stroke or fallen and broken a hip, then laid in their own feces for a day, until someone checked on them (other than an elder watch person) and found them.

Bustos was in Vernal, picking up a desk.

Routt Co. EMT, EMS, police all stop from time to time to pick up a cup o' joe or a soda. What they don't do is use the ambulance to drive out of state, to pick up a desk.

BTW, why would anyone want to eat a Slim Jim?

thecondoguy1 (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 8:26 a.m.
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The community should know where each elderly is and have a program to check on their welfare and respond to situations that look to be a threat to these vulnerable citizens. People who have paid their dues over and over. We can have a system for getting nosey over a 50 year old building, but not a 80 year old lady, with a failing memory. If we can't take care of our old and the children, what good are we?
slim jims kill more people annualy than tobacco and car wrecks combined…………yuck

emjay1 (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 9:20 a.m.
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id:
Routt EMTs do use county vehicles to stop and eat or whatever, but they are always available for calls, etc. This is not an appropiate comparison to Bustos' personal trip to Utah.
I like how they said in the paper that he paid for the ticket, but never mentioned that he paid for damages to the vehicle. I have a feeling that $1100 is coming out of OUR pockets!

Whether or not the Elderwatch program actually “rescued” anyone (it actually has) does not matter. This was a great program for elderly people who otherwise do not have people checking on them. It's a great community service for our older Americans who are already getting so much taken away from them. Do you ever plan to grow old one day, id?

id04sp (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 9:28 a.m.
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So, you admit that nobody was ever “rescued” by the RCSO elder watch program. Sounds like another waste of time that Wall eliminated.

We know that Bustos was in Vernal picking up a desk. Do you know that's all he did?

The hazard of slim jims is opening the package, and then telling the difference between the package and the contents.

In many towns, the postal carriers fill in on the elder watch duty. It's easy for them to see that no mail is being picked up or send out, and to go up and knock on the door to see if the person is alright. So how come you're not busting on the USPS for not checking on the elderly.

How about this one? Put a list of elderly wherever the EMTs hang out between calls, and YOU guys call them to see if they answer. That would probably cover most of the eldery, no? The fact is, you guys bust on the hypochondriac elderly population and don't want to have to engage them on medical issues. What is it you call them? Gorps, or gonzos, or something like that?

The fact is, if RCSO officers are checking on the elderly, they don't have time to investigate crimes. In the old administration, they didn't investigate crimes anyway, so it made no difference.

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 9:40 a.m.
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What drinking fountain are you using Id?

Will you feel the same way about deputies using winches to pull idiots out of ditches? How does that little perk which Gary Wall wants to institute, assist the general public, from crime?

I hardly think an older person falling and breaking a hip be defined as a hypochondriac.

Emjay is right…are you ever planning on aging, Id?

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 9:43 a.m.
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aarp elderwatch

AARP ElderWatch is a partnership between the Colorado Attorney General’s Office and the AARP Foundation. Other partners include the Better Business Bureaus serving Colorado and County Sheriffs of Colorado, Inc. AARP ElderWatch is designed to operate as a clearinghouse for complaints, educational information, and training materials dealing with the financial exploitation of elderly Coloradans. If you are a senior (or are helping a senior) and you believe that you may have been a victim of a fraud or a scam, you should contact AARP ElderWatch at:

AARP ElderWatch
Phone: 1-800-222-4444
Phone (metro Denver): (303) 222-4444
Website: www.aarpelderwatch.org

emjay1 (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 10:02 a.m.
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id:
You make me laugh sometimes, but other times I wonder if you know your head from your butt. You obviously know a little bit about our EMS system here. But not a lot. It's “GOMER.” And I don't believe it is used the way in which you imply. YOU are the one that couldn't care less about our elderly population, not the medical people.
How rude!!

CoJustice (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 10:13 a.m.
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I recall past articles that addressed the salaries of the Sheriff and Undersheriff. Gary Wall wanted an escalated salary for his untrained, under skilled, no experience Undersheriff, that we needed to pay for education and certification along with personal attorney expenses. The County has to absorb the cost of these issues. So how do we pay for them?…..by eliminating community-policing services? So far we have eliminated several programs, especially anything have to do with drugs, enforcement and dare. By not have community-policing programs and enforcement, what would you be thinking when it appears Gary’s major concerns are personal legal fees, company vehicle perks, escalated salaries. Not seeing any investment in the community? but maybe the County Sheriffs mission statement has changed to; Its All About Me.

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 10:30 a.m.
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Does anyone predict that Wall will try to ask for an extension when he doesn't complete his state mandated POST certification in a timely manner?

Will he request a higher salary for himself if he does get POST certified?

emjay1 (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 10:55 a.m.
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He will just need to be told “We'll look into it”!!

CoJustice (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 11:04 a.m.
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EMS Guy…. I think other County facilities and departments better hang on tight to their budgets, because the commissioners more than likely will be faced with impending costs…..where do YOU think they will get the money?….no band-aids for you.

CoJustice (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 11:41 a.m.
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dundalk: The office looked up the requirements for requesting an extension in the Colorado Statues, note below: “upon just cause shown”

Colorado Statutes Require: 30-10-501.6
1) Every person elected or appointed to the office of sheriff for the first time shall:
(a) Attend a minimum of eighty clock hours at a new sheriff training course developed and facilitated either by the county sheriffs of Colorado, incorporated, or any other training resource agency approved by the Colorado peace officers standards and training board, the first time such training course is given after the person's election or appointment. The Colorado peace officers standards and training board shall have discretion to allow the substitution of any combination of education, experience, and training deemed by the board to be equivalent to such new sheriff training course.
(b) Obtain basic peace officer certification within one year of taking office. An extension may be granted by the Colorado peace officers standards and training board of up to one year to obtain such certification upon just cause shown. The Colorado peace officers standards and training board shall issue written findings of fact supporting such an extension.
(2) Every sheriff must possess basic peace officer certification and shall undergo at least twenty clock hours of in-service training provided by the county sheriffs of Colorado, incorporated, every year during such sheriff's term. The Colorado peace officers standards and training board shall have discretion to waive in-service training upon presentation of evidence by the sheriff demonstrating just cause for noncompletion of such training. The Colorado peace officers standards and training board shall have discretion to allow the substitution of any combination of education, experience, and training deemed by the board to be equivalent to such in-service training of at least twenty clock hours annually.
(3) The county shall only pay all reasonable costs and expenses of new sheriff and in-service training.
Source: L. 97: Entire section added, p. 926, § 2, effective May 21.

So, well be on the look out out for “just cause”, pending the office “looking into it”

CoJustice (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 12:10 p.m.
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“Just Cause” and “Reasonable expense to the county” are both arguable statements. What does this mean to Routt County Citizens? More expen$ive legal fee$

id04sp (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 1:38 p.m.
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Dundalk,

Was your hubby one of those cops who would sit in his car on the side of the road with his lights blinking while leaving the rest of us to find our way around a car half-off the road, and nobody directing traffic? How about when a lane is closed for an incident, and there's a cop sitting there, and the two lanes of traffic have to merge into one without an officer to direct traffic?

Wall wants to be able to pull a car out of the ditch and get it going again without blocking traffic when there's nothing else wrong with it. It's not a “free service” to the guy who went off the road. It's a traffic safety measure to clear the road and remove a hazard to traffic. Oh, and sometimes, the reason a person is off the road is from having to avoid somebody else who's over the unplowed yellow line in the center of a two-lane road.

Emjay,

So if it's not the job of a cop to help somebody out of the ditch and remove a traffic safety hazard, then how come it IS a cop's job to knock on a Gomer's door and see how he/she is?

It's so very obvious that you guys just want to bust on Wall because your boy lost the election.

If somebody wants a cost-effective way to check on the elderly, it's very easy to set up a PC to telephone people and make sure they are answering the phone. The same sort of system is used to check on kids after school, remind people to take medication, etc. All it takes is an old PC, a little bit of software and an outside line.

And how do you know that a person is inside the house with a broken hip, or out of town for the week visiting the kids in Arizona?

Again, just how many disabled elderly were found in their homes by the RCSO elder watch program? Nobody has come up with any bona fide cases yet.

My grandmother lived to be 92. She was found passed away in her bed one morning. She also carried a cordless telephone handset in her apron every minute of her waking life for the last ten years before she died. If she had not answered her daily call from a relative, somebody would have been over there checking on her within a few hours. If she'd broken her hip, she had a phone right there to dial 911. I fail to see how the police department in her town should have been any part of checking up on her.

As a matter of fact, the RCSO under Warner did not help me when I reported crimes to them, so why should I expect them to come by and check on me when I'm “old.”

Co Justice,

Am I wrong, or did Wall only ask for an extension of time to answer the Commissioner's list of policies, regarding which ones he would follow and which ones he would not. I didn't see anything about him requesting an extension to pass the POST requirement.

I am becoming more and more sure that the complaints about Wall are derived from the fact that he had a (D) instead of an (R) next to his name on the ballot. What is he likely to find out about the folks who were not contributing to his election?

CoJustice (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 2:11 p.m.
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ido4sp: I am responding to previous quotes and stating clear facts that the taxpayers are funding an unqualified public official, and are going to continue to pay because time is running out. Wall does not appear to want to operate within the legal responsibility of current county guiding principles. I would like to see the Pilot publish the “Open Record” transcripts and billable hours of attorney’s fees that “we the people” are going to fund. To summarize, examination of policies and costly mistakes will have an effect on the community.

In regards to your comment “What is he likely to find out about the folks who were not contributing to his election”? I guess that’s another chapter of ethics and authority. If there is a misuse of power, an investigation will determine the outcome of his term.

whyquestion (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 2:22 p.m.
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IDO: D's care about living in a safe community,but you don't appear to care????? why was i not surprised when i read that mark fisher is going to collect the $$$$$s from the sheriffs budget for representing WALL?????is he another advisor,like the welfare county director????deficit cargos pick for sheriff sure can spend $$$$$s like she did????? the reason COMM nancy is quoted in the paper is that it was her turn to be the spokes person for the commissioners!!!! cojustice: thanks for the info on what is required for wall to be educated.

CoJustice (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 2:48 p.m.
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trump_suit, I think you answered your own question.

dundalk (anonymous)
August 20, 2007 at 3:43 p.m.
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Id says:

“Dundalk,
Was your hubby one of those cops who would sit in his car on the side of the road with his lights blinking while leaving the rest of us to find our way around a car half-off the road, and nobody directing traffic?”

No. My husband would be the one writing tickets to traffic offenders., or doing welfare checks on the elderly, or checking on an old lady who can't turn her smoke alarm off because she over did her eggs (he fixed the wall alarm which she had clocked with a broom handle, when it would quit). He also went on a call where he found an elderly lady, dead on her toilet.

Most accidents are handled by the SSPD, however, the directing of traffic would fall to the CSO officers, who, btw, do a great job.

Just how does a car in a ditch constitute a problem for the flow of traffic? I know South Routt like to makes up their own rules sometimes, but I haven't seen nor heard of any car that drives in ditches. Maybe its North Routt, or West Routt, or maybe even outer space.

Bottom line…we don't need winches on trucks, and i refuse to pay for damage done to a county owned vehicle that is used for personal use, outside this state, while picking up a desk.

If you are so hell bent on allowing our tax $$ go towards frivilous items, maybe we should tax you.

id04sp (anonymous)
August 21, 2007 at 11:52 a.m.
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Dundalk,

You have obviously never had to deal with a vehicle half-off CR-129 around the Clark Store or at any number of other places between the airport and Clark. There's one area where CR-129 passes through a ranch and the road gets extremely narrow. Having a front wheel in the ditch with the rear wheels on the road is a very real possibility, and we all know that's a heavily traveled road. How much does the SSPD or CSP get up there?

The area around Glen Eden is another, as is Seedhouse Road. People backing out of driveways into the roadway can easily get over in the ditch and be stuck. It's not as far-fetched as you think it is. Heck, they have 18-wheelers go off the road there (although obviously a RCSO vehicle with a wench would not be able to help).

I do honestly appreciate the fact that your husband rendered aid to the elderly, but that's a fire-fighter and EMT job, not a police duty. A sheriff's auxiliary force of volunteers would normally be the ones doing such things in other towns; including serving civil summonses, etc. These auxiliary folks don't get anything except a car to drive, if that.

In my travels on Elk River Road, I have come across no less than THREE vehicles which could have been helped by a police vehicle with a wench. In one case, it was a small SUV at the 25 MPH curve. In both of the others, the vehicle was on its TOP, sitting in one or both lanes, near the Seedhouse Road cutoff. The wench could have been used to scoot the vehicle out of the flow of traffic with very little problem. I've moved a Ford Explorer and an F-150 with a hand-cranked come-along; it's just not that hard. I've also hooked a tow strap from my F-150 to other vehicles and pulled them backwards as they tried to back out of a ditch, and gotten them easily back onto the road. Sometimes it only takes enough tension to prevent them from slipping back into the ditch.

Seems to me that you think you know who should be helped and who should not, and that it's your call. Wrong. Let the sheriff do his job. The majority has spoken.

BTW, I think that Bustos should be personally responsible for the damage to the county vehicle because he was using it for personal business even if he had already concluded some professional business on the same trip. His personal auto insurance might cover it. If he WAS on a business trip, picking up a desk was outside the scope of his duties, and he should have known he was taking a risk if any damage was caused.

Your arguments are really getting out of reason, and if you want to talk about personal loss, let's forget about taxes and look at my losses from public corruption and extortion under color of official right. If the Pilot would print my story, or at least stop deleting it, you'd know exactly who was responsible, and Lady, they're not democrats.

dundalk (anonymous)
August 21, 2007 at 1:12 p.m.
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Id:

I recall backing my vehicle out of a driveway near Venus Place. I promptly sunk it off the side of the road and had to climb out the passenger window to get out. Did I call a law enforcement officer? No. They have more important things to do then pull a housewife out of a ditch. I did what most people do: I called AAA and then arranged for a tow truck. It was a good hour worth of waiting, coupled with the aggrevation of being late to work. But hey, I put the car in a ditch, all by myself.

2 winters ago I was coming off Seedhouse, and just before the merge to 129, I came upon a 18 wheeler which was attempting, poorly, to back into a private residence. I sat in my car, in the dark, and waited for about 40 minutes. Did law enforcement come. No. They have more important things to do. The driver of the truck and a few spare ranch hands with personal utility vehicles remedied the snarl, and all was okay.

This past winter, while traveling north on 129, I came upon a Chevy Blazer which had caught a sheet of ice and flipped over into the northbound ditch. After I pulled off to the shoulder, and then crawled into the Blazer, I found a young teen driver, upside down, but in one piece. Another truck coming the opposite direction stopped and asked if I needed help. He called 911 and Officer Kurtis Luster arrived on the scene. It was determined that EMS (other than myself and the other truck driver who was an EMT) was not needed. Offcr Luster had the girl sit in the squad, and then took her to her parents. A tow truck came and dragged the wrecked car from the road.

Knowing Ray & Petie Corbett, who own the house acorss the street from the Glen Eden, I am aware of vehicles that fall victim to either poor road conditions, drunk drivers or plain old stupidity (which was me when I tried backing out of a drive and into a ditch).

After living here since 1994, seeing cars in ditches is not an extraordinary feat. I pay taxes to support EMS, Police, Fire and S.O. to protect me - not to pull cars out of ditches.

And for Lord's sake Id…get a good bottle of Irish Whiskey, and get the conspiracy thing out of your head. Once is enough. I am confident you'd be more entertaining if you weren't soooooo intense about what crimes you seem to think have befallen you.

id04sp (anonymous)
August 21, 2007 at 3:43 p.m.
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Dundalk,

Oh, don't worry about me. Worry about your friends. They're the ones who are going to need sympathy.

I am not proposing that a police cruiser be dispatched to pull people out of a ditch. That's a commercial towing company job unless a good Samaritan like me happens along and thinks you're HOT! Or even if you're not. I am only saying that a small investment in a winch for a police vehicle would make it more useful all around, and the occasion will certainly arise when an officer will come across the kinds of situations I have described and be able to do something about it.

Remember, it gets cold out here. I've seen 45 below zero on a cold night. Towing somebody out of a ditch might be the difference between life and death. Is the cop going to sit there with people in his cruiser staying warm while they wait for the tow? A car stuck in the snow is a well-known hazard for carbon monoxide poisoning because the snow around the bottom of the vehicle can trap the CO and let it be drawn into the cabin by the heater blower.

Oh, and what if the cop gets stuck for some reason? He can run that winch cable out and pull himself out of the mud or the ditch. That's why most people have them; to save themselves.