Good Morning, Colorado, you’re listening to the Daily Sun-Up with the Colorado Sun. It’s Wednesday September 29th.

 

Today - As the state’s behavioral health system continues to show signs of strain, new laws require the Department of Human Services to provide shelter beds for kids in crisis. But there just aren’t enough beds, so some kids are spending nights on the floors of justice centers or even the back of police cruisers. 

 

But before we begin, let’s go back in time with some Colorado history adapted from historian Derek R Everett’s book “Colorado Day by Day”:

 

Today, we take you back to September 29th, 1879 when Ute bands in western Colorado who had been resisting the encroachment of interlopers for decades were finally faced with no alternative. They surrendered and listened to the promises of federal agents who pledged to improve their lives by transforming them into farmers. Their communal frustration and despair found an outlet on September 29th, 1879 when members of the Yamparika faction killed agent Nathan Meeker who was known as the founder of Greeley Colorado’s most prosperous farming community.

 

Now, our feature story.

 

Colorado’s beleaguered behavioral health system continues to show signs of strain. New state and federal laws require the Department of Human Services to provide shelter beds for kids in crisis. But there are not enough beds for youths in the state so many juveniles who’ve been accused of less-serious crimes are spending nights on the floors of justice centers or the back of police cruisers. Nearly every District Attorney in the state has signed a letter to the head of Colorado’s Department of Human Service urging the state to quickly create shelter beds for kids. “The safety of our children and communities cannot wait,” reads the letter.

 

Colorado Sun reporter Jen Brown obtained the letter from 21 of the state’s 22 District Attorneys asking the state to create more shelter beds for kids in trouble. 

 

Read Jen Brown’s story at coloradosun dot com 

 

And Before we go, here are a few stories that you should know about today:

 

Hundreds of homeowners have fled the Ptarmigan (TARM-again) Fire east of Silverthorne after fire officials described, quote “unprecedented fire behavior”  Monday night. The wildfire in the White River National Forest had grown to about 60 acres by Tuesday afternoon.





President Joe Biden has tapped Cole Finnegan to be Colorado’s next U.S. Attorney. Finnegan is a well-known Democrat supporter and a Denver attorney who served as former chief-of-staff for then-Mayor John Hickenlooper and chief legal counsel for then-Gov. Roy Romer.





School board members across Colorado are facing a wave of criticisms and disagreements as school districts deploy mask mandates and other COVID crackdowns. The shouting matches and social media blasts are now turning into recall efforts as angry parents seek to oust their local representatives on school boards. More Colorado school board members are finding themselves at a distressing crossroads as they listen to both parents, teachers and public health officials. 

 

For more information on all of these stories, visit our website, www.coloradosun.com. And don’t forget to tune in again tomorrow for a special holiday episode. Now, a quick message from our editor.

 

The Colorado Sun is non-partisan and completely independent. We're always dedicated to telling the in-depth stories we need today more than ever. And The Sun is supported by readers and listeners like you.


Right  now you can head to ColoradoSun.com and become a member starting at $5 per month and if you bump it up to $20 per month you'll get access to our politics newsletter, 'The Unaffiliated,' as well as our outdoors newsletter, 'The Outsider,' and our new health and environment newsletter 'The Temperature,' -- All three exclusive newsletters delivered to your inbox every week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good Morning, Colorado, you&rsquo;re listening to the Daily Sun-Up with the Colorado Sun. It&rsquo;s Wednesday September 29th.
&nbsp;
Today - As the state&rsquo;s behavioral health system continues to show signs of strain, new laws require the Department of Human Services to provide shelter beds for kids in crisis. But there just aren&rsquo;t enough beds, so some kids are spending nights on the floors of justice centers or even the back of police cruisers.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
But before we begin, let&rsquo;s go back in time with some Colorado history adapted from historian Derek R Everett&rsquo;s book &ldquo;Colorado Day by Day&rdquo;:
&nbsp;
Today, we take you back to September 29th, 1879 when Ute bands in western Colorado who had been resisting the encroachment of interlopers for decades were finally faced with no alternative. They surrendered and listened to the promises of federal agents who pledged to improve their lives by transforming them into farmers. Their communal frustration and despair found an outlet on September 29th, 1879 when members of the Yamparika faction killed agent Nathan Meeker who was known as the founder of Greeley Colorado&rsquo;s most prosperous farming community.
&nbsp;
Now, our feature story.
&nbsp;
Colorado&rsquo;s beleaguered behavioral health system continues to show signs of strain. New state and federal laws require the Department of Human Services to provide shelter beds for kids in crisis. But there are not enough beds for youths in the state so many juveniles who&rsquo;ve been accused of less-serious crimes are spending nights on the floors of justice centers or the back of police cruisers. Nearly every District Attorney in the state has signed a letter to the head of Colorado&rsquo;s Department of Human Service urging the state to quickly create shelter beds for kids. &ldquo;The safety of our children and communities cannot wait,&rdquo; reads the letter.
&nbsp;
Colorado Sun reporter Jen Brown obtained the letter from 21 of the state&rsquo;s 22 District Attorneys asking the state to create more shelter beds for kids in trouble.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Read Jen Brown&rsquo;s story at coloradosun dot com&nbsp;
&nbsp;
And Before we go, here are a few stories that you should know about today:
&nbsp;
Hundreds of homeowners have fled the Ptarmigan (TARM-again) Fire east of Silverthorne after fire officials described, quote &ldquo;unprecedented fire behavior&rdquo;&nbsp; Monday night. The wildfire in the White River National Forest had grown to about 60 acres by Tuesday afternoon.
 
President Joe Biden has tapped Cole Finnegan to be Colorado&rsquo;s next U.S. Attorney. Finnegan is a well-known Democrat supporter and a Denver attorney who served as former chief-of-staff for then-Mayor John Hickenlooper and chief legal counsel for then-Gov. Roy Romer.
 
School board members across Colorado are facing a wave of criticisms and disagreements as school districts deploy mask mandates and other COVID crackdowns. The shouting matches and social media blasts are now turning into recall efforts as angry parents seek to oust their local representatives on school boards. More Colorado school board members are finding themselves at a distressing crossroads as they listen to both parents, teachers and public health officials.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
For more information on all of these stories, visit our website,<a href="http://www.coloradosun.com/"> www.coloradosun.com</a>. And don&rsquo;t forget to tune in again tomorrow for a special holiday episode. Now, a quick message from our editor.
&nbsp;
The Colorado Sun is non-partisan and completely independent. We're always dedicated to telling the in-depth stories we need today more than ever. And The Sun is supported by readers and listeners like you.
 Right&nbsp; now you can head to ColoradoSun.com and become a member starting at $5 per month and if you bump it up to $20 per month you'll get access to our politics newsletter, 'The Unaffiliated,' as well as our outdoors newsletter, 'The Outsider,' and our new health and environment newsletter 'The Temperature,' -- All three exclusive newsletters delivered to your inbox every week.See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.

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