Month: July 2017

Duchesne County Sheriff David Boren has issued a quick response to a federal lawsuit recently filed against the Sheriff, Sheriff’s Office and Sgt. Carl Reilley. According to the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office, Sgt. Reilley responded to a suspicious incident call in Duchesne on April 14th in which an individual was looking into windows of a building shared by the library and the school district. The individual did not follow Sgt. Reilley’s orders to stop and keep his hands up and Sgt. Reilley placed the individual on the ground and handcuffed him. Utah Highway Patrol trooper Nathan Mikulich arrived soon after and the officers determined that the individual was a 14-year-old boy with autism. They immediately began working to reunite the teen with his mother, who is shown on the officer’s body camera footage as thanking both the officers for bringing her son home. The mother, Rose Vallejo, has now filed a federal lawsuit for the incident to which Sheriff Boren provided the following public response: “My office conducted a full and fair review of the April 14th encounter between Sgt. Carl Reilley and Ms. Vallejo’s teenage son. The members of our After Action Review Panel found that Sgt. Reilley was reasonable in his use of force and acted appropriately during the interaction, except for the instance where he mistakenly and briefly switched off his body camera. I support the panel’s findings that the use of force was reasonable and their recommendation that Sgt. Reilley receive a verbal warning for mistakenly turning off his body camera. As our internal investigation showed, this situation demonstrated the need for additional training for our deputies to help them more easily identify and interact with people in our community who have mental or physical disabilities or delays.” At the close of Sheriff Boren’s statement, he explained that a training class was scheduled before the lawsuit was filed and is taking place as planned on Wednesday, July 26th. The Sheriff’s Office posted the entire body camera footage and dash cam footage from this incident to the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.

Renovations on the Ashley National Forest service offices in Duchesne, Manila and Vernal are getting underway this week. Work on the Duchesne-Roosevelt District Office is already underway and will run through mid-August. During this time, passes and permits will be available at the Chevron “Eagles Nest” in Duchesne, Davis Food and Drug and Stewarts in Roosevelt, and at the Hanna Store. Work on the Flaming Gorge-Vernal District Office located in Manila will begin on August 7th running through mid-September and work on the Ashley National Forest Supervisor’s Office will begin on September 18th. Work on all the offices will include upgrading and replacing wiring, drywall, plumbing, door replacement, and floor replacement. All construction is expected to be complete by November 10th.

Treatment within the Reader Creek drainage at Horseshoe and Sharlee Lakes took place over the weekend as part of the DWR Colorado River cutthroat trout restoration project. The area was closed to public access and limited any recreation in the area. Reader Creek and Lynn Creek have both experienced dramatic decline in the cutthroat population due to competition and breeding with non-native trout. The decline has been so severe that the DWR decided to chemically treat both streams with rotenone to address the problem. “The activities will protect the species while providing people with opportune areas to fish for these native fish,” shares DWR biologist Bryan Engelbert. “Not only are we focused on helping the fish, but we know the restoration project can provide anglers with a chance to catch larger cutthroats. ”

Friday’s Back the Blue event held at the Old Mill Park hit the mark of showing appreciation to local law enforcement. In its second year, the event is considered a community wide multi-denominational prayer and appreciation gathering dedicated to law enforcement and first responders. “Representatives from law enforcement are very grateful that people care,” shares event coordinator Pastor Dee Cairoli. “We live in a great community but it’s important that we show additional appreciation and love.” Pastor Dee and his congregation were joined by many local agencies and caring community members to plan the event which even included a helicopter flyover. “Law enforcement work hard for minimal salaries,” continues Pastor Dee. “They are dedicated and true servants, so they deserve every bit of support we can give them.” The event included 12 speakers and people lingered afterwards to enjoy the ambiance and company.

A five hour drug interdiction operation resulted in the arrest of 5 individuals on Highway 40 between Jensen and the Colorado border earlier this month. According to Sgt. Mike Gledhill of the Uintah Basin Narcotic Strike Force, the agencies utilized police canines on July 13th during the arrests, during all of which marijuana and drug paraphernalia was confiscated. “Based on interviews conducted by Strike Force Agent’s during each of those arrests,” shares Sgt. Gledhill, “it was determined that all the marijuana confiscated was purchased at dispensaries in Colorado.” The following individuals were arrested for possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia: Evan Romaniak of Avon, Colorado; Tonyna Breaux of Humble, Texas; Tony Greaves of Ignacio, Colorado who was also arrested on DUI; and Scott Cesspooch of Ft. Duchesne, Utah who also faces a child endangerment charge. Echo Reyos of Ft. Duchesne was arrested for driving on revocation and one outstanding warrant. The Uintah Basin Narcotic Strike Force is comprised of officers from 5 agencies within the Uintah Basin and is funded by the Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice

Locals are excited by the announcement that the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office will be hosting an 8-week Citizens Academy this fall. The free program is for residents who want to learn more about the Sheriff’s Office and law enforcement.

Construction delays have remained minimal on Highway 40 through the Myton Bench construction project but a new project could slow down your trip to and from the Wasatch Front. On July 25, the Utah Department of Transportation will begin construction on Highway 40 from Daniels Summit to Soldier Creek. 

Uintah County is among the first counties in the state to have mosquitoes test positive for West Nile Virus and TriCounty Health is urging the public to take prevention seriously. West Nile was first detected in the Naples area in a test sampling on June 30th and then a second sampling of mosquitoes tested positive in the Ouray area on July 11th.