Colorado Matters

Half the people in Colorado’s jails haven’t been convicted of anything; a lot of them just can’t pay bond. Now the state is looking at how else to get people to show up for trial. Then, you may think twice about squishing bugs after hearing Denver science writer David MacNeal talk about insects that help us solve murders, cure disease, and design better buildings.

John Hickenlooper supports raising the age for purchase of assault weapons and allowing judges to issue temporary restraining orders to keep people from having guns if there’s reason to believe they might pose a danger. We talk about inviting conservative voices to liberal campuses as Ann Coulter speaks at CU-Boulder tonight. And we meet Jim Howard, a fashion illustrators and the focus of a new exhibition at the Denver Museum of Art.

Suicide is the leading cause of death among young people in Colorado, but lawmakers can’t agree on what to do about it. Then, while reporting on sexual harassment at the Capitol, we discovered lawmakers’ aides and interns aren’t allowed to talk to reporters. Then, Denver chef Jesse Vega talks about helping to feed Hurricane Maria survivors in Puerto Rico. And, hear about the new Center for Colorado Women’s History at Byers-Evans House Museum.

There was a lot of hope for newsroom stability — and more state news coverage — when The Denver Post started asking online readers to pay for content earlier this year. But last week the paper announced more layoffs. How do hedge funds profit from their ownership? Also, veterans in Colorado Springs struggle to find health care, even with new federal laws that are supposed to help. And, trees make sounds our ears don’t usually pick up.

Denver developer Kyle Zeppelin says he is not a typical urban developer, “an industry that’s gotten a little bit tainted.” We’ve asked teachers and others to tell us about how they’re innovating in their classrooms, and more than 40 of them weighed in. Lyons printmaker Bud Shark’s work appears at New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the Met. His archive’s moving to CU-Boulder. And the U.S. Navy’s newest attack submarine, the USS Colorado, will go into service Saturday.

A lawmaker — expelled for sexual harassment. It sounds a lot like recent events in Colorado. In fact, the same thing happened in Arizona. An investigator in the case talks about hunting for the truth in such a political workplace. Satellites are so critical that the military has a new unit to protect them from enemy attack. And, the Museum of Contemporary Art – Denver has a new lending library. Not books — art!

As the movement against sexual harassment moves into newsrooms, Dianna May is helping lead the new initiative called Press Forward. Daniel Raimi wrote a book on fracking after he couldn’t find one to recommend to others. Boulder Valley students with dyslexia get more resources. And, corned beef and cabbage may not be as Irish as you think on St. Patrick’s Day.

Should students protest gun violence by walking out of class, and what do the protesters hope to gain? Two Front Range teenagers talk about it. Then, the mystery if a polio-like illness In Colorado may have been solved. We meet one family that recovered. A Colorado filmmaker takes about documenting the life and work of the late war photographer Chris Hondros.