CARBONDALE MAN CHARGED WITH FIRST DEGREE MURDER
Glenwood Springs—The Carbondale man who confessed to killing his wife after he was hurt in a crash last month near Roaring Fork High School has been formally charged with first-degree murder. 46-year-old Arturo Navarrete-Portillo was charged Tuesday in Garfield County District Court.He is accused in the Feb. 16 stabbing death of 30-year-old Maria Carminda Portillo-Amaya at their Carbondale apartment.Navarrete-Portillo was being held without bail. Police say Navarrete-Portillo was involved in a collision after the stabbing, and while being flown by helicopter from Valley View Hospital to Saint Mary’s in Grand Junction, he allegedly told emergency responders he had killed his wife.Prosecutors have said they probably will not seek the death penalty.
IN OTHER NEWS….
CRAIG (AP) – A state wildlife official involved in the fatal shooting of a suspect in northwestern Colorado has been identified as Nathan Martinez of Rangely.Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesman Mike Porras said Wednesday that Martinez is a district wildlife manager.Authorities have said Martinez and Moffat County Deputy Sheriff Brent Shock were checking on a suspicious vehicle Monday when they were briefly held hostage by a man and woman. Investigators say a struggle erupted and the man was fatally shot.Officials haven’t said who fired at the man. His name hasn’t been released.Authorities identified the woman as 43-year-old Georgie Hand. She is being held at the Moffat County jail but hasn’t been charged. Jail officials said they didn’t know whether she had an attorney who could comment on her behalf.
DENVER (AP) – Colorado is reporting its best month yet for recreational marijuana sales. Most striking in the January numbers reported this week is a spike in the tax stream designated specifically for schools. That excise tax brought in $2.3 million. That’s more than 10 times the haul from January of 2014, when Colorado started collecting the tax. Colorado’s marijuana industry was given a tax-free period when recreational sales began to transfer their pot plants from the medical industry to the recreational industry. As a result, excise taxes for the first few months were quite low. The excise taxes are designated specifically for school construction. The rest of the taxes have been spent on things like police training and drug education.
