Health - The Durango Herald

Insulin Resistance the pre-cursor to diabetes

November is National Diabetes month, and it’s a great time to raise awareness about diabetes and to learn how to prevent or delay Type 2 diabetes, especially if it runs in your family. Well,...

DATE: Nov 12, 2024 | CATEGORY: Healing Nutrition

Durango boy’s vision salvaged through years of treatment

Children’s Hospital Colorado ophthalmology doctor treated patient all his life

DATE: Nov 11, 2024 | CATEGORY: Local News

Oil company agrees to clean up historic lead contamination in Rico

Mayor, state hail deal with Atlantic Richfield Co. to remove lead hazard from Colorado mountain town

DATE: Oct 31, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

How much does it cost Coloradans to have a hip replaced? A new online tool will tell you

Prices for health care services can vary wildly. Now Coloradans can compare costs for more than 260 health care services at more that 150 hospitals and facilities around the state, through a...

DATE: Sep 21, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Colorado researcher says people with PTSD are losing out on an effective treatment

A Boulder-based therapist said he's baffled and disappointed by federal regulators’ decision last month not to approve a therapy using MDMA, also known as ecstasy, to treat PTSD. Bruce Poult...

DATE: Sep 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Colorado hopes to raise awareness of dementia, start conversations, with new campaign

Dementia touches countless Colorado lives, with Alzheimer’s disease the most common kind and older adults most likely to experience it. As described by the Centers for Disease Control and Pr...

DATE: Sep 2, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Durango-area officials tell Hickenlooper housing partnership is working well, but federal support needed

U.S. senator says workers need higher wages

DATE: Aug 30, 2024 | CATEGORY: Local News

'We were expendable': Downwinders from world's 1st atomic test are on a mission to tell their story

The documentary ‘First We Bombed New Mexico’ is racking up awards from film festivals

DATE: Aug 26, 2024 | CATEGORY: AP New Mexico

Colorado legislators weigh grants for behavioral health services in jails

Committee considers other programs to help divert youth from criminal justice system, provide supportive housing to people deemed incompetent

DATE: Aug 17, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Coloradans cite cost concerns as major reason for delayed health care

Over two-thirds of adults in Colorado delayed or went without health care over the past year because it was too expensive, a recent survey from the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative found....

DATE: Aug 11, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Here is everything you need to know about the bird flu outbreak in Colorado

Colorado is leading the nation in human cases of the H5 bird flu and millions of poultry in the state have been killed to stop the threat of the virus. It also has hit dairy cows in the stat...

DATE: Jul 27, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Durango woman opens first recovery residence in Southwest Colorado

Durango residents recovering from substance abuse disorders find new home

DATE: Jul 26, 2024 | CATEGORY: Local News

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Photos: Wrestling at Durango High SchoolDurango High School boys wrestling beat Bayfield High School Tuesday night

Durango High School boys wrestling beat Bayfield High School Tuesday night

Photos: Where there's smoke there's firefightersDurango firefighters take advantage of the old River City Hall building for training

Durango firefighters take advantage of the old River City Hall building for training

Photos: Durango plays Montezuma-Cortez in boys, girls high school basketballDurango girls and boys basketball teams defeat Montezuma-Cortez at DHS

Durango girls and boys basketball teams defeat Montezuma-Cortez at DHS

Year in photos: A look back at Southwest Colorado in 2024Each year brings some of the new and some of the old – breaking news and cherished traditions. It is the people, their emotions, different cultures and varied forms of entertainment that make for impactful images. Add to that Southwest Colorado’s gorgeous scenery, abundant wildlife and range of weather events, and you have the makings for stunning photos. We hope you enjoy Photo Editor Jerry McBride’s photos from 2024.

Each year brings some of the new and some of the old – breaking news and cherished traditions. It is...

Montezuma County DA Christian Hatfield charged with DWICharges come 16 weeks after crash near Farmington, New MexicoMontezuma County District Attorney Christian Hatfield was charged Friday with driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs 16 weeks after he crashed his SUV on U.S. Highway 64 outside Bloomfield.The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office charged Hatfield, 59, with petty misdemeanor charge of DWI and an open container in connection to the Aug. 30 single-car crash.The charges come after results from a blood test by the New Mexico Department of Health Scientific Laboratory showed alcohol and a drug in Hatfield’s body after the crash.

“The results show that at the time of the blood draw, which was approximately eleven hours after the time of the crash due to medical issues, were 0.05 g/100 ml of Ethanol and 0.04 mg/L of Zolpidem (Ambien). Both Ethanol and Ambien are Central Nervous System Depressants,” the law enforcement report states.Two vials of blood were taken from Hatfield at 1:33 p.m. Aug. 30, which was more than 12 hours after the crash occurred about 1 a.m. Those vials were received by the New Mexico Department of Health Scientific Laboratory at 10:26 a.m. Oct. 11, which was six weeks after the crash, according to records from the lab.An investigation into the blood warrant by The Journal newspaper in Cortez, Colorado, showed that the blood sample sat in a refrigerator at the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office until Oct. 3, because paperwork to send it to the state laboratory was not processed.“I think it’s a non-prosecutable case because of all the errors made by law enforcement,” said Arlon Stoker, a high-profile defense attorney secured by Hatfield to fight the charges.

The charges made by the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office are “based on the observations made by law enforcement officers on scene and the presence of intoxicating drugs and liquors in Christian's blood,” according to the report that was given to The Journal by the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government.Amanda Lavin, legal director for NMFOG, assisted The Journal in accessing public records from the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office in Aztec. The records had been redacted, leaving out Hatfield’s name and information about the blood warrant filed in San Juan County Magistrate Court.Public records requests by The Journal and the Tri-City Record went unresolved for 14 weeks.The Journal requested body camera footage and lapel camera video on Sept. 3.The Tri-City Record requested any and all warrants, investigative reports and laboratory reports as well as photos, lapel cam videos and dash cam videos on Oct. 23.On Dec. 9, Lavin made the same requests.

The Journal received access to photos and videos in an email on Dec. 19, and Lavin, after making a legal argument for unredacted information, received the full report Dec. 19 and was advised that charges would be forthcoming.The report detailing the crash states that Hatfield was found “unresponsive and barely able to stand” about 1 a.m. Aug. 30 near the intersection of U.S. Highway 64 and County Road 5099.Investigators and medics noted a “pungent” odor of alcohol coming from Hatfield, and investigators found “an open 12-ounce can of Mexican Lager with residual liquid inside,” an “empty wine glass,” and a “bottle of Ambien prescribed to Christian,” according to the report.The affidavit for search warrant for blood submitted by sheriff’s deputy Avery Killifer states he had an “opinion that the defendant was driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or a controlled substance.” The deputy “placed the defendant under arrest” at the time, but Hatfield was taken to San Juan Regional Medical Center, because of “extensive injuries.”A summons was issued for Hatfield, and an arraignment is set for 8:30 a.m. Jan. 8 in Aztec Magistrate Court.

Charges come 16 weeks after crash near Farmington, New Mexico

Photos: Wreaths Across America honors fallen veteransDurango residents on Saturday honor those who served their country

Durango residents on Saturday honor those who served their country

Photos: Skyhawks men’s and women’s basketball Fort Lewis College men’s and women’s basketball lost to Regis on Saturday

Fort Lewis College men’s and women’s basketball lost to Regis on Saturday

Demons defeat Bobcats 62-47 on Friday at DHS

Photos: Durango, Farmington girls basketball face off at DHSFarmington came away with a 49-45 win

Farmington came away with a 49-45 win

Photos: Running up an appetite on Thanksgiving

Insulin Resistance the pre-cursor to diabetes

Durango boy’s vision salvaged through years of treatment

Oil company agrees to clean up historic lead contamination in Rico

How much does it cost Coloradans to have a hip replaced? A new online tool will tell you

Colorado researcher says people with PTSD are losing out on an effective treatment

Colorado hopes to raise awareness of dementia, start conversations, with new campaign

Durango-area officials tell Hickenlooper housing partnership is working well, but federal support needed

'We were expendable': Downwinders from world's 1st atomic test are on a mission to tell their story

Colorado legislators weigh grants for behavioral health services in jails

Coloradans cite cost concerns as major reason for delayed health care

Here is everything you need to know about the bird flu outbreak in Colorado

Durango woman opens first recovery residence in Southwest Colorado

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