The Tourism Effect - The Durango Herald

Durango must maintain balance to lure tourists

In June, my wife (also named June) and I toured Machu Picchu, the mysterious Incan temple built high in the Andes in Peru. Being one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, I thoug...

DATE: Jul 7, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

We are not victims of this fire

The glowing, orange-red sun peeked out at me this morning as it rose above the ridge on the east side of the valley across from my house. It reminded me of summer trips my family...

DATE: Jun 16, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Durango puts best foot forward at IPW in Denver

I am writing this column from Denver today. As I look down from my 10th-floor hotel room, I see the back of a blue bear peering into the Denver Convention Center. Also known as “I See What Y...

DATE: May 26, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Durango has front-row seat at top travel trade show

This month, many of Colorado’s Destination Marketing Organizations, or DMOs, including the Durango Area Tourism Office, are abuzz with preparations for IPW. Produced by the U.S. ...

DATE: May 5, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Mesa Verde comes to Durango

“If Mohammed will not go to the mountain, the mountain must go to Mohammed.” This idiom is based on a story about the prophet Mohammed, who was asked to show his power by making Mount Safa c...

DATE: Apr 14, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

How to connect with potential tourists

Editor’s note: This is Part 2 of a two-part series on tourism marketing strategies.The relative importance of media to the tourism marketing industry has been drastically evolving over t...

DATE: Mar 23, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

How we decide where to aim our efforts

Editor’s note: This is Part 1 of a two-part series on tourism marketing strategies.Last month, I described, in percentages, where the Durango Area Tourism Office spent its marketing doll...

DATE: Mar 2, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Follow the money to find priorities of organization

These famous (or infamous) words by Deep Throat of Watergate fame have become a common sense way to determine the priorities and thought process of any organization. That is, fi...

DATE: Feb 10, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Durango must invest to lure business travelers

Editor’s Note: This is part four of a four-part series on the Four Pillars of a Strong Tourism Community.Last time, I described the third pillar of a strong tourism economy, which is a c...

DATE: Jan 20, 2018 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Moving in, out and around Durango

Editor’s Note: This is part two of a four-part series on the Four Pillars of a Strong Tourism Community.Last time, I described the second pillar of a strong tourism economy, which is the...

DATE: Dec 30, 2017 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

Political will in building a strong tourism community

Editor’s Note: This is part two of a four-part series on the Four Pillars of a Strong Tourism Community.Last week, I described the first pillar of a strong tourism economy, which is: The...

DATE: Dec 16, 2017 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

The Tourism Effect 4 pillars of a strong tourism community

EDITORâ€™S NOTE: This is Part 1 of a four-part series.Similar to a strong building structure, a community must have four well-supported attributes, or pillars, in order to survive and co...

DATE: Nov 25, 2017 | CATEGORY: The Tourism Effect

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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