That means all open fires and opening burning is banned within the City of Englewood.

The city has determined that the hot and dry conditions present an extreme danger for the possibility of an accidental fire.

The open burning ban applies to all outdoor fires and includes but it not limited to: campfires, chimineas, fire pits, warming fires, any charcoal fires, including barbeques and fire pits, fires in outdoor wood burning stoves and the burning of trash.

Violating the ban could result in fines up to $1,000. The ban will remain in effect until further notice.

The opening burning ban does not apply to fires contained within liquid-fueled or gas stoves and wood burning stoves within buildings, gas grill barbeques used for cooking or warming food, permitted public fireworks displays with adequate firefighting personnel and equipment assigned to be on the scene of such displays that have been approved by the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office.

Nakie Nicole Pratt, 37, was arrested shortly after midnight Sunday. Police said she stabbed her 53-year-old aunt in the neck and then ran away. Officers caught up with her outside the apartment.

Pratt’s aunt died a short time later at the hospital.

Fire bans and restrictions are shown on the website of the Colorado Division of Emergency Management. It’s a long list of Colorado counties and the information can change. People need to try to keep up, especially with the rules where they live or visit.

In Cherry Creek State Park visitors can bike or boat, but don’t even think about burning. Outdoor fires in the park are prohibited, and that includes camp fires.

“Charcoal (in a grill) is allowed but it can’t produce an open flame,” Arapahoe County Undersheriff David Walcher said.

[worldnow id=7396259 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Like much of Colorado, unincorporated Arapahoe County is parched. Since March the area has been under an open burning ban.

“It’s a bad year. It’s a very bad year,” Walcher said.

With the Fourth of July fast approaching the county is also cracking down on illegal fireworks.

“You know if it explodes or leaves the ground it’s illegal,” Walcher said.

A sign at Cherry Creek State Park (credit: CBS)

With the fire exploding west of Fort Collins, the state Emergency Operations Center has been activated since Monday, offering support and resources in fighting the High Park Fire.

“They were working on getting those Black Hawk helicopters from other states,” Micki Trost with the Division of Emergency Management said.

The Division Of Emergency Management also keeps the fire ban list. There are already more than 35 counties are on the list.

Authorities suggest people contact their local sheriff to learn about any fire bans and use common sense.

“If you even think that there is an unsafe condition in your area, if you’re thinking about checking a website, then you probably shouldn’t start that fire,” Trost said.

Sometimes just one ember can spark disaster.

Link: Colorado Fire Restrictions

Wildfire Resources

- Visit CBSDenver.com’s Wildfire Resources section.

- Read recent Wildfire stories.

Wildfire Photo Galleries

- See images from the most destructive wildfire (Fourmile Fire) and largest wildfire (Hayman Fire) in Colorado history.

Those who searched for the boy’s remains said the job was brutal. A team from 34 agencies along with citizen volunteers searched the disposal site in Arapahoe County for 52 days before finding the remains.

The baby’s mother, Sharrieckia Page, is now facing murder charges. Police believe Page suffocated her infant and threw his body in a dumpster. That lead to an exhaustive and emotional search of the landfill. It’s an experience rescuers will never forget.

[worldnow id=7381410 width=420 height=278 type=video]

“I said, ‘Absolutely. It’s a baby that needs to be found. He deserves justice and everything,’ ” volunteer Vickie Smiley said.

Smiley spent 40 days inside the landfill, searching for the unthinkable — the body of Torrey Brown, Jr.

“I’m thinking, ‘Let me find him; no, don’t let me find him,’ ” Smiley said.

7-month-old Torrey Brown (credit: the Brown family)

A 56-year-old grandmother of five, Smiley withstood heat, wind and rain, combing through an area two stories deep.

“You’re in a tyvek suit that keeps the liquids out, so it’s very hot; a lot of hard work,” Smiley said. “You’re out there going through tons of trash, raking and everything.”

She wasn’t alone, however. She and her fellow volunteers with the community emergency response teams were joined by more than two dozen police agencies and organizations.

“You build up a camaraderie. There was joking and everything, but down deep we all knew that there was something that we were looking for, and we were all determined to find it,” Smiley said.

And when they did, Smiley was about 20 feet away.

“That’s when the tears came. And I’ve cried off and on since then.”

It was the hardest job even veteran police officers say they’ve ever done.

“They were basically working through Hell so one small soul could go to Heaven,” an officer said.

Sharrieckia Page (credit: Adams Co. Sheriff)

Page has been charged with first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death. She will be back in court July 20.

The water rescue took place on South Gun Club Road in Arapahoe County, where waters were rushing at about 3 feet high.

Paul Robinson, the driver, told CBS4 that area isn’t well lit. He says says he felt the whole van rocking and there was no way to drive out of the water.

“You know, it’s testy — it scares you. But I’m a very good swimmer so I wasn’t really worried about it. I know how to handle heavy water situations, I know not to panic,” Robinson told CBS4 afterwards.

[worldnow id=7373315 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Rescuers say staying calm helped Robinson.

“That just is alarming,” said Jennifer Miller a customer of ACWWA.

The ACWWA is required by Environmental Protection Agency rules to notify all of its customers when the lead levels test high. The warning came in customers water bills and stated there are “high levels of lead in drinking water on some home” and that “lead can cause serious health problems”.

“The real problems lie within the fixtures and the solder that’s in the pipe and those things were put in those homes back in the mid-80’s,” said Gary Atkin, general manager of the Arapahoe County Water and Wastewater Authority.

[worldnow id=7276973 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Atkin says that the problem is isolated to the Chapparel neighborhood, where the homes were built in the 1980’s. Homeowners need to run their water about 15 to 30 seconds to clear the lead before they use it. Although the warning was sent to about 30,000 customers, most of the service area is made up of commercial property. People who live in newer homes, like Jennifer Miller, are not impacted by the lead warning.

“I feel that’s the type of information that should’ve been given to us,” Miller told CBS4.

Atkins wants to stress to everyone that the source of the problem is the pipes and not the source water. The Colorado Department of Health and Environment confirms that lead has not been detected in the Arapahoe County water source.

RELATED: More Reports By 4 On Your Side Consumer Investigator Jodi Brooks

- Written for the Web by CBS4 Special Projects Producer Libby Smith

Police arrested Darrin Ninneman, 30, at a home on the 5600 block of South Windermere Street Saturday evening after being called to a family disturbance.

Lorri Ninneman was taken to the hospital and died. The Denver Post reported that she was stabbed 10 times.

An image from the scene (credit: CBS)

In a videotaped confession to Arapahoe County investigators from Nov. 29, 2011, Sullivan seemed to make vague, sometimes wavering admissions that he may have had sex with minors. He told investigators he had used the “date rape” drug GHB on a cognitively impaired 34-year-old to have sex with the man and conceded he was guilty of sex assault on an at-risk adult.

Sullivan was never charged with sex assault on an at-risk adult or anything else emanating from that interview.

In a statement Tuesday to CBS4, the Denver District Attorney’s Office wrote, “The Denver Police Department extensively investigated the information provided by Pat Sullivan in the recorded statement he made to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office. Specifically, Denver police detectives investigated matters that may have occurred in the city and county of Denver.

The Denver police investigation results were presented to the Denver District Attorney’s Office in early April 2012. The results of that investigation were reviewed by two senior level lawyers, as well as the District Attorney Mitch Morrissey.”

Allegations relating to controlled substances and possible sexual assault involving a minor could not be established as incidents that occurred in the city and county of Denver.”

The conclusion was that no criminal charges could be filed as there was no likelihood of conviction.”

Lynn Kimbrough, a spokesperson for Morrissey, said her office would decline further comment on its decision in the Sullivan case “based on ethical and statutory considerations.”

- Written by Brian Maass for CBSDenver.com

“I’m sorry for so many things I’ve done … I am incredibly ashamed,” said Sullivan during a wide-ranging, three-hour police interrogation conducted November 29, 2011 at the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office. That interrogation occurred shortly after he was arrested in a sting operation that caught him attempting to trade methamphetamine for sex with a male acquaintance.

CBS4 obtained the confession tape earlier this month.

Sullivan confesses to taking sexual advantage of a 34-year old friend who has cognitive brain disorder by knocking the man out with GHB then having sexual contact. But the 69-year-old former sheriff was never charged with sexually assaulting minors or sexually assaulting an at-risk adult, which Sullivan confesses to in the interview.

“I was negligent in my responsibility to myself, my family my profession. And I’m gonna pay the price for it,” says Sullivan, under questioning from two Arapahoe County investigators who he hired when he was sheriff, Jeff Himes and Matt Hanagan.

“I apologize to you and I apologize to a lot of people,” says Sullivan as he looks across the table at his interrogators.

[worldnow id=7055526 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Following his November 29, 2011 arrest, Sullivan was charged with felony possession of methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine, attempting to influence a public servant and misdemeanor solicitation of prostitution.

Four months later, on April 3, Sullivan pleaded guilty to one count of felony methamphetamine possession and a misdemeanor prostitution charge and was sentenced to 38 days in jail. He was released last Saturday.

But he was never charged with any sex- related felonies despite the confession obtained by CBS4.

“So obviously a rough day for everybody,” says Agent Hanagan as the interview begins just after 5 p.m.

“I have a lot of respect for you… you hired me,” he says to Sullivan, as the three men sit around a table in the sparse interview room. “So I wouldn’t be where I am today without you. I just really appreciate the opportunity and I think Jeff feels the same.”

Sullivan responds by saying, “Well you know … it’s my own (expletive) fault probably, but I’m here because I’m… spent a career building organizations that help people.”

Sullivan indicates he has a granddaughter with a 6 p.m. volleyball game, so he tells his interrogators that he hopes they will be done with him soon.

[worldnow id=7063881 width=420 height=278 type=video]

For the next hour, the investigators trade small talk with Sullivan, chatting about his career and accomplishments and how he became involved in the drug trade.

“Right, you were my old sheriff though. You were the head in command of a 500 person, sworn-deputy agency… but, I mean is that not weird if you are me?” asks Hanagan, commenting on sitting across the table interrogating his old boss.

Sullivan initially seems evasive, changing the subject, sidestepping questions and providing half truths.

“This is a hard conversation to have with you,” offers Hanagan,” Because… I don’t know how you got to where you’re at today . I know you’re a man I had a lot of respect for,” says Hanagan.

Sullivan interrupts, “Do you have less respect for me now?”

“I’m just not sure what’s going on, Pat,” responds Hanagan. “You hired me. You put a badge on me, and you told me to go out and do my job to the best of my ability. And today I did that job to the best of my ability. And unfortunately what I got is you bringing drugs to the house.”

Sullivan initially denies any criminal behavior but Hanagan ratchets up the pressure, revealing that the sting at an Aurora home that afternoon was recorded, “We have video in that room. We have audio in that room. We have people watching you pull up. I watched you hand dope to (the informant) from another room.”

RELATED STORY: Guns, Gay Porn Recovered From Sullivan Home

“Pat, did you go pick up some dope today?” queries the agent.

“I could have,” responds Sullivan.

“And you think we could have been there?” replies Hanagan. “Pat you picked up dope today. Because we watched you pick up dope today.”

“Okay, I picked it up today,” confesses Sullivan.

From there, Sullivan begins to detail a hidden life of methamphetamine use merged with what he says is a bisexual lifestyle.

“I smoked the pipe from time to time, socially. It’s not something I smoke at home or have to have,” admits Sullivan, who said he never injected meth, only smoked it. He tells the men he is bisexual, not gay.

“I’ve had sex with a lot of guys in Denver…” said the former lawman.

“Did you ever smoke meth while you were sheriff here?” asks one of the interrogators.
“No,” responds Sullivan. “… Again, I don’t know exactly when I started. I can’t tell you the first time I smoked any. And may have smoked if somebody said well try it. So I may have tried it.”

“How does Pat Sullivan get involved in meth, smoking it?” he is asked.

“As one proud professional to another, fell off the wagon or something,” responds Sullivan, trailing off.

Much of the interview is spent pressing Sullivan about suspected sexual encounters with minors and an at-risk adult.

“There were times you did take advantage of (the at risk adult) sexually. Tell me I’m wrong. When you guys were in your drug induced- when you guys were on drugs you would engage him sexually, am I wrong? That’s true isnt it?,” asks Investigator Jeff Himes.

“Yes,” replies Sullivan.

“You know that (the at-risk adult) has cognitive brain disorder… you took advantage of him sexually, am I right?” presses Himes.

“Yes,” said Sulllivan.

“And knocking him out with GHB and taking advantage of him sexually, am I wrong about that?”

“No,” says Sullivan, who says he doesn’t recall precisely where and when those events took place and exactly what he did.

“Well, I want to admit everything I’m guilty of. But there may have been some cases where I may well have done them and can’t remember,” says Sullivan.

“Do you agree you’ve committed the crime of sex assault on an at-risk adult?” asks Himes.

“Yes,” responds Sullivan.

“Did he even know he was being taken advantage of?”

“I can’t answer that. You’d have to ask him,” replies Sullivan, who says he probably took advantage of the man four or five times.

The investigators spend much of the interview asking Sullivan about potential sexual liaisons with minors.

“Okay to my knowledge,” says Sullivan, “I was careful not to do have anything sexually with an under… or drug or alcohol underage,” says Sullivan.

“But,” asks Himes, “there was the couple of times you made the mistake?”
“May well have. I’ll grant you that may well have,” responds the former sheriff. “ If I did I did not do it knowingly and sober… What I’m saying is I might have been under the influence and did it. I’ll grant you that. That could very well have happened.”

Himes stays on the topic. ”I know you’ve engaged children sexually and I hate the fact I’m saying that to you but you’re right, you did teach me too well.”

“Well I’m proud of you’, says Sullivan, “damn proud of you, I’m proud of the work I did and I couldn’t see myself going against it like that.”

“But you did’, responds the investigator, “and its killing you inside right now.”

“It is. It is. It’s killing me right now. In fact so ashamed if I did,” laments Sullivan.

“Are you sorry you engaged those children sexually?” asks Himes.

“Yes. Incredibly. I’m sorry for so many things I’ve done,” says Sullivan.

But Sullivan then seems to head in a different direction, indicating he has not sexually engaged anyone underage.

“When was the last time you were with a child?” asks Himes.

“I can’t remember ever being with a child sexually,” says Sullivan.

But when Himes asks again, he gets a different response.

“So is it possible you engaged in a threesome with a 13 year old?”

“Yes,” responds Sullivan.”I apologize and plead guilty.”

“What was his name?” queries Himes.

“I have no idea.”

“Was he a runaway?” asks the investigator.

“I have no idea’,” says Sullivan, who says if such an incident occurred, Sullivan was unaware of his partner’s age or too impaired to remember such an event.

Sullivan vehemently denies ever having sexual contact with any students in the Cherry Creek school district, where he served as security director after he left the sheriff’s office.

“I apologize to you and everybody but am not going to take falls on things I never did,” he says.”Nothing ever occurred with a child at Cherry Creek.”

Sullivan offers to take a polygraph test in response to several accusations that he says are untrue.

Himes returns to the issue of having sex with underage boys.

“So,” says Himes, ”you’re saying you may have had sex with a 13 year old boy you just don’t recall it?”

“If I did I did not do it knowingly and sober… what I’m saying is I might have been under the influence and did it. I’ll grant you that. That could very well have happened,” concedes Sullivan.

After a little more than three hours, the interview concludes with Sullivan telling a deputy, “It’s the end of a proud career for me.”

He is then handcuffed and taken to the jail that was named after him.

CBS4 spoke with Michael Dougherty and Robert Shapiro, the two attorneys from the Colorado Attorney General’s office who prosecuted the Sullivan criminal case. They agree Sullivan made many damning, incriminating statements during the taped interview that were thoroughly investigated. Dougherty said he has viewed the interview eight to 10 times.

“His indication that he may have had sex with an at risk adult or minor caused us great concern,” said Dougherty, ”and we did not leave any stone unturned. We tried to find the minors but were unable to find any witnesses that could bring proof or provide proof or a consistent story that they had been sexually assaulted by Sullivan. You have to have a victim, and evidence and a case you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. We did not have those.”

Shapiro said the 22-person task force that investigated Sullivan “was still left with no living, breathing victim who could provide a credible account to corroborate the vague statements Sullivan made. Critical elements were missing that would have made it very difficult for a jury to return guilty verdicts,” concluded Shapiro.

He said authorities simply could not corroborate what he termed “pseudo admissions.”

The two prosecutors also said despite popular perception, Pat Sullivan ended up getting a harsher sentence than similarly situated defendants.

“When you look at defendants with similar drug offenses they get a misdemeanor or deferred judgment,” said Dougherty.

“He got a much harsher outcome,” said Dougherty, pointing out that Sullivan pleaded guilty to a felony and a misdemeanor and got jail time.

Shapiro called the Sullivan confession tape “one of the most unusual I’ve had the opportunity to review in my law enforcement career.”

- Written by Brian Maass for CBSDenver.com

A governing body that oversees three homeowners associations wants to build a concrete wall totaling about two miles on both sides of Riviera Way near Smoky Hill. Some residents support it, others are fighting it.

On Monday the East Smoky Hill Metro District approved the project.

[worldnow id=7025829 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Homeowners would pay $140 per year for 20 years to finance the wall. It would replace a wooden fence. Supporters say it would improve property values. Opponents say they’re being charged too much for something they don’t need.

“They’re not listening to the people who live here, so if feels like taxation without representation,” Highland Point subdivision resident John Carvey said. “That would assess each homeowner $2,800 over the next 20 years — $300,000 of interest.”

Several residents helped collect 165 signatures from neighbors asking to delay the vote, but they were overruled. They have also looked into options that are less expensive.

“To rebuild the wood fence is $80,000 … as opposed to $1.2 million,” Carvey said.

Eric Brunk with the East Smoky Hill Metro District said several residents are in favor of the fence.

“We realize we aren’t going to please everyone, but we’re at a stage where we determined it was right to go forward,” Brunk said.

Brunk also said proposals for less expensive options just don’t ring true.

“Over the 50-year lifespan of a concrete fence; the concrete fence and the wood fence come out about the same cost,” Brunk said.

Carvey said he will pursue legal action to stop the building of the concrete fence, but he realizes he faces some long odds.

“It’s kind of a David and Goliath situation for the homeowners here,” he said.

The East Smoky Hill Metro District said they’ve already spent $80,000 studying the project and they want to move ahead as soon as possible.

A governing body that oversees three homeowners associations wants to build a concrete wall totaling a mile on both sides of Riveria Way near Smoky Hill. Some residents support it, others are fighting it.

On Monday the east Smoky Hill Metro District approved the project.

Homeowners would pay $140 per year for 20 years to finance the wall. It would replace a wooden fence. Supporters say it would improve property values. Opponents say they’re being charged too much for something they don’t need.

[worldnow id=7025829 width=420 height=278 type=video]

“It’s not really in that bad a shape. It does need some repairs and some painting, but certainly you wouldn’t tear down a house that needs repairs and painting,” wall opponent Sara Neuder said.

“Stone is going to last longer, it’s not going to fade, it’s not going to easily be kicked, broken by anybody that would want to vandalize,” wall supporter Matthew Keller said.

Some homeowners are threatening to file a lawsuit.

Arapahoe County Sheriff’s deputies were notified of the threat at Newton Middle School on Wednesday.

They determined the threat to be credible and responded to the school with the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Squad. During the investigation they determined that the teen boy had taken steps toward completing the threat.

After interviewing the boy, components of an explosive device were thought to be located at his home. Investigators and bomb squad technicians searched the home and found evidence to support the credibility of the bomb threat.

He was taken into custody and transported to the 18th Judicial District Juvenile Assessment Center. The teen has been charged with possession of components thereof- explosive or incendiary parts, which is a felony.

Discussion among county leaders about changing the name Patrick J. Sullivan Detention Center began after Sullivan was arrested last fall.

“I asked them to delay it because of some criminal justice matters that were ongoing,” Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson said.

“Now that the former sheriff has admitted to criminal behavior and been sentenced to a felony crime, I think it’s appropriate for the board to go ahead and move on their policy of naming all facilities and specifically the jail.”

[worldnow id=6930301 width=420 height=278 type=video]

A week ago Sullivan pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine and soliciting a prostitute, bringing an end to the legal case.

On Tuesday morning the county commissioners removed Sullivan’s name from the facility within an hour of making the decision to remove his name.

“The board of county commissioners voted unanimously at my request to rename the Arapahoe jail to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office Detention Facility,” Robinson said.

Sullivan was sentenced to 38 days in jail and is currently in the detention facility. He should be released April 22 with the credit for time served.

An image of the facility before (below) and after the removal of the name "Sullivan" outside the facility. (credit: CBS)

In the next few weeks, the Arapahoe County Commissioners will discuss if there should be a policy against naming a building after any living person.

RELATED: Pat Sullivan Story Archive

WATCH: Sting Video Shows Ex-Sheriff Trading Meth For Sex: via HuffPost

Sharrieckia Page, 22, is the child’s mother. Commerce City police accuse her of child abuse resulting in death even though the family says police haven’t found the body yet.

The child’s father, Torrey Brown Sr., and grandmother, Corinthian Brown, say they’ve been told detectives have been searching in and around the Arapahoe County area for the baby boy’s body. They say it all could have been prevented.

“Was he in pain? Was he in pain? That’s what I think of when I look at his footprints,” Corinthian Brown said.

[worldnow id=6906202 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Corinthian Brown said she was very concerned about baby Torrey’s welfare. She called Child Protective Services on Page. She said last November she told case workers about threatening comments that Page made about the baby.

“‘If somebody doesn’t come help me,’ … she said she was going to hurt him,” Corinthian Brown said.

7-month-old Torrey Brown (credit: the Brown family)

Torrey Brown Sr. said he got the calls as well.

“Just a bunch of crazy stuff, and, ‘Don’t get mad if pretty much he ends up in a casket,’ ” Torrey Brown Sr. said Page told him.

The Browns said they offered to help Page and take all three of her children, but the young mother wouldn’t let them.

The Browns said when they saw detectives searching through dumpsters outside of Page’s apartment they new those threats became reality.

Sharrieckia Page (credit: Adams Co. Sheriff)

Torrey Brown Sr. said he also received a disturbing phone call from Page on Monday night from jail.

“She said, ‘This is what you wanted, right?’ And, ‘Are you happy?’ And then just hung up on me,” he said. “It showed that she’s not even feeling remorseful about it.”

Sullivan was immediately sentenced after the hearing. A judge sentenced him to 38 days in the county jail that bears his name, but he’ll only serve 30 days because of time already served. He was also fined $1,100 and will have to serve two years probation.

The 69-year-old former sheriff was charged with distribution of a controlled substance, possession of methamphetamine, prostitution and attempting to influence a public official.

The charges stem from a law enforcement sting last November. Police said they caught Sullivan attempting to trade meth for sex with a male acquaintance.

[worldnow id=6908454 width=420 height=278 type=video]

However, CBS4 reported in early March that Sullivan and prosecutors were engaged in plea bargain discussions, which had apparently led to the agreement.

Sullivan entered the courtroom Tuesday with the aid of a cane. He’s had surgeries on both of his legs and his left leg’s lower region is paralyzed.

Pat Sullivan in his mug shot taken on April 4, 2012 (credit: Arapahoe County Sheriff)

The defense told the judge Sullivan had a stellar record during his 19 years as sheriff and his position shouldn’t be used against him. But prosecutors said Sullivan used his position to trade meth for sex numerous times.

Prosecutors said he disgraced the badge and used his authority to commit criminal activity and used meth for sex time and time again; and possibly with an underage individual. They said he crossed the line and wanted Sullivan to spend time in jail or prison. The defense argued for only probation.

“He used that badge to have influence over a very, very vulnerable community,” Deputy Attorney General Michael Daugherty said. “So I think it’s an appropriate and just sentence.”

Sullivan addressed the court and said, “I apologize to the court, my family and the community. I offer no excuse for my behavior and I look forward to moving on with my life.”

“The lesson we learned here is law enforcement is held to a very high standard in this state,” Daugherty said.

He will also have to complete a substance abuse program. While he’s in jail he’ll spend his time in isolation to protect him from other inmates.

Timothy Faase pleaded guilty to possession of meth on Monday.

A Denver judge sentenced him to three years in prison and three years probation with credit for time served.

Police say he supplied meth to former Arapahoe County Sheriff Pat Sullivan, who is charged with trading the drug for sex.

Sullivan waived a hearing outlining the evidence against him last week.

CBS4 investigator Brian Maass has learned attorneys on both sides are talking about a plea deal in that case.

Sullivan, 69, is due in court Monday in Arapahoe County for a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for him to stand trial on charges of distribution of a controlled substance, possession of methamphetamine, prostitution, and attempting to influence a public official. The charges stem from a law enforcement sting last November. Police say they caught Sullivan attempting to trade meth for sex with a male acquaintance.

[worldnow id=6809669 width=420 height=278 type=video]

The plea bargain negotiations were described as being in the discussion stages with numerous issues still being hammered out, like the precise charge Sullivan would plead guilty to and sentencing recommendations.

If the two sides can agree on a plea bargain , that would negate the need for an actual trial.

Mike Saccone, a spokesperson for the Colorado Attorney General’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, told CBS4 on Sunday, “The hearing is still docketed, it’s still going ahead. We don’t comment on the existence or much less the progress of any negotiations that might or might not be going on.”

Kevin McGreevy, one of Sullivan’s attorneys, said Sunday night, “We have no comment to provide on the Sullivan matter.”

Sullivan is free on $50,000 bond.

- Written by Brian Maass for CBSDenver.com

Police say the men threatened tellers with a baseball bat and crow bar. It happened Thursday at the Key Bank on East Smoky Hill Road.

Arapahoe County police released images of the suspects. They say both men were wearing black masks when they demanded money.

The robbers are described as white men in their 20s. Both are about 5-foot-9.

Arapahoe County Sherriff Grayson Robinson may have inadvertently wondered into uncharted political waters this week when he announced he is sending out a bill for security services.

Sherriff Robinson announced that he is sending a bill to the Mitt Romney campaign for just over $25,000 to pay for the security that was needed from his deputies for a recent Romney campaign rally in Arapahoe County.

At first blush, this seems like a fairly common sense move since a private organization held a rally in a county and required extra security and coordination. And Sherriff Robinson has done this before, billing the Udall and Bennet campaigns for the security needed for their rallies.

However, when you realize that the Romney campaign has not been billed for local security before, you can understand that this relatively small bill for security services may set an important precedent for Colorado Presidential rallies.

Basically, what if billing campaigns for stops affects how often they will come to your town, or even state? Can this policy affect how relevant certain Colorado voters may be in November to the Presidential race?

Arapahoe County is an extremely important county in Colorado. It is politically balanced and made up of many suburban communities that will be part of big Congressional races.

In a nutshell, Presidential Candidates cannot ignore Arapahoe County, even if it is going to cost them extra money.

But the bigger question here is should local governments be forced to pick up the tab for extra security for big political rallies?

There are definitely two sides to this important question.

On one hand, if it is important for the electorate to see candidates running for the top position in the land, shouldn’t that same electorate collectively pay for the security for those events? These types of events get local issues in the national spotlight and highlight the importance of communities. For these benefits, communities should help pay to keep the attendees safe.

However, on the other hand, the electorate does not ask for these events to happen. And these events are not usually town hall meetings to get input from citizens. They are campaign stops, part of an organized effort to simply get votes, not answer concerns. Since the citizens have no say so about the events, and a private organization schedules the event, the campaign should pay for the security needed.

So, how do you feel about this? If either candidate comes to your town and your local authorities need to provide security, should campaigns pay for it? If they are forced to, and therefore decide to avoid your community, is that a fair consequence for billing campaigns for security?

I’m interested in hearing your side of the story. Leave a comment and tell us what you think.
About The Blogger

- Dominic Dezzutti, producer of the Colorado Decides debate series, a co-production of CBS4 and Colorado Public Television, looks at the local and national political scene in his CBSDenver.com blog. Read new entries here every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Dezzutti writes about federal, state and local matters and how our elected leaders are handling the issues important to Colorado. Dezzutti also produces the Emmy winning Colorado Inside Out, hosted by Raj Chohan, on Colorado Public Television.

“I think this is the right thing to do,” said Robinson, who plans to hand deliver his bill to the Romney campaign on Friday.

Robinson said he had to deploy 61 deputies for about four hours to deal with the Feb. 6 rally at Arapahoe High School that attracted 4,200 people.

The Sheriff has said he doesn’t think taxpayers should have to subsidize political rallys, especially when the campaigns are flush with money that they are spending on television advertizing and marketing.

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney holds a campaign rally at Arapahoe High School in Centennial on Feb. 6, 2012. (credit: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images)

Robinson said he’s not sure if the campaign will cough up the money.

He previously sent bills to both Sen. Michael Bennet and Ken Buck for security at their rallies when they were running for Senate, but neither paid up.

Robinson is a Republican.

[worldnow id=6753936 width=420 height=278 type=video]

Earlier this month when she heard about Robinson’s intention a Romney spokeswoman told the Associated Press it would be the first local security tab the campaign has encountered. She didn’t say whether the Arapahoe County bill would be paid

RELATED: Arapahoe County Sheriff Wants To Bill Candidates For Security