Sunday, March 29, 2020

Woman rescued from the Colorado River

MESA COUNTY, Colo – At approximately 12:30 Sunday morning Mesa County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a woman in crisis who jumped into the Colorado River near 32 ½ Road.

Deputies found the 28-year-old female stuck on the far side of the riverbank about a half between the 29 Road Bridge and Corn Lake.

The Clifton Fire Department immediately worked to launch a boat in the river to reach her. In the meantime, fearing she would slip further down river, one deputy put on a life jacket and swam across the river with a rope.

The deputy was able to reach the woman and help keep her safe until the rescue boat arrived.

Both the woman and deputy were uninjured, however they were transported to the hospital to be treated for exposure. Overnight temperatures were in the upper 30s.

The Grand Junction Fire Department and Grand Junction Police Department also assisted with the rescue.

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office wants to remind the public there are free confidential and immediate support available 24/7 for anyone who needs it.
Colorado Crisis Services: Text “Talk” to 38255, call 844-493-8255, or visit coloradocrisisservices.org

Crisis Text Line: Text “Start” to 741741 or visit crisistextline.org

Friday, March 27, 2020

Rumor Control: NO documents need for Essential Travel in Mesa County


Local law enforcement wants to be very clear; NO documents are needed to go to work or do essential travel under Stay at Home order in Mesa County.

We have received questions from the community asking if critical employees traveling to and from work need an official document to prove they do in fact work for a critical service.

1. No, you do not need a document of any kind. Neither law enforcement nor Mesa County Public are issuing such documents.

2. If you are a critical employer, thank you for working during this time. You do not need to issue a document to your employees.
3. The Mesa County Sheriff's Office, Grand Junction Police Department, Colorado State Patrol, Fruita Police Department and Palisade Police Department are NOT stopping people driving out in the community specifically in regards to the Stay at Home order.

4. Law enforcement is operating under the presumption people who are out in the community are doing activities that are necessary and permissible under the Governor's Stay at Home order.

This also applies to people who are doing essential travel such as but not limited to going to the grocery store, picking up children from childcare, taking care of a loved one, getting medical care, etc.

For the full list of what is considered a critical business and essential travel under the Governor's Stay at Home order, click here.

Thursday, March 26, 2020

Additional COVID-19 Operational Impacts


The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office priority remains focused on the health and safety of our community, staff and those in our care.  As a result of the Governor’s order to stay at home and public health recommendations, additional enhanced safety measures have been implemented.

If you have an emergency call 911.

Records Lobby and Services

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office Records Lobby will be closed effective March 26, 2020.  All services performed by Sheriff’s Office Records through person-to-person contact are temporarily suspended.

Request for records in accordance with the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act, C.R.S. 24-72-301 and the Colorado Open Records Act, C.R.S. 24-72-201 can be submitted electronically. You can download the request form online and email requests to so-records@mesacounty.us.  

Individuals with Concealed Handgun Permits (CHPs) that are recently expired or nearing their expiration date will receive a letter from the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office extending the expiration date of their permit at no additional cost. 

Records staff will also be available by phone (970) 244-3500 during normal business hours.

The Civil Unit will remain open for emergency orders following direction from 21st Judicial District Court.  This includes temporary protection orders. The Civil Unit can be accessed through the Detentions Lobby during normal business hours.

Detention Lobby

The Detention Lobby will remain open to facilitate the release of inmates and attorney-client video visits.  The public is encouraged to stay at home and alternatively use online services for inmate fund deposits.

All of the current operational modifications at the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office are listed for your convenience online at https://sheriff.mesacounty.us/covid19/

Thank you for your cooperation while we work together to prevent unnecessary possible exposure to COVID-19 or any other illnesses.

Deputies involved in OM officer-involved shooting identified

Deputy Shaver Hansen
Deputy Jason Bailey

MESA COUNTY, Colo - The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office is identifying the two MCSO deputies involved in the officer-involved shooting that occurred in the evening of March 17, 2020.

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office deputies who discharged their duty firearm during this incident are Deputy Jason Bailey, and Deputy Shaver Hansen.

Deputy Jason Bailey is a 4-year veteran of the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office. He is a member of the MCSO SWAT team, a Firearms Instructor and is a patrol liaison to the Sheriff’s Office Citizen’s on Patrol volunteer program. Deputy Bailey is currently assigned to patrol.

Deputy Shaver Hansen is a 3-year veteran of the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office. He is a member of the MCSO SWAT team, a Firearms Instructor and is a recipient of the Life Saving Award. Deputy Hansen is currently assigned to patrol.

As per standard protocol, Deputy Jason Bailey, and Deputy Shaver Hansen will remain on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation that takes place independently of the Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) investigation.

Two Grand Junction Police Department officers were also involved in the incident. To view the Grand Junction Police Department release click here.
The officer-involved shooting remains under investigation by the Critical Incident Response Team. For the information about the CIRT investigation click here.

Update:
The 21st Judicial District Attorney’s Office released its review of the Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) investigation of the officer-involved shooting on March 17, 2020. District Attorney Dan Rubinstein’s findings can be reviewed here:

Wednesday, March 18, 2020

Web Page Launched for Operational Impacts of COVID-19

MESA COUNTY, Colo - In order to provide timely accurate information to the community about operational impacts to the Mesa County Sheriffs Office due to COVID-19, a new web page was launched.

The new web page is sheriff.mesacounty.us/Covid19/.  It is part of the main Sheriff's Office website.

This new resource will have updated information about any Mesa County Sheriff's Office operations, including suspensions of non-essential services and links to services available online. We recognize this is an evolving situation and hope this resource will be a valuable tool for people who need to conduct business with the Sheriff's office.

911 emergency services are not impacted. Please, call 911 for emergencies.

We are taking steps to ensure the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office will remain open and operational to the fullest extent possible.

Continue to stay up to date on Mesa County Sheriff's Office Operations here.

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Operational Impacts of COVID-19

As a precaution to help stop the spread and prevent unnecessary possible exposure to COVID-19, the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office has implemented enhanced safety measures.

If you have an emergency call 911.

Our public access lobbies remain open, however we are encouraging people to use our website. Please visit Sheriff.MesaCounty.us for online services such as reporting a non-emergency crime, and scheduling an off-site video visitations.

The following services have been suspended to protect our employees and the community we serve.
  • Fingerprinting services
  • New Concealed Handgun Permit Applications (due to required fingerprinting)
  • Evictions
  • VIN Verifications 
These changes do not impact Concealed Handgun Permits renewal applications.

Our Civil Unit will remain open for emergency protection orders following direction from 21st Judicial District Court.

Mesa County Detention Facility

In order to maintain social distancing recommendations, in-person video visitation will be suspended for the general public starting tomorrow. Attorneys will now use the service to meet with clients instead of entering the facility for in-person visits.  Off-site video visitation remains available. Inmates can also be contacted by phone, mail, and email.

We understand the hardship this creates for families wishing to stay in contact with their loved-ones in jail.  As a result, we are working to waive any fees associated with off-site video visitation. To set up an off-site video visitation go to ICSolutions, or call (888) 646-9437. More Instructions can be viewed here.

The Detention Lobby will remain Open. People can still come in-person to use the Kiosk to add funds to an inmate’s account. You can also do this online. Resources are available on our website at Sheriff.MesaCounty.us and below:
Commissary:  Access Corrections https://www.accesscorrections.com/  1-866-345-1884
Phone: Inmate Calling Solutions  (ICS) https://www.icsolutions.com/  1-888-506-8407
Tablet: Telmate https://www.telmate.com/   1-866-516-0115
Mail:
The Inmate's Full Name and booking number
c/o Mesa County Detention Facility
P.O. Box 20000-5017
Grand Junction, CO 81502

We are continuing to coordinate with Mesa County Public Health to monitor this rapidly changing situation and will make public safety changes as necessary.

For information specific to COVID-19 please visit Mesa County Public Health’s website at https://health.mesacounty.us/covid19/ You can also call the information hotline at (970) 683-2300.

Previous Press Releases about MCSO's efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19 can be viewed here.

Monday, March 16, 2020

MCSO efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19

With the first presumptive case of COVID-19 in Mesa County, we want to ensure our community the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office will remain open and operational to the fullest extent possible.

If you have an emergency, call 911. Emergency services have not been impacted.

At this time, our Records, Civil and Detentions lobbies are open for business and operating normal business hours. To help stop the spread of illness, we ask if you are experiencing symptoms such as a fever, cough, or shortness of breath, please refrain from visiting in person.

Several of our services are available online at Sheriff.MesaCounty.us. You can also call (970) 244-3500 to speak with Records or Civil personnel over the phone during business hours. If you do come to the Sheriff’s Office in person, for the safety of our community and staff we are encouraging social distancing to help stop the transmission of the virus.

The Mesa County Detention Facility (MCDF) has begun to modify operations as a precaution due to COVID-19. Our priority remains focused on the health and safety of staff, inmates and volunteers while they are in our care. At this time, all non-essential volunteer programs have been suspended. We have also limited access to the facility to staff and essential personnel.
FAQs
Do inmates have access to Medical Services?
Mesa County Detention Facility has medical staff on-site 24/7. Both medical staff and the Sheriff’s Office are coordinating with Mesa County Public Health on COVID-19. 
How is MCDF screening for COVID-19?
Before entering the Mesa County Detention Facility all inmates are screened by on-site medical staff as part of the booking process. This is a normal procedure. If anyone has symptoms or is believed to have been exposed, they will be isolated from the general population until they can be evaluated further by medical staff per Mesa County Public Health procedures to include getting tested for COVID-19.

Do inmates have access to soap and cleaning supplies?
Inmates do have access to soap and water for handwashing. Inmates and all staff members also have access to cleaning products to disinfect common areas as needed and for inmates who want/need to clean their personal living spaces. The facility is also cleaned regularly to help with prevention.

How can I stay in contact with an inmate in MCDF?
We want to remind the public you can stay in contact with inmates a number of ways: By mail, phone, email and video visitation. In-person video visitation is still available, however, we are encouraging people to sign up for off-site video visitation. More information on how to sign up for any of these services can be found on Sheriff.MesaCounty.us.

Thank you for your cooperation while we work together to prevent unnecessary possible exposure to COVID-19 or any other illnesses.

For information specific to COVID-19 please visit Mesa County Public Health’s website at https://health.mesacounty.us/covid19/. You can also call the Mesa County Public Health information hotline at (970) 683-2300.

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

7 arrested in joint fugitive apprehension operation

Michelle Smith, 23
MCSO Photo
Joshua Dalley, 29
MCSO Photo
MESA COUNTY, Colo – Mesa County Sheriff’s Office Street Crimes Unit in partnership with the U.S. Marshals Office, ATF, Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Parole conducted a one day operation to apprehend wanted fugitives in Mesa County.

As part of Monday’s operation, seven people with active warrants were arrested without incident and taken to the Mesa County Detention Facility.

Joshua Dalley, 29, of Grand Junction was arrested on an active felony warrant from Parole.

Michelle Smith, 23, of Grand Junction was arrested on four active felony warrants and the following additional charges:
  • Possession of more than 4 Grams Schedule I/II Controlled Substance (DF4)
  • Possession of less than 4 Grams Schedule I/II Controlled Substance (DM1)
  • Fredrick Cunningham, 47
    MCSO Photo
     
    Joshua Aquiningoc, 32
    MCSO Photo
  • Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (DPO)
Joshua Aquiningoc, 32 of Clifton was arrested on an active felony warrant from Parole and the following additional charges:
  • Possession of Weapons by Previous Offender (Class 6 Felony)
  • Possession of less than 4 grams Schedule I/II Controlled Substance (DM1)
  • Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (DPO)
  • Drove motor vehicle when license under restraint
Fredrick Cunningham, 47, of Grand Junction was arrested on an active felony warrant from the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office and the following additional charges:
  • Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (DPO)
  • Possession of less than 4 grams Schedule I/II Controlled Substance (DM1)
  • Larry Nave, 53
    MCSO Photo
      
    Jesse Tinsman, 30
    MCSO Photo
    Kimberly Selan, 43
    MCSO Photo
  • Drove motor vehicle while revoked as habitual offender (M1)
Jesse Tinsman, 30, of Grand Junction was arrested for an active warrant of 2 counts of Failure to Register as a Sex Offender (Class 6 Felony).

Larry Nave, 53, of Grand Junction was arrested for 2 active warrants: Failure to Register as a Sex Offender (Class 5 Felony) and a Parole Violation.

Kimberly Selan, 43, of Grand Junction was arrested on an active felony warrant from Parole and the following additional charges:
  • Possession of more than 4 grams Schedule I/II Controlled Substance (DF4)
  • Possession of Schedule III/IVIV Controlled Substance (DF4)
  • Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (DPO)

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office wants to thank our state and federal law enforcement partners who are dedicated to this collaborative effort of making our community safe.