KVNF REGIONAL NEWSCAST

LOCAL NEWS: The Montrose High School Advanced Jazz Ensemble has been selected to perform at the 2026 Colorado Music Educators Association (CMEA) State Conference, according to a press release from Montrose County School District. Each year, only two high school jazz ensembles statewide are selected through a competitive audition process to perform at the conference, and ensembles may apply only once every three years. The Advanced Jazz Ensemble last appeared at the conference in 2023, making this selection a significant achievement. The ensemble will perform at 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, at the International Center at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs. Students have been preparing their conference program since August, dedicating months to refining their performance.

A break-in at the Bruins Baseball equipment shed in Cedaredge resulted in a large chunk of the youth baseball program's equipment being stolen. Everything from helmets and gloves, the tees and bases were stolen. Over Christmas break, The Bruins Little League equipment shed was broken into, and unfortunately, a significant amount of equipment was stolen. This happened while we were already trying to raise funds to replace our field maintenance 4wheeler, which was stolen during the 2024 season. The group started a GoFundMe asking the community to help recoup what was stolen.

Montrose Regional Crime Stoppers is seeking information concerning a theft from Sidelines Sports Bar, 35 N. Uncompahgre Ave., on Jan. 13. At about 11:30 p.m., an unidentified man accessed the coin mechanism of a pool table in the bar, damaging the table, and stealing the coins before leaving with a group of other men. Anyone with information about this crime or the identity of the perpetrator(s) or any other crimes may call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 970-249-8500. Citizens can also provide information directly to the Montrose Police Department.

The trials for two men accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl in Ouray County in 2023 have been postponed. Gabriel Trujillo and Ashton Whittington were set to go to trial starting Feb. 9, but Seventh Judicial Chief District Judge Cory Jackson agreed to delay those trials at the request of prosecutors and attorneys for both men. Trujillo is now scheduled for trial this summer. The judge didn’t immediately set a new trial date for Whittington during the hearing. The two men, along with the stepson of former Ouray Police Chief Jeff Wood were charged with felony sexual assault in connection with the alleged incident in May 2023 at Wood’s home. Several reasons for delaying the trials for Trujillo and Whittington, including difficulty in securing a witness who would be traveling from Germany and limited availability for one of the Deputy District Attorneys in the case. The complete story is available at ouraynews.com

ENVIROMENTAL NEWS: The push by the Trump administration to keep Colorado’s coal plants running is projected to be a costly proposition for ratepayers. Eric Galatas has more.

FEATURE STORY: Over 700,000 animals are used in laboratory research every year in the United States. There's an on-going debate over the ethics and necessity of using live animals in experiments and product testing. But some of those animals do have a better life after they leave the lab. For Rocky Mountain Community Radio, K-G-N-U's Sam Fuqua reports from Wyoming