Today is April 9, 2024, and here’s what you need to know:

As calving season reaches its mid-point, Colorado Parks and Wildlife reported on Monday that another calf was killed by a wolf, this time in Jackson County.

Wolf tracks were found in the area, along with a dead calf with a partially consumed hindquarter.

The state agency said there were four Wolves in the area, including from the 10 released in Grand County in December.

There are also at least two wolves that migrated into Jackson County from Wyoming several years ago. The original wolf pack has killed 16 livestock, sheep and working dogs in Jackson County.

Even as officials of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife insist the recent killing of a calf by wolf is not their fault, the relationship with ranchers has soured to the point private landowners have begun considering to restrict state access to their properties, potentially jeopardizing programs that rely on the latter’s help.

Notably, private landowners play a significant role in the state’s conservation work. Indeed, the state’s private land program says without that support, “modern-day Colorado’s remarkable wildlife abundance – and equally rich hunting and fishing opportunities – simply would not exist.”

That support is now in jeopardy.

Last week, as CPW officials maintained they were just trying to do their jobs, a letter from the Yuma County Cattlemen’s Association said ranchers will be less likely to help Colorado Parks and Wildlife and open land to the public because of how the wolf reintroduction transpired.

One or more of the wolves released in Grand County in December – which came from wolf packs in Oregon with a history of killing livestock – killed a calf near Kremmling on April 2. It was the first kill by one of the December wolves, although the predators from Wyoming who moved into Jackson County have already killed at least 16 livestock, sheep, and working dogs.

House Republicans on Monday pushed back against legislation to require payment networks, such as credit card companies, to provide processors with a merchant category code that will specifically be assigned to firearms and ammunition purchases.

Senate Bill 066 has already cleared its chamber of origin and was undergoing its final reading on the House floor.

Merchant category codes are four-digit numbers assigned to businesses by credit card networks to classify the types of goods or services they provide. While they are required for just about every other industry, they are not federally required for firearms and ammunition, given the constitutional protections afforded to these products.

The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday clarified that children who are injured in car accidents can file suit within three years of the collision or within two years of turning 18, whichever happens later.

The justices addressed confusion about how state law, which lays out the whichever-is-later standard, applied to the Supreme Court’s own precedent, which suggested the statute of limitations is put on hold and only begins to run once a child plaintiff turns 18.

Justice Melissa Hart, writing in the April 8 opinion, admitted the tension “is real.” But she explained the statute of limitations for injured children will start on their 18th birthday unless state law contemplates a different timetable – as it did for plaintiff Daniala Mohammadi.

A group has filed a federal lawsuit against Colorado lawmakers, alleging they suppressed – during public hearings – the free speech of those opposed to a bill that would provide a specific avenue for transgender individuals convicted of felonies to legally change their name.

Critics of the measure argued that the bill would put the rights of criminals to self identify above the rights of victims and the public to be able to track or be aware of someone’s criminal record. They also earlier said the bill should not be named after a felon, even as they raised public safety concerns.

Supporters countered that changing the name would not affect a felon’s criminal record, maintaining that will continue to follow the person, as a Social Security number does not change nor do fingerprints. They also accused critics of fear-mongering.