Police Notes: Man hit with tire iron

MONTROSE — Police Tuesday were still sorting out the details of a fight Saturday that sent two men to the hospital.

One of the men sustained a serious head injury from a tire iron, police said.

The disagreement leading to the alleged assaults began innocently enough — at a quinceañera party held at Friendship Hall July 4. Some people attending the coming-of-age event reportedly began arguing, although police on Tuesday hadn’t yet determined what prompted the disagreement.

Montrose Police Cmdr. Gene Lillard said the suspects then turned up at a home on East Locust where some of the other celebrants lived. They reportedly parked out of sight, then approached the trailer home on foot.

This time, things got physical, with as many as eight people duking it out. One of the men was reportedly struck in the head with a tire iron and his friends piled into a car to rush him to the hospital.

The suspects, who were not identified Tuesday, then fled to their vehicle and drove away.

Officers en route to the trailer on reports of a disturbance there encountered the car that was carrying the injured man. His face was covered with so much blood officers could not determine the origin of the injury. They called for emergency medical services personnel, who took both injured men to Montrose Memorial Hospital.

Lillard did not know the condition of either person Tuesday, or how the second man was hurt, because the matter was still under investigation.

He said there were persons of interest, but no arrests yet.

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Accidental shootings injure 2

GUNNISON — Two people were injured in separate shooting incidents over the holiday weekend in Gunnison County. Both incidents were deemed accidental, Gunnison Undersheriff Rick Besecker said.

But the 15-year-old female victim was lucky — the bullet missed bones, sparing her serious injury, he said.

The girl, from New Castle, was camping with her family at the Stevens Creek Campground. Besecker said as the party prepared to leave July 5, someone handed the girl a backpack, forgetting that a .357 Magnum was inside. The pack fell to the ground and the weapon discharged, striking the girl in the leg.

She was released from the Gunnison Valley Hospital the same day with what was called a “flesh wound.”

“Any gunshot wound is not a good gunshot wound,” Besecker said. “A .357, if it had struck bone, it could’ve done a lot of damage. Aside from the bullet missing entirely, this was probably the best-case scenario we could’ve ended up with.”

Because the gun was legally owned, no charges will be filed.

The second accidental shooting took place July 3 near a campground in the Taylor Park area.

There, a 41-year-old man apparently shot himself in the hand while cleaning a .22 caliber handgun he thought was unloaded.

He was taken to the Gunnison Valley Hospital for treatment; the Gunnison sheriff’s office did not know his condition, but said the injury had not appeared serious.

Boulder breaks hiker’s leg

GUNNISON COUNTY — A 20-year-old Evergreen man was seriously injured July 3 when he was struck by a boulder.

Gunnison County Undersheriff Rick Besecker said Matthew Ranker was hiking with friends in the Alpine Tunnel area, having entered from the Chafee County side.

As they hiked down a steep incline, a boulder dislodged, possibly after another hiker stepped on it. The rock came down, striking Ranker and breaking two bones in his lower leg. He sustained a compound fracture.

Besecker did not know the size of the boulder, or where Ranker was taken for treatment after being rescued; consequently, he did not know his condition Tuesday.

Other hikers were able to find a point where they could get a cell phone signal, and called for help at around 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Western State Mountain Rescue teams were able to reach Ranker and prepared him for transport out of the area by helicopter.

Pitkin Quick Response, emergency medical services, and Crested Butte Rescue also responded to the call.