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News in Brief

Train folks hope to get back on trackRailroad supporters plan to take another stab at lobbying the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority to allow a tourist and dinner train to operate between Glenwood Springs and Carbondale.Local backers of train service announced in a news release that their three-month effort to find an excursion train operator produced a proposal from Armitage Investment Group, whose investors are from Denver and Boulder. The RFTA board of directors will be alerted about the proposal at its meeting Thursday.”The board is being asked to allow time for complete proposals to be submitted and assure respondents it will give meaningful consideration to the proposals and leasing the rails to a qualified owner/operator,” said the statement from the local rail fans.The dinner train would have three cars that have white linen cloths and fine china. A first-class dinner would be offered on Friday and Saturday nights for an “average” cost of $65 per person.The RFTA board turned down a similar proposal in May because it was too vague and presented too much of a financial risk to the organization. The board also considered tearing up the track between Glenwood and Carbondale but delayed a decision.The local group, called Rails and Trails, made information about the excursion train proposal available at its website at kipwh.com/train.

Woman denies dog bit officerAn Aspen woman accused of keeping a vicious dog said Monday that her dog never bit Aspen police officer Leon Murray when he showed up on Aug. 5 to mediate a dispute between the woman, Claudia Verellen, and another tenant in the building at 605 W. Main St.Verellen said the dog was upset before Murray even came to the door and admitted that when Verellen’s baby sitter opened the door the dog dashed out at the officer.But, she insisted, “He never touched anybody. The dog did not bite.” Verellen, 39, was at work when the incident occurred and said she plans to fight the charge in municipal court.

Judge issues restraining order against DA’s husbandA judge issued a restraining order against Fred Truden, husband of 9th District Attorney Colleen Truden, Monday at the behest of a recall volunteer who alleges Fred Truden accosted her while she was collecting signatures on a petition to recall his wife.An Eagle County judge signed the restraining order, reportedly because 9th Judicial District judges recused themselves because of their involvement with the district attorney’s office.The volunteer, Christina Chapin, is married to James Leuthauser, a former deputy district attorney who worked for Truden’s predecessor, Mac Myers.According to a statement on the application for the restraining order, Chapin, of Glenwood Springs, was collecting signatures on the petition at Silt’s annual Heyday celebration Saturday “when an irate man came up and started screaming at me. He said he was Fred Truden, Colleen’s husband, and demanded to know what I thought I was doing. He was very angry and was screaming that I was a liar and full of lies.”She said after circulating through Silt’s Veterans Park a man came up to sign her petition and Fred Truden again yelled at her and the man.Neither Fred nor Colleen Truden returned phone messages left for them Tuesday.According to the restraining order, Fred Truden must keep a distance of at least 25 yards from Chapin and have no contact with her either directly or through a third party. A hearing on the order is set for 10 a.m. Friday in county court.