Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

vail fire subpoena

While the world has gathered in Vail for the World Alpine Ski Championships, a Denver federal grand jury has subpoenaed members of a Colorado environmental group who were camping on the mountain the night of the arson attack which destroyed buildings

While the world has gathered in Vail for the World Alpine Ski Championships, a Denver federal grand jury has subpoenaed members of a Colorado environmental group who were camping on the mountain the night of the arson attack which destroyed buildings and lift equipment last October. According to reports, the grand jury subpoenaed a University of Colorado at Boulder student who is also a member of Ancient Forest Rescue, the Colorado environmental group. The group claims to adhere to a strict code of non-violent protest and says that the grand jury proceedings are an attempt to suppress their freedoms of speech and assembly. A spokesman for Ancient Forest Rescue called the grand jury investigation politically motivated and "intended to undermine our 1st Amendment rights." An FBI spokesman said the grand jury process is intended to gather information about who set the fires which destroyed the Two Elk Lodge, ski patrol headquarters and other buildings. A group called the Earth Liberation Front claimed responsibility for the Oct. 19 fires.