🔎 Why a triple murderer won’t get life

⛰️ Outside Festival Declared a Success!

City officials are praising last week’s first-ever Outdoor Festival as a smash success. Some 18,000 attendees crowded into Civic Center Park on a sweltering June weekend for outdoor recreation and industry films, demos, gear sales, panel discussions, and live music. Plans for next year’s event are already underway. The festival was created to replace (and rival) the former Outdoor Retailer trade show that moved to Utah in 2022. [CO Sun]

⚠️ Councilwoman Sick from ‘Contaminated Documents’

Denver’s District 7 City Council member Flor Alvidrez has put all in-person constituent meet-ups on pause after she says she fell ill following a gathering at the end of May. Alvidrez claims she came into contact with “contaminated documents” containing an unknown substance at that meeting. For now, the councilwoman will be available via phone, video calls, and email. The Denver Police Department is looking into the incident. [Denverite]

• Worth noting: This incident comes just a few months after the councilwoman found herself at the center of an ethics investigation. [Denverite]

🔎 Shoddy Work of Disgraced CBI Lab Tech Goes Back Decades

An internal investigation into the work of Yvonne “Missy” Woods, a former forensic scientist with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, revealed that Woods had been manipulating evidence in criminal cases for decades — including altering and omitting test results. The report also claims that colleagues of Woods had raised concerns about her work to management multiple times to no avail. [CPR]

• The repercussions: The state is prepared to spend $7.5 million reinvestigating hundreds of criminal cases that Woods worked on dating all the way back to 1994. Just this week, a man convicted of triple murder in Boulder County was able to avoid a life sentence in part due to Woods’ data manipulation. [Denver Post 🔒]

🎢 Tourist Traps and Treats

It’s no secret, Denver is a tourist destination — but how do you know which attractions around the Mile High are actually worth taking out-of-town visitors to and which you should be sure to steer clear of? Don’t worry, we’ve got the scoop. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

The Mile High’s Best and Worst Tourist Traps

Which tourist attractions are worth the trip, and which ones are worth the skip? From Tiny Town to Water World, the City Cast Denver podcast crew shares their insights into what Mile High adventures are worth your time, money, and attention.