30 years ago – February 15, 1985
Central City is being sued for $150,000 by James J. Peyrouse, a former employee of the city. At last year’s annual reorganization meeting, he was not reappointed to the position of city street and water commissioner. Peyrouse, who lives in the Lakeview Subdivision, has filed a $150,000 claim against the City of Central and Mayor William C. Russell Jr. and Rand Anderson, J.D. Carelli, Bruce Schmalz, and Florence Farringer as members of the City Council. According to the summons, filed in the United States District Court, council members have 20 days to answer the complaint. The first claim listed by Richard L. Miller, the attorney for Peyrouse, states that the action of the council “deprived plaintiff of rights… guaranteed him by the fifth and fourteenth amendments of the Constitution.” He states that Peyrouse was not granted “due process, procedural or substantive” before “denying and taking his property interest in his employment.” As a direct and proximate result of the wrongful acts, the amount of the first claim is $25,000. The second claim, entitled “outrageous conduct,” has resulted in the second claim being $25,000 by “reason of wrongful actions of the defendants.” The third claim, for $100,000, is for punitive damages. Miller alleges that the “firing was without formal notice, presentation of charges, opportunity for a hearing or any other requirements of due process.” He states that “there was, and is, no competent evidence to support the allegations of the defendants.”
The home of Bob and Wilma Nye caught on fire Monday evening. The house is located in Chase Gulch in Black Hawk. Black Hawk Fire Chief Mark Spellman said the department was notified about 6:30 p.m. It was spotted by someone on the Casey in Central City. That street overlooks Chase Gulch. Spellman said Bob Dornbrock, who lives down the road from the Nye’s and is the Gilpin County road supervisor, heard the call on his county radio. Before firemen could arrive, Dornbrock went to investigate and reported flames coming through the roof. Within minutes of the alarm, two Black Hawk fire trucks and 10 firefighters responded. Central City sent two trucks and about 10 people. High winds were prevalent when the firemen arrived, Spellman said. The nearest fire hydrant was about 1,200 feet away, but firefighters were able to get the lines connected and though not out, the fire was under control within about 30 minutes of the departments’ arrival. No one was home at the time of the blaze. It appears, Spellman said, that it was an electrical fire that had been smoldering. It started in the attic area of the home, then went to the roof and down into the walls. There is extensive heat and smoke damage to the interior of the home.
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