Off-duty officer dies hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park
Authorities say an off-duty police officer in Colorado has died in a 200-foot fall while hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park this week
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An off-duty police officer in Colorado died in a 200-foot (70-meter) fall while hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park this week.
Park rangers responded Thursday to Mount Lady Washington, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) northwest of Denver The rangers were helped in their search by a helicopter crew assigned to a wildfire near Steamboat Springs.
The Boulder police officer, identified as 35-year-old Ashley Haarmann of Loveland, took a tumbling fall and died at the park, authorities said.
Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold sent members of the department's command staff to the park to make sure Haarmann was covered with the American flag until she was escorted to the coroner's office.
“Our department is again mourning the loss of a friend, coworker and dedicated public servant,” Herold said. “Ashley was doing something she loved yesterday, and though it’s not much, I hope we can take some solace in that.”
Haarmann had worked for the police department for about 1 1/2 years.