Election 2008

John McCain's Durango rally peaceful
by Ted Holteen
Herald Staff Writer

Bringing Republican presidential candidate John McCain to Durango was a challenge, but Durango Police on Saturday credited the local community and regional law-enforcement agencies for an incident-free event despite a politically divided crowd of nearly 8,000.

Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain and his wife, Cindy, walk out of their airplane Friday evening at the Durango-La Plata Airport. McCain was in Durango to give a campaign speech. His appearance generated a lot of buzz among supporters and drew his opponent's supporters out as well. The Durango Police Department said several law-enforcement agencies worked to oversee what was a peaceful event.

The police department estimated 6,000 people attended the speech at DHS, with an additional 1,000 to 2,000 left outside.

"There were no arrests - that is an amazing statistic for something like this," Capt. Micki Browning said.

McCain's visit placed him in three separate jurisdictions Friday night. The La Plata County Sheriff's Office was in charge when McCain's plane touched down and took off at the Durango-La Plata Airport; the Colorado State Patrol took over for the candidate's ride into and out of town; and the Durango Police Department oversaw his speech at Durango High School.

Browning said it will be a few days before she knows the exact number of law-enforcement personnel who worked the event. She said, though, that were at least 150 of them. In addition to local agencies, others that worked the event included the U.S. Secret Service, Federal and Colorado Bureaus of Investigation, Farmington and Ignacio police departments, Colorado Department of Transportation, Colorado Mounted Rangers, Fort Lewis College, Transportation Security Administration and Durango School District 9-R.

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