I woke up on Thursday, May 15, ready to plan a Friday newspaper filled with community stories about local osprey eggs, golf course openings, an upcoming Hispanic heritage celebration and closing day at Winter Park Resort.

We ran all those stories the next day. But we also ran something I did not anticipate during my second month as editor of Sky-Hi News.

I found out about it from concerned citizens who had read a Denver Post investigative report by Sam Tabachnik titled “A Colorado boy likely died from drinking too much olive brine. Grand County tried to make the suspicious case disappear.” Within hours, several more emails came in along with anxious, dismayed voicemails.

As I read the story, I learned that an autopsy revealed that 7-year-old Isaiah Stark died in 2020 from hypernatremia, or too much sodium in the blood, likely due to drinking olive brine. A mandatory reporter alleged that Isaiah Stark’s parents used olive brine as punishment.

Although an independent investigation by Jefferson County Human Services concluded that both parents were determined to be “founded” for fatal medical neglect and “neglect injurious environment” of Isaiah, no criminal charges were ever filed. The case was reviewed by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, which has declared it closed.

To complicate things, then-Grand County Assistant Coroner Tawyna Bailey was recorded on bodycam footage from the investigation saying things like, “I will do everything in my power to make sure this stays here,” according to the CBI investigation.

When asked by the Starks what the district attorney would do with the autopsy findings, she said the DA would review the report and “throw it aside.”

Bailey told the parents that if she were to receive a records request, she would respond with, “Geez, I can’t find that file” and that she “would take a long time to find that record,” the CBI report states.

Echoing Bailey’s sentiment, a Grand County Sheriff’s Office investigator said “the case was done,” according to the CBI report.

While it’s certainly possible these quotes were taken out of context, as former Grand County Coroner Brenda Bock has suggested, it’s hard to know because we do not have access to the bodycam footage.

In fact, we don’t have access to any records from the Grand County Sheriff’s Office investigation into Isaiah Stark’s death.

The Denver Post requested them, and the Sheriff’s Office declined to provide case investigation documents, including the body-camera video from the park, saying that disclosure of the records would be “contrary to the public’s interest.”

After we found out about the story, our reporting team at Sky-Hi News made a point to contact every county resident mentioned in the article. And we did. That’s because we respect our residents, and we will always put Grand County first. Everyone deserves a chance to defend themselves in the court of public opinion.

To be honest, I was skeptical upon first read. Our readers quickly noticed mistakes in the story’s photo captions. It’s the type of small but very important detail that can cast doubt on otherwise solid reporting.

But as I read it again and again, the rest of the stated facts checked out. Whether or not you agree with the existence of this story, or the way it was told, it was not simply made up.

While we received prepared statements from the Sheriff’s Office, the county, the district attorney and Bailey, no one was available for further comment. They all said essentially the same thing: that a comprehensive investigation had been conducted, and — while this was a tragic death — there were not enough findings to support a criminal case.

Six days after the story was published, we have still not received a response from Granby Police Department, where Jonathan Stark currently works as an officer.

After much discussion, we decided to run The Denver Post story on the front page of Friday’s newspaper. We changed the headline to “State whistleblower flags death of local child” to reflect the fact that a source of this story was Stephanie Villafuerte, the child protection ombudsman of Colorado who reported her concerns about the investigation to the CBI in 2023.

“We have been denied answers,” Villafuerte said.

As I tried to shake away my shock and dismay at the story, I had to agree. So, now it is time to come clean.

I am calling for the Grand County Sheriff’s Office to release the records requested by The Denver Post, including bodycam footage and police reports.

While the Sheriff’s Office may believe it is “contrary to the public’s interest,” I have to disagree. The public deserves to know, especially since this involves our public servants in the law enforcement, criminal justice and human services branches.

What’s called for here is transparency. Only then will our community be able to restore its faith in our elected and appointed officials.

Release the records, Grand County Sheriff Brett Schroetlin. Earn back our trust and honor the memory of Isaiah Stark.

Sean McAlindin is the editor of the Sky-Hi News. Reach him at 970-557-6031 or smcalindin@skyhinews.com.