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Perseverance, grace key for Denver women who have succeeded in Colorado’s justice system
History continues to be made in Denver and to highlight the end of Women’s History Month over the weekend CBS Colorado highlighted women paving the way for the next generation.
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Denver is one of the few cities across the country where women outnumber the men in areas of the legal profession. According to the American Bar Association as of 2023, women make up 39% of all lawyers. That’s up from 29% at the turn of the century. In Denver, the first-female elected district attorney, Beth McCann, now leads an office that has 62 female prosecutors and 58 male prosecutors. Under McCann, the number of female prosecutors exceeded the number of male prosecutors in 2019. She says this wasn’t by design, it just happened as she looks for the best candidates regardless of gender.
Still, with big power, comes big responsibility.
It’s a mission Denver District Attorney Beth McCann, assistant DA Maggie Conboy and Chief Deputy Jane Walsh understand.
“One of the things that I think does make a difference when you have a woman running the office is that I think we are sensitive to the work-life balance,” said McCann.
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They are three women who balance the pressures of working in the justice system while also finding family time and exploring Colorado’s outdoors.
“I ran for this job previously in 2004 and didn’t win and that was a real blow, as you might imagine, took me a while to recover from that,” said McCann.
Perseverance is a big part of how McCann landed this historic role.
“I said okay, I’m going to try this one more time, and see if I can pull it off,” said McCann, “You know, that was a big accomplishment for me personally and professionally.”
When she finally decided to run for the position again, she knew she had to be confident, but it wasn’t easy.
“You have to be willing to really spend a lot of time and energy marketing yourself, if you will,” said McCann. “That’s not always a comfortable place for women.”
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With that in mind-she has vowed to try make it a comfortable place for women just like her.
A big difference she has made in the role since taking office was adding paid maternity and paternity leave, something that was not offered before.
McCann has also created various new units and expanded on others to bring victims justice, including the Human Trafficking unit and the Elder and At-Risk Adult Abuse Unit, which Jane Walsh leads.
“I think it’s encouraging that we have a large public office here that is being managed and run by a woman,” said Walsh. “I found a lot of mentors, a lot of role models in Colorado and people have also been extremely kind of generous with their time, their knowledge and their support.”
Support has come from women like Maggie Conboy, who, even with a busy workload, understands the importance of reaching out to other team members.
“I will say I’ve been lucky enough that there were women 5,10, 20 years in front of me who broke through a lot of the glass ceiling,” said Conboy, “I think women my age know some stories about times when perhaps, we were not treated as fairly being women, but I think nowadays it’s a lot better than it has been.”
The office also started a peer support group five years ago with the intention to help staff cope with any trauma they may encounter while on the job.
“Our folks here, not just the attorneys, but the staff as well are exposed to a lot of trauma. I mean, horrible trauma, they see pictures, they read documents, you know, they read descriptions about just horrible things that you can’t really even imagine,” said McCann.
Six people in the office went through a 40-hour training to become peer supporters. They are now available to staff if they feel the need for it.
“We do have a psychologist who will who sort of help us if someone really needs more intensive kinds of treatment,” added McCann.
It is through these additions she hopes to help with the overall work environment.
“I think those kinds of things are things that you know, having more women in leadership positions contributes to helping us deal a little more equitably with work-life balance,” said McCann.
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New Zealand airport with 3-minute cap on farewell hugs “surprised how much global interest” there’s been
Wellington — A New Zealand airport has imposed a three-minute limit on farewell hugs, sparking a worldwide debate over how long to cling on for a cuddle. Bosses at the international airport in the southern city of Dunedin say they were surprised by the viral response to their new rule in the car drop-off zone.
“To keep things moving smoothly, we’ve installed new signage, including the ‘Max hug time 3 minutes’ sign,” said airport chief executive Daniel De Bono. “It’s our way of being a little quirky and reminding people that the drop-off zone is for quick farewells.”
“And don’t worry,” added De Bono, “just a 20-second hug is enough to release oxytocin and serotonin, the happy hormones that boost well-being, so three minutes is plenty of time to say goodbye and get your dose of happiness.”
Sarah Soper/AP
People who want a longer hug can use the parking lot, where the first 15 minutes are free, he added.
The hug restriction made headlines worldwide — and prompted a divided online response.
“I’m just glad there’s no minimum hug time. A ‘see ya soon’ suffices,” one woman commented on the airport’s Facebook page.
“Hug Police!? This is just weird! Hugs are proven to have many benefits not to mention mental health,” said another poster.
The small airport, which was used by fewer than 1 million passengers last year, said it had imposed the hug time limit in September, with little initial reaction.
“We have just been surprised how much global interest there has been,” said the airport’s marketing and communications executive, Sarah Soper.
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Kentucky state Sen. Johnnie Turner dies after plunging into empty swimming pool on lawn mower
Kentucky state Sen. Johnnie Turner, known for his staunch support for the coal industry and other causes in his Appalachian district, has died after being injured at home last month when he plunged into an empty swimming pool while aboard a lawn mower. He was 76.
Turner, a Harlan Republican, was known for his folksy manner that endeared him to constituents and colleagues alike. Turner died Tuesday evening after his “hard-fought battle” with injuries sustained in the accident, Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers said in a statement Wednesday.
“Johnnie spent his life lifting others – whether through his service in the U.S. Army, as a member of the State House of Representatives and State Senate, or in his private legal practice,” Stivers said. “His unwavering commitment to the people of eastern Kentucky – his constituents, brothers and sisters in Christ, whom he so fondly referred to as ‘his people’ – was at the heart of everything he did.”
U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell recalled crossing paths with Turner while back in his home state to survey damage from flooding that swamped parts of eastern Kentucky.
“Johnnie was on the scene, ankle-deep in mud, his equipment from home in tow, ready to help folks in Letcher County,” McConnell said Wednesday in a statement. “That’s just who he was: a good man who loved the mountains and its people.”
Bruce Schreiner / AP
Kentucky Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer said Turner’s death was heartbreaking.
“He was just an amazing man of the mountains, who is kind and generous and open-minded about supporting initiatives that were good for the entire state, while at the same time being a fierce advocate for his region,” Thayer said Wednesday in an interview.
Turner pushed for pro-coal legislation and other measures aimed at uplifting his Appalachian district, spanning several counties in eastern Kentucky. Coal employment, once the backbone of the eastern Kentucky economy, fell sharply over the last decade as cheaper natural gas prices and tougher environmental regulations prompted electric providers to move away from buying coal.
In August, CBS affiliate WYMT interviewed Turner about his fight to keep the coal industry operating.
“This government trying to kill the coal industry it ain’t going to happen in Kentucky it just ain’t going to happen,” Turner told the station.
But Turner looked well beyond his district to back measures benefiting the rest of the Bluegrass State, Thayer said, pointing to Turner’s support for a high-stakes horse racing bill a few years ago. That measure secured the legal status of wagering on slots-style historical racing machines, a lucrative revenue source for racetracks. It was a tough vote for Turner, who represented a socially conservative district.
“He told me that he saw what happened to the coal industry in eastern Kentucky and he didn’t want to see another leading industry – in this case the horse industry – have the same thing happen to it,” Thayer said. “I really appreciate his courage on that.”
Turner served in the Kentucky House from 1999 to 2002. House Speaker David Osborne said Wednesday that Turner was an “ardent champion and passionate voice for eastern Kentucky.”
“We are saddened by his loss, but know that his legacy will live on in those he helped,” Osborne said.
Turner, an attorney, won election to the state Senate in 2020, ousting a Democratic incumbent with the same last name. Turner defeated two challengers in the Republican spring primary this year.
Turner was born on Christmas Eve in 1947, WYMT reported. The Harlan County native served in the U.S. Army from 1967 to 1969 in the Panama Canal Zone where he met his wife, Maritza, the station reported.
With his death coming so close to the election, Turner’s name will appear on the general election ballot, the secretary of state’s office said. His lone November challenger, an independent candidate, recently withdrew from the race. Write-in candidates have until Friday to file for the seat, but otherwise a special election will be needed to fill the seat, the secretary of state’s office said.
Kentucky’s GOP-dominated legislature will begin its 2025 session in January. Until then, lawmakers are meeting in interim committees to study a range of issues in preparation for next year’s 30-day session.
Half of the eight battleground states in this year’s U.S. presidential election use the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, a rate that hasn’t changed since 2009 despite a 47% surge in the cost of living since then. In essence, that means minimum-wage workers in those states have seen much of their purchasing power vaporized by inflation over the past 15 years.
Donald Trump’s October 20 visit to a McDonald’s location in Feasterville, Pennsylvania, where the former president served food to pre-selected supporters, has renewed public attention on how much low-income workers earn. Asked by CBS News reporter Olivia Rinaldi if he thought the minimum wage should be raised after spending time behind the counter at the fast-food restaurant, Trump sidestepped the question.
“Well, I think this. I think these people work hard. They’re great,” he said. “And I just saw something a process. It’s beautiful. It’s a beautiful thing to see. These are great franchises and produce a lot of jobs, and it’s good and great people working here too.”
Trump’s campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about the former president’s views on the minimum wage.
Vice President Kamala Harris has stated that she wants to raise the nation’s minimum wage, as well as the sub-minimum wage that is earned by tipped workers. Both Trump and Harris have proposed eliminating income taxes on tips as a way to boost earnings for people in the hospitality industry.
While the federal minimum wage has been frozen since 2009, 30 states have stepped in to boost wages for their lowest-earning workers, according to the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute. That’s left 20 states still paying the federal baseline wage, representing annual earnings of $15,000. Those states are mostly in the South and Midwest, including the four battleground states that use the $7.25 an hour minimum: Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Experts note tha workers in these locations are at risk of falling behind people who reside in states providing a higher pay floor.
“It’s ridiculous that Pennsylvania has a lower minimum wage than its neighbors as well as states like Arkansas, Florida and Nebraska, where voters had a chance to pass raises through ballot initiatives,” Holly Sklar, CEO of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, a group that advocates for higher pay, told CBS MoneyWatch.
Earning $7.25 an hour “is a poverty wage, and it’s bad for business as well as workers,” Sklar added.
The minimum wage versus inflation
The renewed focus on worker pay comes amid polling that shows many people continuing to struggle financially even as inflation fades and the job market continues to click.
A majority of Americans say they feel worse off than four years ago, according to Gallup, a pessimism that could sway their decisions in the November 5 election. And 6 in 10 voters describe the U.S. economy as either “fairly bad” or “very bad,” according to CBS News polling.
That is likely tied to elevated prices caused by the hottest inflation in 40 years, which outpaced wage growth during the pandemic. Yet since May 2023, the typical worker’s pay has outpaced inflation, boosting their purchasing power.
That isn’t the case for workers who earn the federal minimum wage because it isn’t indexed to inflation, a step that some states are now taking to ensure that people can keep up with the rising cost of living. If the federal minimum wage had been indexed for inflation, it would now stand at $10.61 per hour.
The four other battleground states have lifted their hourly minimum wage to about that level, or even higher:
- Arizona: $14.35 an hour
- Michigan: $10.33 an hour
- Nebraska: $12 an hour
- Nevada: $12 an hour
“In our region, the minimum wage has gone up in surrounding states but not in Pennsylvania,” noted Keystone Research Center, a think tank for Pennsylvania-related issues, in a blog post. “Minimum-wage workers in Pennsylvania have also lost ground relative to workers in the middle of the wage distribution, that is, relative to the median wage.”
New Zealand airport with 3-minute cap on farewell hugs “surprised how much global interest” there’s been
Kentucky state Sen. Johnnie Turner dies after plunging into empty swimming pool on lawn mower
In some battleground states, low-wage workers keep losing ground
New Zealand airport with 3-minute cap on farewell hugs “surprised how much global interest” there’s been
Kentucky state Sen. Johnnie Turner dies after plunging into empty swimming pool on lawn mower