Boulder should seek restitution

Tribune Opinion
September 13, 2006

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As the nights grow bitter and the days start shedding daylight, making it more dangerous to hikers who find themselves taking the road less traveled, this is no time to be crying wolf.

Unfortunately, after spending hundreds of hours doing some hard searching in rough country for Lance Hering, it seems now that all that time and effort will be rewarded with a slap in the face.

Steve Powers was arrested by Boulder authorities last week on charges of false reporting. Powers, 20, of Boulder originally said his friend, Hering, fell and suffered a head injury while the two were hiking in the rugged Eldorado Canyon State Park southwest of Boulder. When Powers returned after seeking help the next morning, he claimed Hering had vanished.

Our heartfelt sorrow that we originally reserved for Hering's family and Powers now goes out to the dozens, if not hundreds, of law enforcement officials and volunteers who hiked through hard, rugged country on the hopes that they would find Hering.

In fact, we hope the Boulder County Sheriff's Office succeeds in its plan to seek restitution for the thousands of dollars spent on the search, including flights by a Denver police helicopter.

Some believe Hering made up the story so he wouldn't have to return to duty in Iraq as a Marine. Hering's father said Tuesday not to jump to conclusions about the case.

We will do our best. However, we find two facts too telling to ignore: Powers was arrested, and authorities abandoned the search after five days and were confident that he was no longer in the area. They know something's up, in other words.

The unfortunate victims in this case are the searchers and, unwittingly, those who, in the future, find themselves deep in the woods in need of help.

These search parties work as hard as they do, with usually dozens of volunteers along to help, on the fumes of hope. It would be far too easy to quit without that hope that somewhere the person may be alive.

If any kind of doubt enters the back of a searcher's head, that the person might be lying, well, it would slow any normal human being down a little. Except that time is the greatest enemy of a lost or hurt hiker. That's especially true now, as fall starts to bite and surviving more than a couple nights out without shelter would be a lot to ask of anyone, let anyone someone lost, hurt and frightened.

Yes, many searches end in tragedy, when a body is found. But there are success stories. Alex Storke, a Minnesota man visiting Colorado this summer, was found after two days by a search party in mid-August on Holy Cross.

Those are the kind of stories that keep a searcher pushing through fatigue. Let's hope that the stories of Storke and other found hikers stick, and that the tale of Hering disappears in their minds much faster than the next hiker or hunter they work tirelessly to find.