From The Denver Post:  The Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office and Monarch Mountain are defending themselves against allegations they failed to publicize two attempted sex assaults at the ski area in an effort to not scare away holiday visitors.

The attempted assaults were reported over a two-week span starting last month and not made public until the sheriff’s office distributed a news release on Friday.

“We all feel vulnerable,” said Miki Hodge, a frequent Monarch visitor who lives in Salida and has been outspoken about her anger at the lack of publicity. “We’re the backbone of that resort.”

The first attempted assault happened Dec. 19 at the ski area, located about 20 miles west of Salida on U.S. 50 off Monarch Pass. The date of the second incident has not been released.

The resort has not made its own announcement about the incidents to skiers and riders.

“We did not inform patrons at the resort when the information was released,” said Jessie Smith, a spokeswoman for the ski area. “We left the distribution of the information to the sheriff’s office, it being their investigation.”

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