Michael de Yoanna

Police body camera video that shows the shooting of De'Von Bailey tells two stories. To a grand jury, it exonerated the actions of Colorado Springs police officers last summer. To Rep. Leslie Herod, a Democrat pivotal to the crafting of Colorado's expansive new police accountability law, it shows what the police did wrong.

"It could have been me on the ground begging for my life."

Those are the words of Col. Devin Pepper of the 460th Space Wing at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora. He wrote them last week, as protests against the death of George Floyd triggered a movement that has swept the globe.

As protests against police brutality enter their second week in Colorado and across the nation, the military’s role is under intense scrutiny.

Could a simple lack of personal protective equipment, including proper masks, gowns and gloves, have increased the COVID-19 death toll at nursing homes across Colorado?

Nursing home workers, patients and families interviewed by KUNC think so.

Michael Nicosia's voice echoes across a quiet street lined with tall trees and neatly cut lawns. He's standing outside a closed window at Makarios Assisted Living at Lehigh in Aurora. He's singing: "When you're smiling, the whole world smiles with you."

His audience is on the other side of the window, his silver-haired mother, Rosemary. Her hands are clasped together. Her eyes beam at her son through her glasses. And she's smiling.

As Gov. Jared Polis and Weld County clash over walking back pandemic stay-at-home orders, the moment for first responders is uncertain. Calls to 911 with people complaining of coronavirus are still coming in.

Weld County has the third-most cases in the state, and Greeley accounts for about 75% of them. For the city's firefighters and medical responders, the governor's month-long order has made it possible for them to focus on the crisis.

Of all the COVID-19 deaths in Colorado, 137 so far were residents at nursing homes and other residential care facilities. Another 39 probably died from the virus but never received a test. That's about half the 357 deaths tallied so far across the state, continuing a trend where a large portion of the lives lost to the pandemic involve vulnerable, often elderly, residents at facilities charged with their care.

Public health officials are expected to roll out detailed information this week about COVID-19 cases and deaths at nursing homes and other facilities that house some of Colorado's most at-risk residents.

Rob and Patty Lydic are among the 80% of "mild" coronavirus cases that leaders and health officials often cite as shorthand to explain the risks during the pandemic. The Boulder couple are in their 40s and both very fit. Rob raced his bicycle 29 times last year, logging 6,500 miles, and Patty rides, too, and also does yoga.

Despite their good health, COVID-19 struck the Lydics hard, with symptoms ranging from dry coughing to fever lingering for weeks.