Can Braudis Finish His Term?

January 25th, 2010 at 05:38pm Michael Conniff 2

By January people where asking the obvious question, the question they've asked before under different circumstances: where in the world is Pitkin County Sheriff Bob Braudis?

One source in local law enforcement said he was in Europe. Another said he'd been gone since Thanksgiving. But as per usual in the Sheriff's tenure, no one seemed exactly sure, and no one in the press seemed willing to ask.

Now we know and the news is not good. The Sheriff was indeed in Europe with his girlfriend, but upon his return he was hospitalized, in serious-enough condition to be put in intensive care in a Denver hospital.

The Aspen Daily News reported that Braudis was taken by ambulance from a Denver hotel "at St. Joseph’s Hospital where he is being treated for serious pulmonary problems, pneumonia-like symptoms and other complications...." A family member told the paper: He was having difficulty breathing. … Being such a big guy, he didn’t realize how serious this had become until friends suggested he seek medical attention. The doctors at St. Joseph’s confirmed a serious pulmonary problem and they say he appears to be recovering well and should be transferred from the ICU to a regular hospital bed in a few more days.”

The newspaper reported Monday the welcome news that he has been moved out of the hosptial's ICU but is expected to remain at St. Joseph's for at least a week, with the expectation that he will enter a "rehabilitation center." No one at the Pitkin County Sheriff's office will predict when he might come back to work.

This is not the first time the Sheriff's presence in Aspen has become an issue, nor is it the first time his health has taken him away from his duties. Most famously he literally disappeared without explanation one summer only to be found in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. Upon his release, he admitted to overindulgence in alcohol, but not any addiction. Concerns in Aspen about his health since the stint in rehabilitation have been widespread.

Entry Filed under: Aspen, Colorado, Pitkin County