Tag: due process
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Colorado Supreme Court intervenes in Weld County prosecution dismissed due to Missy Woods misconduct
The Colorado Supreme Court ordered a Weld County trial judge last week to respond to the district attorney’s claim that he improperly dismissed a criminal case because of “outrageous” conduct by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Daniel Lee Eatinger stood accused of sexual assault on a child dating to July 2018. Prosecutors sought Eatinger’s arrest…
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Colorado justices to decide insurance companies’ obligation to disclose relevant policies
The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will decide whether an insurance company violated state law by withholding an at-fault driver’s policy for nearly a year when there was no dispute that the policy was not in effect at the time of the accident. At least three of the court’s seven members must…
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Federal judge rules that request for bond hearing not necessary to challenge immigration detention
A federal judge in Colorado ruled last week that it is not mandatory for a person to seek a bond hearing with an immigration judge before they challenge the lawfulness of their detention in federal court. For the past year, Colorado’s U.S. District Court has faced a flood of “habeas corpus” petitions from those in immigration detention.…
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Colorado justices recognize limited right to evidence in postconviction challenges
The Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that defendants challenging their convictions may, in certain circumstances, be entitled to receive the information the prosecution already handed over for trial at no cost. The justices rejected the argument that defendants seeking postconviction relief must use the open records law specific to criminal justice records, which prosecutors’…
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Colorado Supreme Court considers new requirement for leaving-the-scene convictions
In 2006, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that leaving the scene of an accident resulting in serious injury is a “strict liability” offense, meaning a person is guilty solely through their conduct, without the need for prosecutors to prove the defendant’s mental state. Now, 20 years later, one defendant is asking the Supreme Court to…
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Federal judge partially allows challenge to proceed against Colorado unclaimed property program
A federal judge allowed some claims to proceed last week against Colorado’s treasurer, based upon alleged constitutional violations flowing from the state’s process for reuniting people with their unclaimed property. Previously, U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney dismissed the lawsuit by plaintiffs David Knellinger and Robert Storey, reasoning that they failed to sufficiently allege…
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LETTERS: What’s up with the contrails?; due process
What’s up with the contrails? Is it just me, or does anyone else notice the streaked cloud patterns over our fair city lately? Mornings typically start out with cobalt-blue skies, only to be crisscrossed with jet contrails, which spread and expand into gray cloud-cover. Some days, the jets don’t start a contrail until the edge…
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Federal judge says ICE cannot impose monitoring conditions beyond immigration judge’s order
A federal judge told U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Thursday that it cannot impose additional restrictions or monitoring conditions beyond those ordered by an immigration judge when releasing a person on bond. In November, U.S. District Court Judge Gordon P. Gallagher found that the government violated the rights of Khristyne Batz Barreno by keeping…
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Judge warns against expansive use of post-9/11 rule in immigration detentions
A federal judge concluded on Monday that the government applied a 9/11-era regulation to a man in immigration detention in violation of his constitutional rights, in seemingly the first decision out of Colorado addressing the increased use of the “automatic stay” to block release on bond. In a Jan. 12 order, U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan…
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Appeals court shuts down path to challenge convictions if lawyer tells jury that defendant is guilty
Colorado’s second-highest court concluded on Wednesday that defendants cannot challenge whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain their convictions if their lawyer argues to the jury that it should find the defendant guilty. The U.S. Supreme Court has provided guidance in recent years about when criminal defense attorneys may intentionally concede their client’s guilt. In…