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Tag: Courts

Morgan County case overturned on prosecutor’s improper commenting on defendant’s right to silence
coloradopolitics.com, State

Morgan County case overturned on prosecutor’s improper commenting on defendant’s right to silence

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics A Morgan County prosecutor undermined the fairness of a defendant's trial by making improper comments about his decision to invoke his constitutional right to silence, Colorado's second-highest court ruled last week. The prosecution charged Ronald Wayne Gentry with felony menacing after he allegedly put a bullet in the chamber of a gun and pointed it at a neighbor who was feuding with Gentry's mother. Jurors considered whether Gentry acted in self-defense, but convicted him. He received a sentence of probation, jail and community service. Jurors heard Gentry had received a Miranda warning but then agreed to speak with a sheriff's deputy. She told Gentry there were multiple eyewitnesses saying they saw Gentry point a gun, at which point Gentry ...
Federal judge rules, ‘sideshows’ aside, no Colorado voter intimidation by ‘election integrity’ organizers
coloradopolitics.com, State

Federal judge rules, ‘sideshows’ aside, no Colorado voter intimidation by ‘election integrity’ organizers

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics A federal judge on Thursday concluded three civic organizations failed to provide evidence that the leaders of an "election integrity" effort illegally intimidated Colorado voters through a door-to-door canvassing project to search for election fraud in the wake of the 2020 presidential race. After three days of testimony, U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney granted the motion to end the case after noting both sides seemingly wanted to litigate matters beyond the narrow question she had to decide. "It is not about the Jan. 6 insurrection or the history of voter intimidation in this country. It is not about the defendants' collective belief about election fraud. It's not about the security or lack of security of elections in Colorado...
In Day 2 of voting rights trial, plaintiffs struggle to prove intimidation
coloradopolitics.com, State

In Day 2 of voting rights trial, plaintiffs struggle to prove intimidation

By Michael Karlik  | Colorado Politics The plaintiffs who are trying to prove an "election integrity" effort resulted in the illegal intimidation of Colorado voters ran into multiple stumbling blocks in federal court on Tuesday, including the aggressive questioning of the lone voter who claimed she was intimidated and the judge's skepticism about an attempt to introduce new victims at the last minute. Three civic groups — the Colorado Montana Wyoming State Area Conference of the NAACP, the League of Women Voters of Colorado, and Mi Familia Vota — sued the founders of U.S. Election Integrity Plan (USEIP), which was an organized effort following the 2020 election to visit voters at more than 9,400 homes to inquire about their registrations and past voting behavior. The plaintif...
10th Circuit rules Sedgwick County liable for former Sheriff Hanna’s alleged assault of an inmate
Law Week Colorado, State

10th Circuit rules Sedgwick County liable for former Sheriff Hanna’s alleged assault of an inmate

By Law Week Sheriff Thomas Hanna of Sedgwick County, Colo., allegedly sexually assaulted an intellectually disabled prisoner while transporting her between county jails.  The victim, Peatinna Biggs, filed this civil rights suit through her guardian ad litem, Hollis Ann Whitson, against Sedgwick County, the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department and Hanna in his individual and official capacities.  The district court granted the motion of the county and the sheriff’s department to dismiss the complaint against them, reasoning that the county could be liable only if “the challenged conduct [had] been taken pursuant to a policy adopted by the official or officials,” and “Hanna’s actions were not pursuant to Department policies, but in direct contravention of them.”  Hanna was t...
Federal judge dismisses Trump documents case, says Jack Smith unlawfully appointed
National, The Epoch Times

Federal judge dismisses Trump documents case, says Jack Smith unlawfully appointed

By Catherine Yang | The Epoch Times U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed former President Donald Trump’s classified documents case on July 15, finding that special counsel Jack Smith’s appointment violated the Appointments Clause. “The Superseding Indictment is DISMISSED because Special Counsel Smith’s appointment violates the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution,” the order reads. The 93-page opinion and order was issued after days of oral arguments over the special counsel’s appointment and the statutory authority the Justice Department argued Attorney General Merrick Garland used to appoint Mr. Smith. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE EPOCH TIMES
1st Amendment claim of fired Douglas County school employee will be heard by jury
coloradopolitics.com, State

1st Amendment claim of fired Douglas County school employee will be heard by jury

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics A jury will decide whether a Douglas County charter school fired an employee because of her protected online speech about vaccinations, a federal judge ruled last month. At the same time, U.S. Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak determined Jennifer Webb's repeated reports of alleged financial improprieties were not protected by the First Amendment. Consequently, jurors would not evaluate whether Aspen View Academy retaliated against her for raising concerns of embezzlement. Webb was the business manager for Aspen View, an elementary and middle school in Castle Rock, between 2017 and 2021. Her job generally entailed bookkeeping and financial oversight. Webb soon became concerned about financial malfeasance by the school's principal, Robert Barbe...
Judge dismisses lawsuit by multiple school districts over Colorado’s universal pre-K rollout
denvergazette.com, State

Judge dismisses lawsuit by multiple school districts over Colorado’s universal pre-K rollout

By Eric Young | Denver Gazette A Denver District Court judge dismissed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging damages stemming from last year's universal preschool rollout in Colorado.  District Judge Jon. J. Olafson ruled that the six public school districts and two advocacy groups who filed the lawsuit lacked the legal grounds for their case to continue.  The plaintiffs filed the lawsuit last August against Gov. Jared Polis, the Colorado Department of Early Childhood and the Colorado Department of Education, alleging that the state disproportionately harmed low-income families and students with disabilities through its application process. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Court rules Teller County sheriff cannot hold illegals in jail under county’s agreement with ICE
Local, The Colorado Sun

Court rules Teller County sheriff cannot hold illegals in jail under county’s agreement with ICE

By Olivia Prentzel | The Colorado Sun A Colorado sheriff’s practice of holding undocumented immigrants in jail through an agreement with federal immigration authorities violates state law, the Colorado Court of Appeals found Wednesday, reversing a district judge’s ruling. The decision is the latest turn in a yearslong battle between Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell and the American Civil Liberties Union, which sued him on behalf of five taxpayers arguing that Colorado law forbids the sheriff’s office from detaining people accuse of state crimes who are otherwise eligible for release and then turning them over to ICE officers. The case will return to lower court, the ACLU said Wednesday.  Through the county’s agreement with federal immigration authorities, cal...
Supreme Court ducks ruling on whether AR-15s are protected by 2nd Amendment
National, The Washington Times

Supreme Court ducks ruling on whether AR-15s are protected by 2nd Amendment

By Stephen Dinan | The Washington Times The Supreme Court said Tuesday it was declining, for now, to hear challenges against an Illinois ban on assault weapons — cases that have quickly turned into a major test of the legality of the popular AR-15 rifle. Justice Clarence Thomas indicated that his colleagues thought the cases weren’t yet ripe for the high court and needed more development before lower judges. But he said the issue will have to be dealt with as the justices continue to figure out the extent of the Second Amendment and to what, whom, where and when it applies. “We have never squarely addressed what types of weapons are ‘Arms’ protected by the Second Amendment,” Justice Thomas wrote in a statement about the refusal. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE WASHINGTON TIM...
Rudy Giuliani, once ‘America’s Mayor’ during 9/11, disbarred in New York, plans to appeal
National, Politico

Rudy Giuliani, once ‘America’s Mayor’ during 9/11, disbarred in New York, plans to appeal

By KYLE CHENEY | Politico Rudy Giuliani has been disbarred in New York for his efforts to subvert the 2020 election. “The seriousness of [Giuliani’s] misconduct cannot be overstated,” a state appeals court wrote in a unanimous, unsigned opinion. Giuliani “flagrantly misused his prominent position as the personal attorney for former President Trump and his campaign,” the court found. He “repeatedly and intentionally made false statements, some of which were perjurious, to the federal court, state lawmakers, the public … and this Court concerning the 2020 Presidential election, in which he baselessly attacked and undermined the integrity of this country’s electoral process,” the five-judge appellate panel said. READ THE FULL STORY AT POLITICO