Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government. The Colorado Supreme Court is hearing two appeals on Tuesday, and the activity out of the U.S. Court of Appeals from the 10th Circuit covered a range of civil rights topics over the past month.

Justices to hear cases

?  The Colorado Supreme Court continues its light schedule for hearing cases this week, with just two appeals scheduled for oral argument in the month of March. The cases are:

French v. Century Health Corporation: A hospital charged a woman $229,000 for her surgery despite its original pre-surgery estimate that she would only pay $1,337. A jury found she was only responsible for the “reasonable value” of the services and slashed her bill to just $767. Now the Supreme Court will decide if the Court of Appeals was correct to reinstate the nearly quarter million dollar price tag.

Gomez v. JP Trucking, Inc.: The justices will interpret wage-and-hour requirements for truckers under Colorado law.

?  In other news from the high court, the justices heard from the parties, and ultimately dismissed an appeal from Adams County’s elected treasurer attempting to disqualify the Adams County Attorney’s Office from representing the people who are suing her – the county’s board of county commissioners.

?  The Supreme Court also adopted a modified proposal that would clarify when prosecutors can be held professionally accountable for failing to disclose information favorable to criminal defendants. The U.S. Supreme Court notably laid the groundwork for prosecutors’ obligations in Brady v. Maryland, but critics say the decision only works when prosecutors act in good faith.

10th Circuit rundown

?  The 10th Circuit, based in Denver, handed down several recent decisions in Colorado cases, ranging from police and prisons to horses. A panel of the 10th Circuit dismissed an inmate’s lawsuit because he didn’t pursue his administrative grievance all the way – even though the prison told him previously it couldn’t do anything about his very similar administrative grievance.

?  Colorado Springs police did not yet have probable cause of a crime when they pointed their guns at a man and warned him he was “probably going to get shot.” Nevertheless, the 10th Circuit believed that their conduct was reasonable.

?  The owners of a Gunnison housing complex discriminated against prospective tenants with children in violation of federal law. They signed an agreement containing corrective actions, but refused to follow through. Now the 10th Circuit has ordered them to abide by its terms.

?  Federal law allows crime victims to receive restitution, and also allows victims’ representatives to pursue that restitution in the victims’ stead. What the representatives may not do, the 10th Circuit decided, is receive compensation for their own costs separate from the victims’.

?  United Airlines challenged a jury’s verdict finding them liable for age discrimination in the termination of two flight attendants. A 10th Circuit panel found the evidence justified the jury’s action.

?  Authorities in Park County seized 58 of a man’s horses after brutal weather led to the discovery of dead or malnourished animals. The 10th Circuit said the seizure was backed up by probable cause of animal cruelty.

SCOTUS update

?  Readers are probably aware that the president recently selected Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson of the D.C. Circuit to be the next justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Jackson would be the first Black woman to sit on the nation’s highest court if confirmed and, notably, is a former public defender. The Sam Cary Bar Association, a membership group for Colorado’s Black attorneys, released a statement in support of her nomination. It says in part:

We commend President Biden for fulfilling his campaign promise to appoint the first Black woman to the Supreme Court.  However, what we will continue to celebrate for years to come is the selection of an individual who not only possesses high integrity and a brilliant legal mind, but a deep understanding of and empathy for those whose rights have often been ignored by a system we were led to believe would protect us all from injustice.  While Judge Jackson’s appointment to the Supreme Court will not alter its balance, we are encouraged by the addition of a perspective well informed by experience gained at the core of the criminal justice system.

A bloody one

?  The state’s Court of Appeals affirmed that people do not have the right to refuse a blood draw when they are suspected of vehicular homicide while driving under the influence. The Colorado Supreme Court previously clarified that police can draw blood from an unconscious driver, but in doing so, the court categorically stated that there is “no constitutional right to refuse a blood-alcohol test.”

?  The Court of Appeals also said that employees in the state personnel system who offer their resignations are not entitled to withdraw the resignation and continue on in their job.

?  Even though the legislature changed the restitution law in 2000, that did not alter the fact that insurance companies can be “victims” entitled to restitution, the Court of Appeals found.

Vacancies and appointments

?  The governor has three candidates to choose from for a vacancy in the Fourth Judicial District (El Paso and Teller counties). Succeeding District Court Judge G. David Miller will be either Diana May and Amanda Philipps of Colorado Springs or Theodore McClintock of Woodland Park.

?  Kim S. Shropshire will succeed District Court Judge William Herringer in the Sixth Judicial District, which covers La Plata, Archuleta and San Juan counties. She is a staff attorney for Colorado Legal Services and works on cases involving family law, housing and public benefits.

?  Applications are due by March 16 for a part-time judgeship on the Ouray County Court following the resignation of Judge Zachary D. Martin, and by March 11 for another-part time judgeship on the Conejos County Court due to the elevation of Kimberly Cortez-Rodriguez to the district court. There is also a full-time vacancy on the Adams County Court to succeed Judge Brian N. Bowen, with applications due by March 14.

?  U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper have reconvened their advisory committee to screen candidates for another upcoming vacancy on Colorado’s federal trial court. Although the vacancy will not occur until February 2023, the senators have set a deadline of March 21 for interested attorneys to submit their applications.

Miscellaneous decisions

?  With the antitrust trial of DaVita, Inc. and its former leader Kent Thiry less than a month away, the parties argued in federal court over evidence, jury instructions and the extramarital affair of a government witness.

?  This week features a civil trial in U.S. District Court over Denver’s law enforcement response to the racial justice protests of 2020, following the murder of George Floyd. Colorado Politics’ news partner, The Denver Gazette, will have the coverage.

?  All of the judges in Boulder County recused themselves from handling a case that could imperil the jurisdiction’s cleanup from the devastating Marshall Fire.

?  The Douglas County sheriff and a pair of school resource officers may be sued for allegedly violating the Americans with Disabilities Act when arresting a middle school student with autism.

A typo gets a call-out

?  A man convicted in Denver almost two decades ago challenged his conviction for first-degree assault because the jury form actually listed “attempted” first-degree assault by mistake. But the state Court of Appeals said that typo did not mean Yonas Ande was, in fact, convicted of attempted assault. The court did have some stern words for the judge and attorneys at Ande’s original trial: