Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government.

The state Supreme Court recently decided multiple issues it had never previously addressed, and the Court of Appeals handed down rulings involving campaign finance violations.

Student searches, classic cars and more

?  Colorado’s justices concluded Denver Public Schools officials acted reasonably by searching a student without a warrant or suspicion of wrongdoing because he had been placed on a “safety plan” the prior school year that called for daily searches. That scenario wasn’t covered by existing precedent and the Supreme Court didn’t elaborate on the constitutional boundaries of safety plan searches.

?  Although the Supreme Court previously said insurance coverage for injuries caused by uninsured and underinsured drivers must follow people, not vehicles, a majority of the justices has now carved out an exception for auto insurance that just covers classic or antique cars.

?  In some pockets of the state, magistrates conduct hearings to determine if probable cause exists to bring defendants to trial on serious felony charges. The Supreme Court now clarified that because magistrates aren’t judges, their probable cause rulings are immediately appealable to a judge.

Campaign finance

?  A group that spent $4 million in favor of conservative causes on the ballot during the 2020 election needed to register with the state and disclose its donations and spending, the state’s Court of Appeals ruled. Although the legislature has since changed the standard, the court believed the level of spending from Unite for Colorado meant the group had a “major purpose” of ballot issue advocacy.

?  A former GOP state Senate candidate, who used to be a high-ranking official in the secretary of state’s office, misunderstand the requirements of Colorado’s campaign finance law, the Court of Appeals agreed in upholding the $850 fine for failing to file the right paperwork.

Heard on appeal

?  The Court of Appeals warned that public entities may not ask questions beyond what federal regulations allow about a service dog’s status, even if they have “legitimate suspicions” and even though some federal courts have said otherwise.

?  Because an Arapahoe County judge didn’t let the defense ask the alleged victim about her status as a probationer – and address her potential motive to testify in the way prosecutors wanted to avoid a probation violation – the Court of Appeals ordered a new trial for a defendant convicted of domestic violence.

?  Regardless of a decades-old law that seems to give water conservancy districts the power to set their tax rates within a range, districts still need to ask their voters for permission if they want to increase rates, the Court of Appeals clarified.

In federal news

?  In a criminal case unlike any other, a federal judge said it did not violate the defendant’s due process rights for prosecutors in Colorado to charge a West African man for committing torture in his home country, using a 1994 federal law that criminalizes extraterritorial acts of torture.

?  Even though a federal judge in the District of Columbia previously found the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs was justified in terminating a Colorado anesthesiologist for unprofessional conduct, a federal judge in Colorado agreed the doctor could proceed with her lawsuit alleging she was treated less favorably than similar male doctors.

?  A judge threw out a lawyer’s defamation claim against a local blogger, while warning that several quotes the lawyer attributed to the defendant were actually altered in her court filings.

?  A man who allegedly spent more than 200 days in solitary confinement at the El Paso County jail may proceed to sue two jail employees for a constitutional violation, a judge decided.

?  Because a Colorado state trooper didn’t have reasonable suspicion of a crime at the time he transformed a traffic stop into a drug investigation, a federal judge barred evidence of the seized drugs from trial, along with one of the defendants’ confession.

Vacancies and appointments

?  Applications are now due by April 12 to succeed retiring Lincoln County Court Judge Truston Lee Fisher. The position is part time and does not require a law degree.

?  There are three finalists to succeed retiring Boulder County District Court Judge Patrick Butler: Magistrate Elizabeth H. Kelley, Michael T. Kotlarczyk and J. Chris Larson.

Miscellaneous proceedings

?  This Saturday, the public defender and district attorney offices in the Eighth Judicial District (Larimer and Jackson counties) will hold a warrant clearance event from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 200 Peridot Ave. in Loveland. Those who are eligible to resolve their warrants without arrest must be facing traffic, petty drug, municipal and certain low-level felony and misdemeanor charges. To verify eligibility, call 970-493-1212 or email fortcollins@coloradodefenders.us.