House Minority Leader Jarvis Caldwell has reprimanded Rep. Brandi Bradley after a confrontation in which she allegedly cursed at and intimidated the House chief clerk.

In the official reprimand, Caldwell said Bradley’s reputation during the 2026 session has been one of “disrespect and unhinged behavior towards anyone you feel doesn’t align with you to your satisfaction.”

Bradley did not respond to Colorado Politics’ request for comment regarding the reprimand letter.

On April 29, according to Caldwell’s letter, he was informed by a staff member that Bradley, a Roxborough Republican, had an interaction with Chief Clerk Vanessa Reilly just moments before the House gaveled in for the day.

Caldwell said the chief clerk was “shaking and unsettled” as she described the interaction with Bradley to him.

The same day, Reilly wrote an email to Director Ben FitzSimons of the Legislative Human Resources Division documenting the incident.

Reilly wrote that Bradley cursed at her, saying, “This is bull***, you are the Chief Clerk.” She also reported that Bradley pointed her finger about a foot from her face, an action she described as “very intimidating and threatening.”

According to Caldwell’s official letter, the incident was witnessed by other nonpartisan staff.

Upon learning of the incident, Caldwell and House Speaker Julie McCluskie say they attempted to meet with Bradley in the chief clerk’s office.

According to Caldwell, Bradley entered the office, then immediately turned around and left, saying loudly, “No, I’m not doing this.”

Caldwell then obtained security footage from the State Patrol that showed the incident, but it did not include audio of the interaction. Caldwell said he concluded from the video that the chief clerk’s account of the altercation was valid.

“Your actions on that day towards the Chief Clerk are reprehensible,” Caldwell wrote. “Cursing at and pointing your finger in the face of a staff member is wholly inappropriate behavior by an elected representative.”

Unfortunately, he continued, “this behavior by you has become unsurprising to those in the General Assembly based on their daily interactions with you… This is one example of a pattern of behavior you have displayed over the last several months towards nonpartisan staff, partisan staff, and colleagues.”

He then reminded her of the workplace expectations policy, which, among the requirements, asks lawmakers to be professional, respectful, truthful and courteous “to all in the legislative workplace at all times.”

Caldwell told Bradley to consider the reprimand an opportunity to correct her behavior. Otherwise, “I, and perhaps the legislative body, will be forced to take more drastic measures in the future.”

While Caldwell’s letter did not outline what led to the confrontation, it appears to coincide with Reilly’s decision to fire Bradley’s aide, Schume Navarro.

According to an undated email Bradley posted on X on May 8, Reilly told Bradley that Caldwell had informed her that Navarro had sent text messages to a legislator that Caldwell believed violated the Colorado General Assembly’s Workplace Expectations policy.

“As a result of his determination, Ms. Navarro can no longer be employed as a legislative aide,” Bradley wrote.

“This is how corruption works,” Navarro wrote in response to Bradley’s post.

The incident was recounted by Bradley and Navarro on May 14 on the Ryan Schuiling Live podcast.

Bradley told Schuiling the House’s ethics committee is “very flawed” in how it handled Bradley’s complaint against Rep. Ron Weinberg, R-Loveland, last year.

Weinberg was admonished for misuse of a master key and for inappropriate comments made to female lawmakers. He was also told to take sexual harassment prevention training.

Weinger is not running for reelection in 2026.

Bradley said she told Caldwell that the Weinberg complaint had been handled in violation of the rules. She said House leaders, including FitzSimons, dismissed her concerns by calling it “a gray area.” She added that lawmakers have been raising issues with the Ethics Committee’s rules since 2006 and were told those rules would be revisited after the session.

Bradley said the delay was because “they” wanted to protect Rep. Mandy Lindsay, D-Aurora, who was also under an ethics committee investigation.

Caldwell also appeared on the program, telling Schuiling, “The bottom line is there are workplace expectations for the legislative aides.”

On multiple occasions, Bradley’s aide has violated those expectations, which he said had all been documented.

Caldwell said he brought the evidence to the chief clerk, who has the authority to hire and fire legislative aides, although representatives have that authority, as well, he added.

It was agreed that the aide’s behavior, which allegedly attempted to intimidate a representative because the representative had issued a media statement criticizing Bradley, constituted a fireable offense, Caldwell said.

Caldwell pointed to an April 10 Colorado Politics article published after Bradley requested the budget bill be read at length. In that story, Rep. Mary Bradfield of Colorado Springs described Bradley’s actions as a “temper tantrum,” and Rep. Dusty Johnson of Fort Morgan said she would prefer to debate the bill, rather than listen to it being read in full.

Navarro read the text she sent to Johnson on the Schuiling podcast.

“I just thought maybe next time, in your quest for media attention, you remember that two women stood up for you at a table full of men at the Brown Palace when Ron Weinberg yelled across the table that you needed to dust off your (reference to sex organ).”