adams county
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Two charged with murder of woman in Westminster parking lot
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Two men face murder charges after a fatal shooting in Westminster last month. The 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office said it officially filed murder charges against 19-year-old Daniel Romero and 24-year-old Michael Fernandez, Jr. on Monday morning. The charges stem from an incident that occurred in a parking lot in the 8400 block of Decatur…
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Adams, Broomfield counties see ‘sharp’ decline in car theft
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Adams and Broomfield Counties have seen a “sharp decline” in car thefts since their peak in 2022, with the number of reported thefts cut in half. District Attorney Brian Mason announced the data trend on Wednesday, saying there have been annual reductions in the number of car thefts through this year. Car theft surged during…
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Adams County distributes almost $6M in opioid settlement funds
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Adams County commissioners passed a resolution Tuesday distributing almost $6 million in opioid settlement funds to 19 organizations throughout the county. This is the third round of grant funding from the Colorado Opioid Framework, which was created in 2021 to distribute money from lawsuits the Colorado Department of Law wins against pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors…
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By 2-1, appeals court takes no issue with constitutional violation from defendant’s absence at hearing
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Colorado’s second-highest court, by a 2-1 vote, concluded that an Adams County judge’s order granting crime victim restitution was valid, even though the defendant was absent from a hearing which he had a constitutional right to attend. The U.S. and Colorado constitutions guarantee criminal defendants the right to be present at all “critical stages” of…
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Colorado Supreme Court to hear cases about ‘reasonable doubt’ definition, contract dispute
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The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Tuesday that it will decide whether the definition of “reasonable doubt” adopted in a 2023 revision to the template jury instructions violates the constitutional rights of the criminally accused. At least three of the court’s seven members must agree to hear a case on appeal. The justices will also…
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Appeals court overturns Adams County drug convictions due to unconstitutional police conduct
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Colorado’s second-highest court overturned a man’s drug convictions and 25-year prison sentence on Thursday after concluding two Northglenn police officers unconstitutionally transformed a traffic stop into a drug investigation without reasonable suspicion of a crime. Clifton E. McRae, who was originally stopped for making an illegal turn, repeatedly declined to consent to a search of…
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10th Circuit, 2-1, rules ignoring emergency signal from jail detainees is clear constitutional violation
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The Denver-based federal appeals court concluded on Monday that a jail employee can violate a detainee’s clear constitutional rights by ignoring an emergency distress signal, even if there is no further information about what kind of emergency exists. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit agreed Ralph Marcus Hardy…
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Adams County assault conviction overturned for improper testimony
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Colorado’s second-highest court overturned a man’s assault conviction and seven-year prison sentence last week, concluding an Adams County judge admitted improper testimony from a nurse who documented the victim’s account. After the alleged assault, the victim went to a hospital by ambulance. She spoke to an emergency medical technician about her injuries, which was recorded…
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Appeals court says custody dispute must terminate if one parent dies
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Colorado’s second-highest court clarified last month that an unresolved custody dispute must terminate when one parent dies, with the surviving parent automatically receiving custody. A three-judge Court of Appeals panel determined it was a mistake to allow an Adams County custody case between a mother and father to continue after the mother’s death, with the…
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Appeals court rejects allegations of racial discrimination in jury selection in 2 cases
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Colorado’s second-highest court ruled last month that prosecutors in two cases did not engage in intentional racial discrimination when they dismissed two women of color from the jury pool. Under longstanding U.S. Supreme Court precedent, purposeful race-based discrimination in jury selection is unconstitutional. Normally, parties may exercise “peremptory strikes” of jurors without citing a reason.…
