brian boatright
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Justices weigh whether Colorado’s paid family, medical leave program violates TABOR
The survival of Colorado’s paid family and medical leave program, which nearly 58% of voters supported two years ago at the ballot box, may come down to a single sentence in the most controversial part of the state’s constitution: the Taxpayer Bill of Rights. On Tuesday, the Colorado Supreme Court considered the arguments of a…
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State Supreme Court rules officers had more than ‘hunch’ to detain suspected drug distributor
Officers who conducted extended surveillance of a suspected drug distributor in Larimer County had reasonable suspicion to detain and search him, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday, reversing a trial court judge who believed police were operating solely on a “hunch.” District Court Judge Stephen J. Jouard agreed last year to suppress drug evidence…
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Public employees cannot jettison ex-spouses from retirement benefits, state Supreme Court says
Retired public employees cannot unilaterally change their retirement plan to stop their ex-spouses from receiving benefits, the Colorado Supreme Court decided last week. Robert J. Mack of Colorado Springs, who retired from government work in 2012 and designated his then-wife as the beneficiary of his retirement benefits, argued to the Supreme Court that the trial…
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Q&A with Chief Justice Brian Boatright | Pandemic motivated him to take top judicial job
FAST FACTS: Brian D. Boatright has been the chief justice of the Colorado Supreme Court since January 2021. He was a 2011 appointee of Gov. John Hickenlooper, and before that a 1999 trial court appointee of Gov. Bill Owens to the First Judicial District in Jefferson County. Boatright worked in private practice and as a…
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State Supreme Court gives green light to prosecutors for charging DUI defendants anew
One year after the Colorado Supreme Court laid down a new standard for prosecuting felony drunk driving cases and prompted the reversal of dozens of convictions, the justices have now clarified that prosecutors may, in fact, seek to try those defendants again for driving under the influence. It does not violate the constitutional protection against…
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Colorado Supreme Court justices knew about memo alleging misconduct 2 years before it became public
Colorado’s Supreme Court justices were generally aware of a memo containing allegations about judicial misconduct nearly two years before it was made public, according to testimony one of the justices gave in an unrelated federal lawsuit deposition. It is the first acknowledgment that the members of the court knew about the memo shortly after it…
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State Supreme Court weighs counties’ obligations to American Indian children
A mother of two children struggled with substance abuse and was the victim of domestic violence. When the children’s father assaulted her and moved out, she abandoned the children at daycare. The matter culminated in a Denver judge terminating both parents’ rights in 2020. However, the child welfare case has now landed at the Colorado…
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Investigations into alleged judicial misconduct underway as Colorado signs contracts
The Colorado Judicial Department on Wednesday announced it had signed a pair of contracts for independent investigations into allegations of widespread misconduct across the branch that included a quid-pro-quo deal to a former high-ranking official who threatened a sex-discrimination lawsuit that would reveal it all. The contracts, to total no more than $350,000, were awarded…
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Colorado judicial system makes public memo detailing alleged misconduct in alleged hush money contract
Judges in Colorado — apparently including members of the state’s Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court — have engaged in personal misconduct without repercussions, according to the contents of a memo Colorado’s judicial system made public Monday. The memo details sexual relationships between a lower court judge and his staff, pornographic videos sent over…