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Appeals court finds athletic club’s liability waiver does not bar sex assault lawsuit
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A child who was sexually abused by her tennis coach may sue the athletic club where he was employed, even though a liability waiver purportedly immunized the club from “any and all claims,” Colorado’s second-highest court ruled this month. Plaintiffs “Jane Doe” and her mother sued Wellbridge Club Management LLC, which operates Colorado Athletic Club-Monaco in Denver,…
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State Supreme Court wades through rules on child testimony in sex assault cases
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Out-of-court statements, known as hearsay, are typically not admissible at trial because a defendant cannot cross-examine the person making the comments. However, Colorado’s legislature has provided an exception for children in sex abuse cases. Their hearsay statements are allowed generally if they are younger than 15 or, in the alternative, whatever age is specifically mentioned…
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Appeals court upholds conviction, finds bribery can occur before legal proceedings begin
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Colorado’s second-highest court has ruled that a person can commit bribery under state law even before a criminal proceeding begins, as long as there is an intent to influence the testimony of a potential witness. The decision upheld the 2007 convictions of Larry Gene Lancaster, who sexually assaulted a teenage boy repeatedly after plying him…
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Appeals court orders new trial after detective failed to respect Eagle County man’s Miranda rights
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An Eagle County judge mistakenly allowed a man’s statements in custody to be admitted as evidence at trial, even though the detective interrogating Jacinto Zelaya-Zelaya ignored his desire to remain silent, the state’s second-highest court ruled on Thursday. Zelaya-Zelaya, who a jury convicted in 2017 of sexually assaulting a child, will now receive a new…
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OUT WEST ROUNDUP | Sick mine workers allege insurer delaying medical payments
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MONTANA Sick mine workers allege insurer delaying payments BILLINGS – Attorneys for Montana mine workers sickened and killed by toxic asbestos exposure filed a lawsuit against Zurich American Insurance on March 21 for allegedly stalling legal settlements and medical payments after transferring the workers’ claims to investors who can profit off the delays. The lawsuit…
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Appeals court decision on Indian child case sets up split for Supreme Court
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There are now two competing interpretations from the state’s second-highest court for how judges have “reason to know” that a child in a custody proceeding fits the legal definition of an American Indian child, setting up the Colorado Supreme Court to have the final say on the matter. Last week, a three-judge panel for the…
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State Supreme Court accepts cases on Indian child protections, redacted video tape
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The Colorado Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases that implicate federal protections for the children of tribal nations and the ability of suspects to potentially make up self-serving statements to use for their benefit at trial. The latest announcements from the state’s highest court continue a recent trend of granting appeals involving the…
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Despite wrong man on phone, appeals court upholds termination of father’s parental rights
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The Court of Appeals upheld an Adams County judge’s termination of a man’s parental rights, even though the man was not present and a different person – with his same name – was on the phone during the parental rights hearing instead. The caseworker in a child welfare proceeding learned that the child’s father was incarcerated,…
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Jeffco sex assault conviction reversed after appeals court says judge allowed expert to vouch for victim
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The state Court of Appeals reversed a man’s sexual assault conviction from Jefferson County after finding the trial judge allowed an expert witness who had not met the victim to essentially tell the jury she was being truthful. In the 2018 trial of Steven Matthew Ramirez, Jeffco prosecutors called a “cold” expert to testify – so…
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Jeffco judge wrongfully terminated father’s rights as he struggled to connect to hearing, appeals court rules
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A Jefferson County judge declined to postpone proceedings and instead terminated a father’s parental rights as he struggled to connect to the virtual hearing, a decision the state’s second-highest court has now reversed. District Court Judge Ann Gail Meinster should have granted the request to postpone the February 2021 hearing, a three-judge panel of the…
