colorado department of corrections
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10th Circuit agrees Colorado satisfied jury award after intercepting money for restitution
The Denver-based federal appeals court agreed last week that Colorado satisfied its obligations by not paying a man directly for violating his rights, but rather crediting the jury’s multimillion-dollar award toward the crime victim restitution he still owed in his criminal case. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit…
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Tina Peters speaks out after release from Colorado prison
PUEBLO — Former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, convicted of participating in efforts related to election conspiracy theories promoted by President Donald Trump, was released from state prison Monday. The Colorado Department of Corrections confirmed shortly after 8 a.m. that Peters, whose sentence was commuted by Gov. Jared Polis, was processed for release from the…
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Gov. Polis signs prison bill targeting Colorado’s overcrowding crisis
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Tuesday signed a corrections bill that seeks to ease chronic overcrowding in state prisons by expanding earned‑time credits and launching a new working group to overhaul population management. Senate Bill 159 establishes a working group to make recommendations for how the Department of Corrections can reduce overcrowding in its facilities.…
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10th Circuit again dismisses ex-prison employee’s challenge to workplace DEI training
The Denver-based federal appeals court dismissed a second lawsuit on Monday brought by a former Colorado Department of Corrections employee who was offended by an equity training module and had alleged it created a hostile work environment. In 2023, U.S. District Court Judge Nina Y. Wang dismissed Joshua F. Young’s first lawsuit on the grounds that he…
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Bill permitting lawsuits against ICE agents reaches Gov. Jared Polis’ desk
Colorado lawmakers advanced two high‑profile measures Thursday — one seeks to reshape how the state manages its strained prison population and another allows Coloradans to sue federal immigration agents for alleged constitutional violations. The state policymakers sent both bills to Gov. Jared Polis as the legislative session enters its final stretch. Prison population management Senate…
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Appeals court recognizes weekend, holiday rule applies to judicial review deadline
Colorado’s second-highest court clarified for the first time last week that the rule extending deadlines in civil cases when the final day falls on a weekend or holiday also applies to litigants seeking review of governmental decisions. Nicholas A. Rigato was incarcerated at Fremont Correctional Facility when prison officials found him guilty of three conduct…
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Democratic lawmakers target Colorado’s stalled prison population plan
Colorado’s prison population plan was designed to prevent overcrowding. Instead, eight months after it was triggered, the system remains strained and largely ineffective, prompting two Democratic lawmakers to push for changes through new legislation. According to its sponsors, Senate Bill 036 would raise the vacancy‑rate threshold that triggers the plan from 3% to 4% and…
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Appeals court finds state wrongly blocked ex-worker’s evidence in termination challenge
Colorado’s second-highest court ruled last week that the Colorado State Personnel Board wrongly blocked a former employee from submitting documentation to challenge his termination, even though he followed the board’s instructions to obtain the materials. Eric Strumpf was the budget and business operations director for the Colorado Department of Corrections. He requested emergency sick leave…
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Colorado legislators eye giving inmates more earned time to ease prison overcrowding
Colorado lawmakers are proposing several changes to a state law that sponsors say would help ease overcrowding and reduce strain on state facilities. The proposal would mandate data reporting, as well require certain actions, including transitioning inmates from community corrections, considering “alternate sanctions” for technical parole violations, and giving inmates more earned time. In 2018,…
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Colorado lawmakers reverse course, OK $2.4M funding for additional prison beds
The Colorado legislature’s budget panel changed course on Wednesday, reversing its previous decision to deny the Department of Corrections $2.4 million request to pay for additional prison beds. Last week, JBC members voted, 4-2, to deny the department’s request, with Democrats arguing that they have yet to see the department make any substantial effort to…