dui
-
Delta County judge let biased juror serve, appeals court finds in reversing convictions
A Delta County judge allowed a biased juror to serve in a woman’s drunk driving trial, the state’s Court of Appeals concluded last week in reversing the defendant’s convictions. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals noted the juror, identified as S.B., volunteered during jury selection that she would assume Katherine Susan Griswold was…
-
Colorado Supreme Court ponders role of juries in evaluating prior convictions
More than two years ago, when the Colorado Supreme Court found that juries, not judges, must decide if people accused of felony drunk driving are repeat offenders, it prompted defendants found guilty of other offenses to wonder whether their own prior convictions were something prosecutors must prove to juries beyond a reasonable doubt. In two…
-
Colorado Supreme Court critical of prosecutors’ misleading presentation of evidence
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday pushed back against the notion that prosecutors can paint a misleading picture of a criminal defendant’s guilt by shielding the jury from evidence the defendant did not commit an offense after all. In a pair of cases argued before the justices, the government asserted the state’s Court…
-
Colorado Supreme Court accepts cases on forced blood draws, mineral rights
The Colorado Supreme Court agreed to review two cases on appeal in the past two weeks, with one questioning the constitutionality of forced blood testing on suspected drunk drivers and the other involving a dispute over oil and gas rights underneath a public street in Greeley. At least three of the court’s seven members must…
-
Selling alcohol to drunk driver not enough to hold liquor store liable for deaths, court says
Businesses are not liable for injuries caused by a drunk driver if they sold alcohol to the already-intoxicated motorist, but the person did not consume it before causing an accident, Colorado’s second-highest court ruled last month. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals answered a question never addressed before: Whether the state’s Dram Shop…
-
State Supreme Court takes up 2 drunk driving appeals, case about campus sexual misconduct
The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review three appeals that implicate the state’s drunk driving laws and the legal obligation of universities to conduct fair investigations into alleged sexual misconduct. At least three of the court’s seven members must consent to review a case. One appeal raises yet another angle in the long-running fallout…
-
State Supreme Court takes on homeowner insurance issue, shows interest in 2 criminal cases
The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether two Boulder County homeowners may pursue their insurance claim for hail damage, even though they reported it to their insurer 10 days beyond their policy’s deadline. The legal question and facts are virtually identical to another case the court accepted in December out of Denver, Gregory…
-
Divided state Supreme Court says juries may hear defendants’ drunk driving histories
A majority of the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that juries must learn about a defendant’s prior drunk driving offenses at the same time they hear the current allegations of drunk driving, over the strenuous objection of three justices who said the move all but ensures a conviction will occur. By 4-3, the Supreme…
-
‘I was different and they didn’t want that’: Judge’s approach collides with voters’ expectations of justice | COVER STORY
In January 2021, La Plata County Court Judge Anne K. Woods presided over an emotionally-fraught sentencing hearing: Preston Edward Pitcher, a church leader, pleaded guilty to four misdemeanor offenses after sexually abusing young adults whom he groomed as children. Despite the option to impose jail time, Woods opted against incarcerating Pitcher for 60 days and…
-
In rare move, appeals court reverses itself to concede unlawful search
After taking an extraordinary third look at a criminal appeal out of Gilpin County, Colorado’s second-highest court this week made the rare move of withdrawing its prior decisions and reversing the defendant’s drug conviction. Nearly 11 months after it first concluded a sheriff’s deputy lawfully seized a sunglasses case from Robert Scott Schweizer’s van that contained methamphetamine, a…