first amendment
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Judge sides with Florissant fire district in ex-chief’s First Amendment lawsuit
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A federal judge ruled on Friday that the former chief of the Florissant Fire Protection District could not prevail on the claim that his 2023 firing was retaliation for his First Amendment-protected activity. Erik Holt alleged the Teller County district’s directors terminated him because he cooperated with an investigation into potential election fraud during the…
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‘Partisan or political’: Federal judge orders Elizabeth School District to return 19 banned books
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A federal judge on Wednesday concluded the Elizabeth School District likely violated the First Amendment rights of students and authors by removing 19 books from school libraries because the topics conflicted with the school board’s conservative vision. U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney granted a preliminary injunction ordering the district to return the books…
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Federal judge dismisses National Guard member’s First Amendment lawsuit
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A federal judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit from a member of the Colorado National Guard who alleged leadership unconstitutionally punished him for derogatory remarks made on a podcast. In a March 14 order, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Philip A. Brimmer expressed some confusion about how plaintiff David Morrill was alleging his First Amendment…
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Federal judge dismisses claims against Academy District 20 officials for ejecting man from meeting
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A federal judge on Monday concluded a man who was ejected from an Academy District 20 school board meeting in December 2023 had not stated viable claims that district officials violated his constitutional rights. Brett Dayberry had been speaking during the public comment period about “numerous extremely vile passages” in a book that was available…
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Appeals court overturns woman’s conviction, finds defect in template jury instructions
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Colorado’s second-highest court overturned a criminal conviction from La Plata County on Thursday, concluding it was the “rare case” in which the template jury instructions incorrectly describe how jurors can find someone guilty of retaliating against a witness. The jury that convicted Erin Amber Trujillo was instructed it could find her guilty if she directed…
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Federal judge exempts Christian preschool from state non-discrimination requirements
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A federal judge ruled on Monday that the state must continue funding a Christian preschool in Chaffee County even though the academy’s policies may violate the non-discrimination requirements of Colorado’s universal pre-kindergarten program. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel D. Domenico granted what he deemed a “narrow” permanent injunction in favor of Darren Patterson Christian Academy and…
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Federal judge says he will not recuse from trans athlete case over courtroom pronoun policy
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U.S. District Court Judge S. Kato Crews on Monday denied a request that he recuse himself from a lawsuit about transgender athletes’ participation, rejecting the argument that his courtroom protocols on the use of pronouns meant he had “prejudged” the case. Last week, attorneys challenging a policy of the Colorado Springs-based Mountain West Conference alleged they…
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Lawyer asks federal judge to recuse himself due to pronoun policy in courtroom
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Lawyers challenging a collegiate athletic association’s policy regarding transgender participants have asked a federal judge to recuse himself from handling the case because of his courtroom protocols requiring people to use the appropriate pronouns when referring to others. U.S. District Court Judge S. Kato Crews, an appointee of Joe Biden, has adopted practice standards addressing…
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Federal judge green-lights trial against Denver officer who arrested man yelling obscenities at passersby
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A federal judge last week concluded a jury will decide whether a Denver police sergeant violated the constitutional rights of a man who hurled sexist comments and broadcast a torrent of swear words through a megaphone outside Denver Union Station in 2019. Abade Irizarry and Kyle Shockley were standing on Wynkoop Plaza on June 2, 2019.…