fourth amendment
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Chief justice, top appeals judges address Colorado legal community | APPELLATE UPDATE
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Members of Colorado’s state and federal appellate courts addressed the legal community on Friday with the latest details about caseloads, internal changes and upcoming initiatives. Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez, who has occupied the state’s top judicial role for almost one year, described an “interesting trend” of the Colorado Supreme Court receiving slightly fewer petitions to…
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Appeals judge warns police against overly broad cell phone search warrants
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A member of the state’s second-highest court warned last month that law enforcement personnel should be on notice by now that they cannot obtain warrants seeking broad amounts of data from a suspect’s cell phone records unrelated to the crime. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals upheld the convictions and 102-year prison sentence…
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‘Common sense’: 10th Circuit rules Loveland officer will face civil trial for shooting puppy in head
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The Denver-based federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that a jury will decide whether a Loveland police officer violated a couple’s constitutional rights by shooting their puppy in the head and torso. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit had never decided the specific question of whether the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable…
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Federal judge advances convicted man’s lawsuit over $3,406 still in Denver’s possession
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A federal judge this month agreed an incarcerated man may proceed to sue Denver and the commander of its major crimes division for refusing to return $3,406 that authorities confiscated after his arrest 20 years ago. Jurors convicted Brian Hicks of murder in 2011. Originally, police arrested Hicks in 2005 and charged him with attempted…
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Colorado justices rule trunk search constitutional in Arapahoe County shooting case
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The Colorado Supreme Court reversed an Arapahoe County judge on Monday who found law enforcement conducted an unconstitutional search of a man’s trunk, with the justices instead concluding police had grounds to believe a recently fired gun was inside. Prosecutors have charged Sheron Mario Furness with seven criminal counts related to drug and weapon possession,…
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Federal judge lets prisoner’s claim proceed over strip search video shared with others
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A federal judge agreed last week that an incarcerated man’s claims could proceed against two state corrections employees, alleging they retaliated against him for complaining about recorded strip searches and also showed the video of one search to inmates and staff. Representing himself, Ryan James Griffin filed suit based on multiple strip searches he underwent…
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10th Circuit rules Denver police acted constitutionally by taking bullet removed from man
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Denver police did not violate the constitutional prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures by obtaining a bullet, without a warrant, that was removed from a man’s leg and later used as evidence against him, the Colorado-based federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday. Law enforcement responded to an office building in the Cherry Creek neighborhood where…
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Federal judge grants immunity to Colorado Springs paramedic, officer for man’s death
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A federal judge has concluded that a Colorado Springs paramedic and police officer could not be held liable for their roles in restraining a man in mental health crisis, leading to his death. U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney determined Sean Reed and Nick Fischer were entitled to qualified immunity, which is a judicial…
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10th Circuit sides with Golden officers in constitutional lawsuit over arrest, cell phone search
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Members of the Golden Police Department did not violate a man’s clearly established rights when they arrested him on suspicion of retaliating against a witness and used a defective warrant to search his phone, the federal appeals court based in Denver ruled last week. Wayne Dean Wieber was involved in a long-running neighborhood dispute, to…
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10th Circuit revives transgender detainee’s lawsuit against El Paso County sheriff
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The federal appeals court based in Denver ruled on Wednesday that a transgender detainee at the El Paso County jail could proceed with her lawsuit against the sheriff and a deputy for alleged violations of her constitutional rights. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit agreed that several of…