fourth amendment
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Federal judge bars gun evidence in criminal case due to Denver police’s unconstitutional search
A federal judge last week barred the government from using evidence from a man’s backpack in his prosecution for illegally possessing a weapon, following a Denver police officer’s unconstitutional search. The Fourth Amendment’s prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures requires that law enforcement obtain a warrant or rely on a specific exception to the warrant…
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Federal judge bars gun evidence in criminal case due to Denver police’s unconstitutional search
A federal judge last week barred the government from using evidence from a man’s backpack in his prosecution for illegally possessing a weapon, following a Denver police officer’s unconstitutional search. The Fourth Amendment’s prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures requires that law enforcement obtain a warrant or rely on a specific exception to the warrant…
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Federal judge green-lights jury trial against Denver, officers for response during 2020 protests
A federal judge agreed last month that a jury will decide whether two Denver officers and the city itself should be liable for excessive force, First Amendment violations and other infringements on a man’s constitutional rights during the 2020 protests. After a Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd in May 2020, international demonstrations erupted, including in…
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Federal judge green-lights jury trial against Denver, officers for response during 2020 protests
A federal judge agreed last month that a jury will decide whether two Denver officers and the city itself should be liable for excessive force, First Amendment violations and other infringements on a man’s constitutional rights during the 2020 protests. After a Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd in May 2020, international demonstrations erupted, including in…
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Federal judge grants immunity to Fountain officers for detaining man, entering home without warrant
A federal judge last month threw out a Fountain man’s claims that police officers acted unconstitutionally when they responded to his home for a welfare check, only to restrain him and enter the house without a warrant. Kyle A. Fisher alleged three officers were unjustified in investigating his children’s wellbeing, and he assumed their visit…
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Federal judge grants immunity to Fountain officers for detaining man, entering home without warrant
A federal judge last month threw out a Fountain man’s claims that police officers acted unconstitutionally when they responded to his home for a welfare check, only to restrain him and enter the house without a warrant. Kyle A. Fisher alleged three officers were unjustified in investigating his children’s wellbeing, and he assumed their visit…
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Federal judge bars government from using seized narcotics in drug trafficking case
A federal judge last month barred the government from using more than two dozen pounds of narcotics seized from a vehicle as evidence against the defendants because a Colorado state trooper violated the prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures. When Trooper Joshua St. Onge pulled over Ezequiel Pita-Chavolla and Manuel Pacheco for a traffic infraction,…
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Federal judge bars government from using seized narcotics in drug trafficking case
A federal judge last month barred the government from using more than two dozen pounds of narcotics seized from a vehicle as evidence against the defendants because a Colorado state trooper violated the prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures. When Trooper Joshua St. Onge pulled over Ezequiel Pita-Chavolla and Manuel Pacheco for a traffic infraction,…
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Federal judge bars government from using seized narcotics in drug trafficking case
A federal judge last month barred the government from using more than two dozen pounds of narcotics seized from a vehicle as evidence against the defendants because a Colorado state trooper violated the prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures. When Trooper Joshua St. Onge pulled over Ezequiel Pita-Chavolla and Manuel Pacheco for a traffic infraction,…
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Colorado justices weigh DUI suspects’ right to refuse blood draw
The Fourth Amendment’s prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures means law enforcement must obtain a warrant or else rely on a specific exception to the warrant requirement, like the consent of the person being searched, to investigate a crime. But can Colorado law provide blanket consent for police to draw the blood of alleged drunk…