jefferson county
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Appeals court ‘reluctantly’ sides with Jeffco DA in disapproving judge’s self-defense ruling
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Colorado’s second-highest court, by 2-1, agreed last week that a Jefferson County judge should not have let jurors consider whether a defendant acted in self-defense at a trial that resulted in his acquittal for menacing a police officer. However, members of the three-judge Court of Appeals panel criticized District Attorney Alexis King’s office for bringing…
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Divided Colorado Supreme Court says defendants liable for possessing others’ debit cards even if unusable
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The Colorado Supreme Court, by 5-2, rejected the idea on Monday that prosecutors need to prove a debit card is functional in order to convict a defendant of unlawfully possessing someone else’s “financial device.” The majority believed Colorado law was straightforward: Legislators outlawed the unauthorized possession of a financial device, and debit cards were specifically…
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Colorado Supreme Court finds Lakewood unconstitutionally expanded phone provider tax
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The Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that Lakewood improperly expanded the scope of a 1969 tax ordinance twice to encompass cell phone providers without holding the popular vote the state constitution requires. A Jefferson County judge previously determined the city’s actions failed to comply with the 1992 Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, which generally requires…
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Colorado justices may address whether defendants have right to review evidence when challenging convictions
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The Colorado Supreme Court signaled on Tuesday that it may decide whether defendants challenging their criminal convictions due to ineffective assistance of counsel are entitled to the evidence the prosecution already handed over before trial. An attorney representing Keevin Bell II years after his Jefferson County murder conviction was unable to obtain all the evidence…
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Federal judge dismisses challenge to Jeffco overnight field trip policy’s reliance on gender identity
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A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a constitutional challenge to the overnight field trip policy of Jeffco Public Schools, filed by multiple families who objected to rooming assignments based on students’ gender identities as opposed to their sex assigned at birth. U.S. District Court Judge Regina M. Rodriguez concluded the 14th Amendment’s protection of a…
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Defendant’s ‘train wreck’ of a statement prompts appeals court to order new trial
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Colorado’s second-highest court ordered a new trial on Thursday for a defendant whose 16-minute statement mid-trial, which had no basis in criminal procedure and was described by one judge as a “train wreck,” resulted in a constitutionally unfair proceeding. Jefferson County prosecutors charged Riddick Amoako-Asiamah with large-scale marijuana cultivation or distribution based on the substantial amount…
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Appeals court directs Jeffco judge to reconsider releasing man’s car from Lakewood police custody
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Colorado’s second-highest court last week directed a Jefferson County judge to reconsider a man’s request for Lakewood police to return his car, which the city declined to release even after his criminal case was resolved. Police arrested Kameron Murphy in September 2022 and charged him with tampering with the body of his recently deceased girlfriend,…
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Colorado Supreme Court to hear appeals about parenting restrictions, resentencings
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The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will decide whether a judge’s reduction in the amount of time a parent spends with their child amounts to the kind of “restriction” that requires a heightened justification. At least three of the court’s seven members must agree to hear a case. The justices also will…
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Appeals court clarifies defendant need not prove relationship with own children to modify restraining order
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Colorado’s second-highest court clarified on Thursday that a defendant did not need to demonstrate the nature of his relationship with his biological children in order to argue that a no-contact order infringed on his constitutional rights. Last year, the Colorado Supreme Court issued a decision in Salah v. People, addressing what should happen when a convicted sex offender…
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Colorado Supreme Court to hear cases on rezoning via ballot box, defaulting defendants
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The justices may also intervene in two ongoing criminal cases