judge craig welling
-
Appeals court reverses Jeffco assault convictions due to omitted jury instruction
Colorado’s second-highest court agreed last month that a Jefferson County defendant’s assault convictions could not stand because his jury should have been allowed to consider whether he used force against a bar patron to defend his girlfriend from inappropriate touching. While the testimony conflicted and the surveillance video was not conclusive, jurors heard that Scott…
-
Couple’s notarized agreement did not create common law marriage, appeals court says
A Garfield County couple’s signed, notarized document attesting to their common law marriage does not mean they were actually married, Colorado’s second-highest court ruled last week. In contrast to a formal, licensed marriage, Colorado recognizes common law marriages between two people who mutually agree to enter into a marriage and then engage in conduct reflecting…
-
Colorado appellate judges, lawyers hold annual conference | APPELLATE UPDATE
Appellate judges and attorneys gathered in Denver on Friday to discuss recent trends, exchange tips and clarify confusing areas of practice. “One of the things I really had to focus on, coming from the trial court, is that my inclination before was to make sure things are raised and people were getting their questions answered.…
-
Appeals judges tell Boulder students about workload, ‘attack mode’ during school visit
Three judges on Colorado’s second-highest court traveled to Boulder on Tuesday to hear oral arguments in real cases and field questions from students about their professional paths, their workload on the Court of Appeals, and their approach to interacting with attorneys. “Sometimes, I regret my tone. I will admit that I get a little too…
-
Divided appeals court reverses murder convictions due to faulty self-defense instruction
Colorado’s second-highest court concluded last week that an incomplete self-defense instruction required the reversal of an El Paso County defendant’s murder convictions. Demetrius Montez Martin was among those present late at night at a club in Colorado Springs. An argument ensued and Martin got in his vehicle and drove off. Someone fired multiple gunshots in…
-
Divided Colorado Supreme Court curtails use of laced-substances defense
The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday walked back the ability of criminal defendants to claim their conduct was the result of consuming an intoxicating substance that secretly contained another behavior-altering substance. Under state law, “involuntary intoxication” is an affirmative defense, meaning the prosecution has to disprove some component of that defense for the jury to…
-
Colorado Supreme Court to hear cases on insurance coverage for COVID, witness credibility
The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Tuesday that it will decide the degree to which a virus or other hazard must affect a commercial property before it can trigger loss-or-damage coverage under an insurance policy. At least three of the court’s seven members must agree to hear a case on appeal. Currently, there is one…
-
In Tina Peters appeal, judges telegraph some degree of reversal | ANALYSIS
Former Mesa County clerk Tina Peters seems poised to walk away from the state’s Court of Appeals with her criminal convictions largely intact, even as a three-judge appellate panel raised concerns about her sentence and one specific conviction. Peters, a Republican who served one term following her 2018 election, is serving a roughly nine-year prison…
-
Appeals court orders new menacing trial after faulty self-defense instruction
Colorado’s second-highest court ordered a new trial last week for an El Paso County defendant convicted of felony menacing, concluding an erroneous self-defense instruction may have influenced the verdict. Under Colorado law, self-defense is an affirmative defense, meaning the prosecution must disprove at least one component in addition to proving the underlying offense. Judges are…
-
Appeals court clarifies framework for parents’ First Amendment rights in child-naming disputes
Colorado’s second-highest court overturned a Jefferson County judge’s order last week in a long-running dispute about whether two ex-spouses must call their child by his first name or middle name outside the home. In doing so, a three-judge Court of Appeals panel clarified that the standard for restricting a parent’s free speech rights is a…