judge stephanie dunn
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Boulder County judge wasn’t obligated to bail out self-represented defendant, appeals court rules
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Colorado’s second-highest court concluded last month that a criminal defendant in Boulder County was not unfairly forced to choose between his rights to a speedy trial and to an attorney, and, when he elected to go without an attorney, the trial judge was not obligated to save him from his own poor performance. Jurors convicted Timothy…
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Colorado Supreme Court to review safeguards against interrogations by child welfare workers
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The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will review two murder cases implicating a question the court has never answered: When a child welfare worker questions a suspect in custody, must they provide a Miranda warning first? At least three of the court’s seven members need to consent to hear a case on…
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Fremont County murder conviction reversed due to faulty jury instruction
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A man convicted of murdering his housemate when he shot a gun through his basement ceiling will receive a new trial, as Colorado’s second-highest court determined a Fremont County judge gave jurors an instruction that violated the defendant’s constitutional rights. Thomas Randall Addington is serving a 38-year prison sentence after jurors convicted him of murdering…
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Appeals court overturns Jeffco organized crime convictions, upholds pole camera surveillance
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Colorado’s second-highest court earlier this month overturned a string of organized crime and money laundering convictions out of Jefferson County due to prosecutors’ failure to present sufficient evidence proving the offenses. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals applied recent Colorado Supreme Court precedent to conclude a criminal “enterprise” must have its own structure…
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Colorado appeals court sides against Northglenn mosque protester in defamation lawsuit
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Colorado’s second-highest court on Thursday agreed a man who filed suit over media coverage of his protest activity failed to show how his defamation claims had merit. In April 2021, the Northglenn/Thornton Sentinel reported on Richard Roy Blake’s protests outside Masjid Ikhlas – Metropolitan Denver North Islamic Center. For years, Blake had shown up to “open houses”…
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Douglas County judge subjected man to lifetime sex offender registration without saying why, appeals court finds
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A Douglas County judge did not provide a clear reason why she designated a man a “sexually violent predator” and subjected him to lifetime sex offender registration, the Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday. Under Colorado law, a person convicted of a sex offense is labeled a sexually violent predator when, among other things, the…
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Divided appeals court upholds defendant’s longer sentence for not saying ‘sorry’
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Colorado’s second-highest court on Thursday upheld an Adams County judge’s decision to give a defendant five more years in prison solely because he did not tell the judge he was sorry. By 2-1, a three judge panel for the Court of Appeals agreed that under certain circumstances, a defendant’s silence at sentencing cannot be used…
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Appeals court judge suggests Supreme Court revisit ruling about defendants’ seized property
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One judge on the state’s second-highest court has suggested the Colorado Supreme Court clarify its own recent decision governing how convicted defendants may recover personal items seized by police, calling the ruling logically inconsistent. In December, the Supreme Court decided Woo v. El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, involving a convicted defendant who claimed law enforcement had failed…
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Colorado Supreme Court, 4-3, orders new trial after judge blocked defense from questioning alternate suspect
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In the face of strong evidence suggesting a woman sentenced to four years in prison for burglary did not actually commit the crime, the Colorado Supreme Court on Monday agreed a Weld County judge improperly barred the defense from questioning an alternate suspect during trial. The 4-3 decision held that the inability of Nora Hilda Rios-Vargas…
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Colorado appeals court sides with customer sued over negative online review
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A series of statements a Colorado Springs woman made online and through the media about a plumbing company are protected under the law and do not amount to defamation, Colorado’s second-highest court ruled last month. The decision from the Court of Appeals is the latest to address the tension between customers who leave critical online…
