judge vincente vigil
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‘Mental gymnastics’: Lawyers, judge dissect Colorado Supreme Court’s racial bias rule for jury selection
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Lawyers from the prosecution and defense communities, along with a trial judge, attempted on Thursday to demystify a recent rule change addressing racial discrimination in criminal jury selection, with some head-scratching about what the Colorado Supreme Court had actually done. “The proposal initially was not to clarify a complicated area of law, but was an…
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‘Weird,’ ‘confusing,’ ‘disheartening’: Colorado Supreme Court under fire over racial bias proposal
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Several members of a Colorado Supreme Court advisory committee aired their frustration last week after the justices announced they had reached consensus on a proposal to combat racial discrimination in jury selection — by substantially watering down the protections built into the original draft. The Supreme Court took the unusual step of asking its Rules of…
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Appeals court orders new sex assault trial due to biased juror
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Colorado’s second-highest court ordered a new sex assault trial for a defendant on Thursday after concluding a Weld County judge permitted a biased juror to serve. Prosecutors charged Jeremy Black with multiple counts of sexual assault on a child, alleging he abused a girl beginning when she was approximately seven years old. She disclosed the…
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Northeast Colorado judge resigns, admits to misconduct
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A judge from northeastern Colorado resigned at the end of Wednesday, and, in doing so, admitted to allegations that he used his position to aid a friend in her court case and did not disclose his personal connection in other cases involving that friend. District Court Judge Justin B. Haenlein presided in the 13th Judicial…
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Colorado judicial disciplinary officials describe what changed, remained constant with 2024 amendment
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Top state officials for attorney and judicial discipline spoke on Wednesday about the ways in which a 2024 constitutional amendment changed the process for disciplining state judges, the factors that stayed constant and the question marks that remain around specific rules. In November, voters overwhelmingly enacted Amendment H, which lawmakers referred to the ballot after a…
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Northeast Colorado judge inappropriately aided friend in multiple cases, discipline officials say
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A judge from northeastern Colorado used his position to aid a friend across multiple cases, and ordered the pretrial release of her boyfriend who was accused of felonies, disciplinary officials alleged in a filing on Tuesday. District Court Judge Justin B. Haenlein, who presides in the 13th Judicial District of Morgan, Logan, Sedgwick, Phillips, Washington, Yuma…
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Northeast Colorado judge intends to resign to resolve misconduct complaint, parties reveal in unique hearing
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A trial judge in northeastern Colorado intends to resign his seat if a disciplinary panel accepts the agreed-upon narrative of the misconduct allegations against him, the parties said during a first-of-its-kind proceeding on Friday. The state Supreme Court suspended District Court Judge Justin B. Haenlein in November due to an ongoing investigation by the Colorado…
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Colorado panel to hold likely first-ever livestream of judicial discipline proceeding
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A three-member panel assigned to adjudicate the misconduct allegations against a northeastern Colorado judge will livestream a status conference on Friday, for apparently the first time in the state’s history. On Nov. 25, the Colorado Supreme Court suspended District Court Judge Justin B. Haenlein, who presides in the 13th Judicial District of Morgan, Logan, Sedgwick, Phillips,…
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Appeals court overturns Weld County drug convictions after officer gave improper testimony
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Colorado’s second-highest court on Thursday overturned a man’s drug convictions and 36-year prison sentence because a law enforcement officer improperly testified the defendant had met the legal elements to be found guilty. An expert witness cannot “usurp” the jury’s role by testifying about the conclusion jurors should reach. The Court of Appeals has previously ordered…
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Colorado Supreme Court attempts to restore order in Weld County cases after botched cell phone search
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The Colorado Supreme Court issued a pair of orders on Friday attempting to end the turbulence after an accidental disclosure of confidential defense information to the prosecution affected multiple Weld County criminal cases. District Court Judge Vincente G. Vigil has struggled to contain the fallout from a botched cell phone search that resulted in hundreds…
