judge william martinez
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Federal judge orders release hearing for torture victim in ‘abhorrent’ immigration custody
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A federal judge on Friday found a “real risk” that the government would try to unlawfully deport a man who was tortured in his home country, and ordered a hearing to determine if he should be released from immigration custody while his case proceeds. Two years ago, the Denver-based federal appeals court concluded an immigration…
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Federal judge dismisses lawsuit by Club Q survivors at parties’ request
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A federal judge last week dismissed a consolidated lawsuit brought by survivors of a Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub shooting, but permitted the plaintiffs to re-file certain claims in state court. In November 2022, Anderson Aldrich murdered five people and injured more than two dozen others at Club Q. Aldrich is serving multiple life sentences in prison as…
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10th Circuit, 2-1, rules ignoring emergency signal from jail detainees is clear constitutional violation
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The Denver-based federal appeals court concluded on Monday that a jail employee can violate a detainee’s clear constitutional rights by ignoring an emergency distress signal, even if there is no further information about what kind of emergency exists. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit agreed Ralph Marcus Hardy…
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Federal judge weighs release of detained man tortured in home country
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A federal judge on Friday considered whether to release a man in custody who suffered torture at the hands of government authorities in his home country and who remains detained, even after prevailing on multiple occasions in recent immigration proceedings. Exactly two years ago, the Denver-based federal appeals court concluded an immigration judge’s decision to…
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Federal judge imposes $90K+ in fees, sanctions on Colorado podcaster
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A federal judge this week imposed more than $90,000 in attorney fees and sanctions on a conservative podcaster whose unsubstantiated claims of election-rigging prompted a series of defamation lawsuits against him and those who broadcast the allegations. In a pair of orders on Monday and Tuesday, U.S. District Court Senior Judge William J. Martínez directed Oltmann…
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Federal judge ‘troubled’ by unknown location ICE intended to transfer detained man
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A federal judge stated on Monday he was “troubled” by allegations that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was planning to transfer a man in custody outside of Colorado to an unknown location. Two years ago, Dennis Arostegui-Maldonado won a favorable ruling in his immigration case from the Denver-based federal appeals court. Subsequently, he received an order…
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Colorado’s federal trial judges keep backlogs steady, but data show discrepancies
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Colorado’s federal trial judges collectively had 71 motions in civil cases that had been sitting on their dockets for at least six months without a ruling as of March 31, according to recently released data from the judiciary. However, the reported information contains discrepancies, and at least one judge’s list understates his number of pending…
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Federal judge begrudgingly dismisses Club Q survivors’ claims against El Paso County, ex-sheriff
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A federal judge vented his frustration on Monday with El Paso County leaders, criticizing their lackluster approach to a key gun safety law while acknowledging he was obligated to dismiss the claims against them brought by survivors of an LGBTQ nightclub shooting. “Plaintiffs can take some slim solace in the fact that, while the individual county…
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Federal judge ‘reluctantly’ dismisses claim by Club Q survivors against property owners
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A federal judge agreed last week that a recent change to Colorado law barred him from allowing the survivors of an LGBTQ nightclub shooting to hold the property owners liable for safety deficiencies that allegedly contributed to the massacre. At the same time, U.S. District Court Senior Judge William J. Martínez slammed the legislature’s 2022 amendment…
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10th Circuit upholds $1,000-a-day sanction on Colorado podcaster in defamation case
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The Denver-based federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld a $1,000-per-day sanction against a conservative podcaster who absconded from the courthouse where he was required to sit for a deposition — and instead returned home to record a podcast and insult the judge. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit also…
