judge william martinez
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Federal judge finds no constitutional violation in requiring illegal pot growers to forfeit house
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Requiring an Aurora couple to forfeit their home to the government after using it to illegally grow marijuana does not violate the constitutional prohibition against excessive fines, a federal judge ruled last month. In 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice petitioned to take possession of a home in the 23000 block of East Wagontrail Avenue…
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10th Circuit underscores limited path federal prisoners face in suing government
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The federal appeals court based in Denver underscored last month that incarcerated plaintiffs have essentially no path to suing federal officials for money for violating their constitutional rights. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit explained that the U.S. Supreme Court’s precedent, as well as its own, meant prisoners…
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Federal judge dismisses challenge to ‘frustrating’ delays in sex offender treatment behind bars
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A federal judge recently dismissed an incarcerated man’s challenge to his lack of sex offender treatment in the Colorado Department of Corrections, despite having no idea when he will have access to that mandatory component of his criminal sentence. U.S. District Court Senior Judge William J. Martínez determined David A. Wismer III did not sufficiently allege…
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Appeals court finds longer window applies for claiming violations under minimum wage law
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Resolving an issue that has generated disagreement among federal judges, Colorado’s second-highest court concluded that alleged violations of the state’s minimum wage law are subject to a six-year window for filing a claim and not the much shorter window that applies to other types of wage complaints. By 2-1, a three-judge panel of the Court…
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Federal judge dismisses inmate’s lawsuit over alleged assault from living with gay cellmate
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A federal judge last month dismissed an incarcerated man’s lawsuit against two corrections officers who allegedly left him in a cell with a gay inmate, despite knowing other prisoners would attack him for rooming with a “known homosexual.” Although judges have analyzed other cases involving prisoners’ claims that their sexual orientation posed a risk of…
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6 months or more: Federal judges in Colorado have trouble moving cases forward | COVER STORY
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When Charlotte N. Sweeney took the bench as a federal district judge last summer, she inherited hundreds of pending motions on her first day, some of which had been lingering for years. “You have to dig out of that or you will never, ever, ever catch up,” she warned at a legal event in July. Some…
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10th Circuit agrees ex-Cherry Creek schools teacher failed to prove discrimination
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The federal appeals court based in Denver agreed last month that the Cherry Creek School District ended the contract of a veteran elementary school teacher because of her performance, not because she expressed discomfort with racial equity trainings. Leslie Shannon, who is Black and Native American, came to Highline Community Elementary School in 2016 after many…
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Ex-Denver police chief may be sued for excessive force in 2020 protests, federal judge rules
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A federal judge earlier this month allowed a single excessive force claim to proceed against Denver’s former police chief for his alleged role in directing the city’s response to racial justice protests in the summer of 2020. At the same time that U.S. District Court Senior Judge William J. Martínez declined to dismiss the claim against…
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Federal judges dole out harsh words, monetary sanctions for lawyers’ conduct
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In recent months, judges on Colorado’s federal trial court have delivered stinging rebukes to lawyers – and in some instances, monetary penalties – for their behavior in the course of litigation. Although it is typical for judges to deliver critiques of lawyers’ legal arguments, it is less common for them to lay down accusations of unprofessionalism and…
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Federal judge sends Muslim inmate’s lawsuit to trial over denial of religious diet
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A jury will decide whether Colorado Department of Corrections officials violated an incarcerated man’s rights by terminating his religious diet when he purchased multiple items that allegedly were in conflict with his meal plan. On Aug. 3, U.S. District Court Senior Judge William J. Martínez agreed a jury could believe Ray Anthony Smith’s claims that prison…