justice alex martinez
-
Appeals court upholds convictions despite trial judge’s ‘inappropriate expressions of annoyance’
—
by
Colorado’s second-highest court upheld a man’s Arapahoe County convictions last month, despite voicing concerns about the trial judge’s confrontational behavior toward defense counsel. Brandon John Conlon stood trial in 2020 for three charges related to filing a false sexual harassment report against security officers. A jury found him guilty. During the trial, then-District Court Judge…
-
Denver judge wrongly revoked jury trial in child neglect case, says appeals court
—
by
A Denver judge acted improperly by canceling a jury trial that two parents had requested in their child neglect case, the state’s second-highest court ruled last month. Although three-judge panels of the Court of Appeals are not bound by each other’s decisions, an appellate panel on Oct. 19 agreed with their counterparts who concluded earlier…
-
Colorado Supreme Court reinstates $940,000 jury award to man run over during rescue attempt
—
by
The Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a jury’s finding that a taxicab operator owed $940,000 to a man who intervened in the assault of a driver, only to see the enraged assailant steal the cab and run him over with it. Previously, the state’s second-highest court disagreed that the act of stealing a taxi…
-
Adams County judge wrongly canceled child neglect jury trial after mom failed to appear, appeals court finds
—
by
Colorado’s second-highest court ruled last week that an Adams County judge who wound up deciding a child neglect case had no authority to cancel the planned jury trial solely because the mother failed to appear at a pretrial conference. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals also warned that to the extent judges across…
-
Divided appeals court finds no misconduct from Denver prosecutor’s inflammatory argument
—
by
While the Colorado Supreme Court has established that prosecutors may not characterize a witness’s testimony as a “lie,” the state’s second-highest court has decided, by 2-1, a Denver prosecutor did not cross the line by repeatedly using a synonym for “lie.” Jurors convicted Rigoberto E. Fernandez in 2015 for stabbing a man at Montbello Recreation…
-
Appeals court confirms Arapahoe County judge’s bias did not affect parenting case
—
by
Although a former Arapahoe County judge admitted to racial bias and received a high-profile public censure two years ago for her misconduct, Colorado’s second-highest court agreed there was no evidence Natalie T. Chase harbored bias against a Hispanic father specifically when she terminated his parental rights. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals decided…
-
Colorado justices question whether cab company is liable for passenger’s assault of good Samaritan
—
by
When Jose Garcia intervened to stop a belligerent passenger from assaulting a taxicab driver, it was a foreseeable event given the risks that drivers regularly face, both he and the cab company agreed. But when the passenger stole the cab and used it to run Garcia over, causing massive injury, Colorado Cab Company insisted the…
