larimer county
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Colorado judge finds "sea of unreliability" in company’s cellphone mapping data
Police and prosecutors in Colorado and throughout the nation are relying on a company’s cellphone location mapping data to help them convict criminal defendants, but a Larimer County judge’s recent ruling cast doubt on the technology when he barred its use in his courtroom after finding it unreliable and prone to error. The defense lawyer…
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Appeals court upholds dismissal of gun group’s lawsuit against Larimer sheriff
Colorado’s Court of Appeals has agreed a dispute in Larimer County over the adequacy of a gun group’s concealed carry training appears to have resolved itself, and the lawsuit against Sheriff Justin Smith must be dismissed. Guns For Everyone, based in Jefferson County, offers safety classes for people seeking concealed handgun permits. Certificates from such…
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10th Circuit skeptical of Fort Collins officer’s excessive force arguments
A Fort Collins police officer’s contention that he should not face civil liability for slamming an unarmed college student face-first into the pavement received an icy reception at the Denver-based federal appeals court on Wednesday. After a lower court judge ruled that Officer Randall Klamser would proceed to a jury trial for using a “rowing…
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Pollution-producing oil storage tank site shut down by state regulators
An oil storage tank installation in Larimer County was ordered shut down Thursday by state air pollution regulators after what it says are repeated failures to control leakage of noxious vapors from the site that residential neighbors say are both annoying and harmful to their health. Rural green transit projects win $51 million in federal…
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Larimer County school district provided appropriate education to special needs student, judge says
A federal judge has labeled as “untrue” multiple claims from the parents of a special-needs child who alleged a Fort Collins-based school district failed to provide their son the legally-required level of educational services. U.S. District Court Senior Judge Christine M. Arguello agreed the Poudre School District in Larimer County provided a free and appropriate…
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‘Non-survivable’ evacuation routes exist in Colorado’s most wildfire-prone areas
About a 45-minute drive west from downtown Denver, nestled in the shadow of Mount Evans, Evergreen flourishes as one of the gems of the Rocky Mountains. Its dense pine forests give way to craggy ridges that look down on creek beds winding through the dozens of Evergreen’s mountain neighborhoods, all centered on an alpine lake…
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What makes Evergreen’s fire evacuation routes so perilous?
About a 45-minute drive west from downtown Denver, nestled in the shadow of Mount Evans, Evergreen flourishes as sits Evergreen, Colorado, one of the gems of the Rocky Mountains. But the town’s topography presents a lurking danger. The thick forests and steep valley walls are what wildfire experts call fuel and topography. The final piece…
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Appeals court clarifies that judges may not ignore postconviction claims
A Larimer County judge was wrong to ignore a set of claims a man raised on his own following his conviction, concluded the state’s Court of Appeals last week, ruling that judges cannot dismiss a self-represented defendant’s arguments simply because an appointed lawyer later chooses not to pursue those. Jurors convicted Anthony Robert Smith in…
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State Supreme Court rules officers had more than ‘hunch’ to detain suspected drug distributor
Officers who conducted extended surveillance of a suspected drug distributor in Larimer County had reasonable suspicion to detain and search him, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday, reversing a trial court judge who believed police were operating solely on a “hunch.” District Court Judge Stephen J. Jouard agreed last year to suppress drug evidence…