murder
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Secret orders, requests for recusal bog down Colorado’s death penalty prosecution
Colorado’s only criminal case in which federal prosecutors are actively pursuing the death penalty has taken unusual turns in recent weeks, with defense attorneys continuing to challenge the judge’s ability to hear the case and the judge issuing orders not available for public viewing. Ishmael Petty stands accused of killing a fellow inmate at the…
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10th Circuit reverses perjury conviction, warns prosecutors to watch their questioning
The Denver-based federal appeals court reversed a defendant’s perjury conviction last week, warning prosecutors that it is better to follow up on imprecise or unclear answers than to criminally charge a witness for their response. A jury convicted Lori Milliron on two counts of perjury, obstruction of justice, and being an accessory after the fact…
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Adams County murder conviction reversed due to faulty jury instruction
Colorado’s second-highest court overturned an Adams County defendant’s murder conviction last month because the instruction provided to the jury about a trespasser’s right to use self-defense did not accurately reflect Colorado law. A person is justified in using force to defend himself if he has a reasonable belief that another person will imminently use unlawful…
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Colorado court upholds murder conviction despite jury disobeying instructions
Colorado’s second-highest court upheld an Arapahoe County defendant’s murder conviction last month, even though jurors found he was not the one who shot the victim and the evidence suggested he was not present for the shooting. A three-judge Court of Appeals panel previously determined that jurors in Jacob Alexander Shockey’s trial disobeyed their instructions and…
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Teen defendant properly transferred from youth detention to jail, Colorado justices conclude
Colorado law required the transfer of a teenage murder suspect from youth detention to the county jail when he turned 18, the state Supreme Court ruled last week. Prosecutors have accused Issac James Lawrence of killing a younger boy and attempting to kill his mother in Durango. Lawrence is being tried as an adult but was initially…
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Former state Senate candidate arrested in Colorado Springs murder
Editor’s note: This story has been updated regarding endorsements for Timothy Arvidson going back to his state Senate campaign in 2024. Colorado Springs police arrested a former state Senate candidate for allegedly shooting and killing a man in the 1900 block of Calle Da Seville on Sunday, according to a news release by the department.…
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Appeals court reinstates murder case despite ex-DA Linda Stanley’s conduct
Colorado’s second-highest court reinstated the murder and child abuse charges on Thursday against a Fremont County defendant, reasoning that the former district attorney’s misconduct did not warrant dismissal of the charges. A judge previously dismissed the criminal case against defendant William Jacobs after former elected District Attorney Linda Stanley spoke in derogatory terms about Jacobs…
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Jeffco murder conviction overturned due to improper evidence
Colorado’s second-highest court reversed a defendant’s convictions for murder and aggravated robbery earlier this month, finding that a Jefferson County judge allowed evidence that improperly suggested the man had “bad character” for possessing guns generally. Under the rules for criminal cases, evidence cannot be used to prove a defendant has bad character, and they acted…
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Judge’s error allowing juvenile defendant to be prosecuted as adult cannot be reversed, appeals court says
Colorado’s second-highest court concluded last month that a judge’s error in allowing a juvenile defendant to be prosecuted as an adult cannot be corrected on appeal because the defendant later pleaded guilty. The case arose under unusual circumstances, after police connected James Edward Papol in 2018 to the 30-year-old unsolved murder of Mary Lynne Vialpando…
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10th Circuit upholds dismissal of Barry Morphew’s civil lawsuit against prosecutors, investigators
The Denver-based federal appeals court agreed on Monday that Barry Morphew, who now stands accused for a second time of murdering his wife, failed to state viable claims against the government officials involved in his first, unsuccessful prosecution. Morphew was arrested in May 2021, almost a year after his wife, Suzanne Morphew, disappeared. State prosecutors…