plea deal
-
No constitutional right to plead guilty, appeals court says in upholding El Paso County convictions
—
by
An El Paso County judge was not constitutionally obligated to accept a defendant’s guilty plea, Colorado’s second-highest court concluded last week. Appealing his convictions, Timothy Ray Scott Jr. argued his trial judge violated his constitutional right to “autonomy” by not letting him plead guilty. The U.S. Supreme Court has previously interpreted the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of…
-
Colorado appeals court finds handwritten note suggests defense lawyers failed to disclose plea deal
—
by
A handwritten note stuck to an old case file suggests a convicted man’s defense attorneys failed to tell him about a potential plea deal from the prosecution, Colorado’s second-highest court determined on Thursday. Consequently, a three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals ordered a Denver judge to hold a hearing on Kenneth Fritz’s claim that…
-
Former Rep. Tracey Bernett pleads guilty to residency fraud charges
—
by
Former state Rep. Tracey Bernett, D-Louisville, pleaded guilty Friday to charges related to residency fraud and received a deferred sentence and two-years probation, according to a news release. Prosecutors charged Bernett last year with falsifying her residency in order to run for re-election to House District 12. Bernett was elected in 2020 to represent HD12,…
-
Nicolais: Colorado bail reform leading the way
—
by
Years ago I defended a pro bono client against battery and disorderly conduct charges. He worked a blue-collar construction job, tried hard to take care of his children, and had a lengthy, but distant criminal record. When we went in for his arraignment, the prosecutor offered to drop the battery charge in exchange for a…
