racial bias
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Former Arapahoe judge’s bias not grounds for overturning conviction, appeals court says
Colorado’s second-highest court has waved aside the notion that the racial bias of a former Arapahoe County judge deprived a Black defendant of his constitutional rights, determining its own review of the trial has now “purged the case of any taint.” In April of last year, the Colorado Supreme Court censured and accepted the resignation…
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Appeals court finds no error in dismissal of Black juror from El Paso County case
Colorado’s second-highest court has determined an El Paso County judge appropriately allowed prosecutors to dismiss a Black juror from a criminal trial for reasons other than his race. The U.S. Supreme Court recognized in the 1986 decision of Batson v. Kentucky that juror dismissals, or strikes, motivated by a juror’s race are unconstitutional. Consequently, trial judges evaluate…
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Judicial committee secretly debates proposal to address racial bias in jury selection
A committee of the Colorado Supreme Court met behind closed doors on Friday to discuss two proposals for curtailing the exclusion of people of color from juries based on explicit or implicit racial bias. The renewed effort comes months after legislation to accomplish the same goal died in the legislature in the wake of opposition…
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Bill seeks to restrict the use of facial recognition technology in Colorado
Colorado lawmakers are seeking to restrict the use of facial recognition technology in the state’s government, law enforcement and schools with the introduction of a new bill. If passed, Senate Bill 113 would establish several limitations and regulations for the use of artificial intelligence facial recognition services by government agencies and law enforcement agencies in the…
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? Nicolais: Supreme Court reviews pulling back the jury curtain for racial bias
The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees “an impartial jury” to all defendants. But what seems to be a clear and concise rule becomes much less so in practice. Most dramatically, whatever is said among deliberating jurors cannot be used to prove bias. No matter how far from impartial such statements may remove a…