retaliation
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10th Circuit agrees ex-DPS employee failed to prove retaliatory firing
The federal appeals court based in Colorado agreed last month that a former Denver Public Schools employee failed to show how her termination was connected to her act of speaking out against racial discrimination. Barbara Lindsay worked at Emily Griffith Technical College and participated in the 2019 hiring process for a new school director. She…
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Jury to decide ex-Weld County schools superintendent’s retaliation claim
A jury will decide whether Weld County School District RE-5J unlawfully retaliated against its former superintendent because she stood up against multiple incidents of racism, sexism and homophobia involving one of the district’s principals. U.S. District Court Judge Nina Y. Wang denied the district’s request to resolve the case in its favor without a trial, writing in…
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Jury to hear ex-La Plata County jail nurse’s retaliation case under new Colorado whistleblower law
A jury will decide whether a former nurse in the La Plata County jail experienced retaliation and discrimination under a Colorado law enacted early in the COVID-19 pandemic to protect whistleblowers who raise public health concerns in the workplace. Last month, U.S. District Court Senior Judge Lewis T. Babcock acknowledged no other courts had yet…
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Federal judge allows ex-Florence employee’s retaliation claim to proceed against city
A federal judge last month refused to dismiss a retaliation claim against the city of Florence, filed by a former employee who alleged she was pushed out for reporting malfeasance and discrimination at the water treatment plant. Sarah Glenn worked for the city for 1.5 years and was the only female employee at the plant.…
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Federal judge partially dismisses ex-Florissant fire chief’s wrongful termination claims
A federal judge this month partially dismissed the wrongful termination claims the Florissant Fire Protection District’s former chief lodged against the special district, citing procedural deficiencies. Erik Holt, who was the chief until June 22, alleged the Teller County district’s directors terminated him because he cooperated with an investigation into their allegedly illegal conduct and…
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Federal judge allows fired Weld County principal’s Christian discrimination claim to proceed
A former Weld County high school principal will be able to pursue his claim of religious-based retaliation against the superintendent who sought to fire him, a federal judge ruled last month. Brian Littlefield was a longtime school administrator who became the leader of Roosevelt High School in 2019. He alleged his 2021 termination was the…
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2 defendants’ sentences upheld for threatening judges
Colorado’s second-highest court recently upheld the convictions and sentences of two men who made threats against judges, rejecting allegations made on appeal about bias and procedural improprieties. In the first case out of Denver, then-District Court Judge Morris B. Hoffman sentenced Eric Brandt, who has a history of agitating against law enforcement, to 12 years in…
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Ex-Adams County judge resigned after retaliation campaign against employee, improper relationship
Robert W. Kiesnowski Jr. resigned from his position as an Adams County district judge this summer following his admission to a campaign of retaliation against an employee and a failure to comply with the judiciary’s rules on personal relationships, according to documents filed with the Colorado Supreme Court. Kiesnowski joined the 17th Judicial District bench…
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Federal judge agrees colleague need not recuse in case due to prior employment
A federal judge agreed last week that her colleague, a new appointee to Colorado’s U.S. District Court after a career representing the federal government, does not need to recuse from a recent civil case brought against the government. U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Prose joined the federal trial court earlier this year, appointed by the life-tenured…
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Douglas County sheriff’s alleged political firing of subordinate to be heard by jury, judge rules
A jury will decide whether the former Douglas County sheriff fired his subordinate for making a political Facebook post in the middle of the 2020 election, and whether the sheriff’s office has raised a valid defense to terminating her without the proper process. Holly Kluth, a 32-year employee of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, sued…