Author: Michael Karlik
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10th Circuit finds judge improperly imposed 25-year mandatory minimum for kidnapping
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The Denver-based federal appeals court concluded on Tuesday that a judge incorrectly believed he had to sentence a defendant convicted of kidnapping to the 25-year mandatory minimum that applies to violent crime. A jury originally convicted Killiu Ford on multiple counts of kidnapping and related offenses for his 2009 abduction and robbery of a family.…
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Federal judge awards $10K to ‘supermax’ prisoner for guard’s unwarranted force
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A federal judge took the rare step last week of concluding an incarcerated, self-represented plaintiff should be compensated $10,000 by the U.S. government for a prison guard’s unwarranted use of force. After a five-day bench trial in which Khalfan Khamis Mohamed represented himself against the government’s attorneys, U.S. District Court Senior Judge R. Brooke Jackson…
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Colorado justices ponder whether rental car companies are also ‘insurers’
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The Colorado Supreme Court considered last week whether car rental companies that offer insurance policies can also be deemed “insurers” who may be sued for their failure to pay out benefits on claims. Hertz Corp. argued it was not an insurance company based on a sequence of events in the 1990s. The Supreme Court ruled…
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Colorado justices consider where to draw line on experts testifying about child witnesses’ honesty
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Members of the Colorado Supreme Court considered last week how far an expert witness can go in suggesting to a jury that another witness is being truthful, which is generally forbidden. Previously, the state’s Court of Appeals believed a defendant who “persistently” argues an adult influenced a child victim to lie has opened the door…
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Report: Colorado’s federal trial court sees time to trial tick up, magistrate judge consent remain low
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Colorado’s federal trial court saw a slight uptick in the number of civil cases filed in 2024 and also a slight increase in the average time for a case to reach trial, according to a statistical report compiled by U.S. Magistrate Judge N. Reid Neureiter. Neureiter also noted the percentage of cases handled exclusively by…
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Appeals court finds Jeffco judge imposed lifetime sex offender registration on man without explaining why
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Colorado’s second-highest court overturned a Jefferson County judge’s order on Thursday that subjected a defendant to lifetime sex offender registration, after she did not make findings about each of the required factors. David Lamont White pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sexual assault. At his 2023 plea hearing, the defense and prosecution agreed District…
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Chief justice warns about threats to judiciary, state Supreme Court visits high school | COURT CRAWL
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Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government. Colorado’s chief justice warned that certain rhetoric is undermining the judiciary and judges’ safety, and the state Supreme Court visited a Denver high school to hold oral arguments. ‘Literally dangerous’ • Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez spoke at the Colorado Judicial…
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Appeals court declines to overturn defendant’s ‘3 strikes’ sentence
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Colorado’s second-highest court concluded on Thursday that a defendant was sentenced under the state’s “three strikes” law in a manner that did not comply with the U.S. Constitution, but the mistake did not require reversal. Known as the Habitual Criminal Act, Colorado’s law requires judges to impose three or four times the maximum sentence if a…
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Federal judge ‘dumbfounded’ at government’s rejection of enforceable order holding ICE to its own policy
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A federal judge on Friday grilled the government over its position that an internal policy defining the ability of immigration agents to make warrantless arrests should not be enforceable through a court order. “As a citizen of Colorado and of the United States, I am dumbfounded that the government won’t agree to a court order…
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Colorado justices field questions about values, disagreement at East High School
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Members of the Colorado Supreme Court fielded probing — and in some instances, tough — questions from East High School students on Thursday, including how the court balances existing law with “evolving social values.” “Often what we’re looking at is what the General Assembly has given to us in the form of a statute,” said…
