Author: Michael Karlik
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Trump’s 10th Circuit nominee recuses from cases against federal government without explanation
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President Donald Trump’s nominee to fill a vacancy on the Denver-based federal appeals court recused himself without a clear explanation from nine cases against the executive branch while he was undergoing vetting by the White House this spring. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Daniel D. Domenico disclosed the recusals in his responses to the U.S.…
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Adams County murder conviction reversed due to faulty jury instruction
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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
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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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Divided appeals court reverses conviction after judge declined to define ‘bludgeon’
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Colorado’s second-highest court reversed a Jefferson County defendant’s felony menacing conviction on Thursday, concluding that the trial judge’s failure to define “bludgeon” for jurors may have affected the outcome. A three-judge Court of Appeals panel divided in unusual ways in the case of Michael Casey Simms. Two judges believed the definition of “reasonable doubt” that…
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10th Circuit dismisses Tina Peters’ challenge to confinement as moot
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The Denver-based federal appeals court granted the state’s unopposed request on Wednesday to dismiss former Mesa County clerk Tina Peters’ challenge to her confinement as moot. Although Peters received a commutation of her prison sentence last month from Gov. Jared Polis and has since left prison, her federal proceedings addressed whether Peters could be freed…
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Federal judge declines to recuse from death penalty case after Supermax visit
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A federal judge declined to recuse herself last month from a death penalty case arising out of Colorado’s “Supermax” prison, finding that her tour of the facility earlier this year did not bias her decision-making. U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney is presiding over the federal murder prosecution of Ishmael Petty, who is accused…
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Appeals court clarifies offense of impersonating a peace officer
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Colorado’s second-highest court clarified this month that a person commits the offense of impersonating a peace officer if they engage in “any conduct” while pretending to be law enforcement. In a case out of El Paso County, Richard James Coulier II and a neighbor negotiated the sale of an inoperable vehicle in the neighbor’s front…
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Colorado Supreme Court reverses 2 Chaffee County judges for imposing fee on habeas petitioner
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The Colorado Supreme Court rejected two separate appeals earlier this month from an incarcerated defendant seeking immediate release from prison, but concluded that two Chaffee County judges incorrectly required him to prepay filing fees for his cases. David J. Gottorff is serving a prison sentence following his 2023 convictions in Ouray County. Although his challenge…
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Weld County judge wrongly denied bail to murder defendant in gap between law change
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Colorado’s second-highest court ruled this month that a Weld County judge was wrong to deny bail to a murder defendant in the window between the state Supreme Court’s recognition of the right to bail and the voters’ subsequent overruling of that decision through a 2024 constitutional amendment. Moises Rodriguez-Nunez stands accused of first-degree murder for…
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Defendants acquitted by insanity are eligible for records-sealing, appeals court says
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Colorado’s second-highest court clarified last month that defendants who are found not guilty by reason of insanity are eligible to have their criminal records sealed from public view. Judges must seal criminal records if, among other things, a defendant is “acquitted of all counts” in a case. The question for the Court of Appeals was…