Here’s a key problem concerning Colorado justice authorities’ initial contacts with juveniles who find themselves in trouble with the law: differential treatment is often doled out to young offenders across the state who have similar profiles and are charged with the same types of crimes. And that’s far from the
Criminal law is a legal realm that is perhaps unparalleled for its complexities and open-ended questions. One of those queries is this: Should adolescent offenders in their teen years be criminally charged in the same fashion as older suspects? Should there simply be a single justice system that adjudges crime/sentencing
From the perspective of a “suspect” in a flawed criminal lineup in Colorado or elsewhere, it’s pretty easy to see why concern would attach to the process. What if that person stands a head taller than everyone else in line, with an officer pointedly reminding an eyewitness that the perpetrator
An admitted robber gave the FBI cellphone numbers of alleged accomplices. Agents used a “reasonable grounds” standard to obtain so-called “cell-site” evidence from a mobile service provider that tracked the locations of one of those individuals. That data yielded information resulting in his criminal conviction. And then the legal challenges
It’s been a bedrock legal principle and undisturbed judicial ruling issued at the highest level for well more than half a century, and yet news stories emerge with some regularity evidencing prosecutorial misconduct aimed at avoiding its application. “It” is the so-called Brady Rule, forth by the U.S. Supreme Court
It was a pretty big deal last month. If the news somehow escaped your scrutiny, you could be acquainted with the details later this month in the event you find your local Starbucks temporarily closed for company training on a sensitive topic. What happened in early February at a Philadelphia
According to advisory committee members who spent months revising the Denver Police Department’s recommended use-of-force policies, the suggestions were generally good in an overall sense. They were just too vague and didn’t go nearly far enough to instill public confidence. In contrast, the committee’s recently submitted proposals go a good
Thanks to Amendment 64, Coloradans over the age of 21 can now possess one ounce of less or marijuana for personal use without having to fear criminal prosecution under Colorado law. Unfortunately, though, drug-sniffing dogs may not have received this memo — meaning many may have to be retrained, particularly
When police pulled you over, it may have been because your taillight was out or you forgot to use a turn signal when you changed lanes. However, even if it was something more serious, like running a stop sign or speeding, you may have been surprised and confused when the
We all have our favorite television crime drama and we’ve all heard these words: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. you have the right to speak to an attorney, and to have an
