Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Courts

Marijuana user cannot be banned from gun ownership, U.S. court rules
Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Marijuana user cannot be banned from gun ownership, U.S. court rules

By Nate Raymond | Denver Gazette A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday ruled that a pot-smoking gun owner in Texas cannot be prosecuted for violating a federal ban on users of illegal drugs owning firearms, saying it is unconstitutional to disarm her based on her past drug habits. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the prosecution had violated Paola Connelly's right to keep and bear arms under the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment citing a landmark 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that expanded gun rights. "Marijuana user or not, Paola is a member of our political community and thus has a presumptive right to bear arms," U.S. Circuit Judge Kurt Engelhardt, an appointee of Republican former President Donald Trump, wrote for a three-judge panel. READ THE FU...
Colorado attorney general files lawsuit against RealPage for allegedly driving up rent prices
Approved, State, Westword

Colorado attorney general files lawsuit against RealPage for allegedly driving up rent prices

By CATIE CHESHIRE | Westword Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser has joined attorneys general from seven other states in suing software company RealPafe for an alleged illegal price-fixing scheme that has pushed rent prices up across the country. RealPage sells software to landlords, who in turn share sensitive data such as rent invoices, lease terms and vacancies. Then RealPage puts the data into an algorithm that delivers price recommendations to those same landlords. But instead of competing against each other to provide the best services or best price, landlords work together through RealPage to set rents as high as they can, according to the lawsuit. “A significant number of landlords then effectively agree to outsource their pricing function to RealPage with auto acce...
RFK Jr. gets green light to challenge Biden on censorship after supreme court declines to rule
Approved, National, Washington Examiner

RFK Jr. gets green light to challenge Biden on censorship after supreme court declines to rule

By KAELAN DEESE | Washington Examiner A Louisiana district court ruled this week that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his charity Children’s Health Defense have the legal right to sue the Biden administration for allegedly pressuring tech giants to censor their social media posts. The decision marks the latest major development in anti-censorship litigation, following the June Supreme Court ruling in Murthy v. Missouri, where a 6-3 majority struck down a similar injunction against the Biden administration, saying that the plaintiffs lacked standing due to insufficient evidence of direct injury caused by the government’s actions. “The Court finds that Kennedy is likely to succeed on his claim that suppression of contentposted was caused by actions of Governm...
Federal court speeds appeal over challenges to state’s counting of ballots that arrive after election day
Approved, Judicial Watch, National

Federal court speeds appeal over challenges to state’s counting of ballots that arrive after election day

By Judicial Watch Judicial Watch announced today that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has ordered a hearing regarding a lower court ruling on Mississippi’s election law that permits absentee ballots to be received as late as five business days after Election Day. The Fifth Circuit will hear the case on Tuesday, September 24, at 3 p.m. CT, 2 p.m. ET. Judicial Watch filed the civil rights lawsuit challenging the Mississippi election law on behalf of the Libertarian Party of Mississippi (Libertarian Party of Mississippi v Wetzel et al. (No. 1:24-cv-00037)). The court consolidated the case filed by Judicial Watch with one filed by the Republican National Committee, the Mississippi Republican Party, and other complainants. READ MORE ON...
Former Denver cardiologist convicted on 35 counts of drugging, assaulting women
Approved, kdvr.com, Local

Former Denver cardiologist convicted on 35 counts of drugging, assaulting women

By Maddie Rhodes | Fox 31 News On Tuesday, former Denver cardiologist Stephen Matthews was convicted after being accused of drugging and sexually assaulting multiple women he met on dating apps. Matthews was charged with 38 counts relating to what the prosecution said were patterns of alleged sexual assaults. The jury deemed Matthews guilty on all counts except counts 23, 24 and 25. The not-guilty charges include assault – sexual assault incapable of appraising nature, sexual assault physically helpless and sexual assault submission against will. Matthews’ sentencing is set for Oct. 25. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 31 NEWS
‘J6 Praying Grandma’ avoids prison, will be on house arrest with ankle monitor for six months
Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

‘J6 Praying Grandma’ avoids prison, will be on house arrest with ankle monitor for six months

By Debbie Kelley | Denver Gazette A sentencing that took four and a half hours in federal district court in Washington, D.C., Monday afternoon left 72-year-old great-grandmother Rebecca Lavrenz of Falcon with no prison time for her participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. What a magistrate judge did levy for her April 4 conviction on four misdemeanor counts: one year of probation, six months of house arrest with an ankle monitor as soon as she returns to her residence located about 14 miles northeast of Colorado Springs — and a $103,000 fine for funds she’s raised from the public. “I think it was a miracle that I don’t have to go to prison — that I am grateful for,” Lavrenz said by phone after the sentencing. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE...
Faulting new law, after daughter transitions to boy, parents sue Colorado, Brighton school district
Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State

Faulting new law, after daughter transitions to boy, parents sue Colorado, Brighton school district

By Thelma Grimes | Colorado Politics A Brighton couple is suing the state of Colorado, alleging that a law dealing with transgender identity violates parents’ constitutional rights and that their daughter, with the encouragement of a school district counselor, transitioned to a boy in secret.  The couple filed the Aug. 7 lawsuit against the Department of Education, and the 27J School District in Brighton. The suit seeks to challenge the constitutionality of House Bill 1039, claiming it violates parents’ rights as outlined in the First and 14th Amendments of the American Constitution. The Colorado law requires all public schools to use a child’s “preferred name,” subjecting schools to discrimination claims with the state's Civil Rights Commission if they refused if t...
Almost every judicial district has faced naked people showing porn during live streams, officials say
Approved, KRDO.COM, State

Almost every judicial district has faced naked people showing porn during live streams, officials say

By Sam Page, Chelsea Brentzel | KRDO-TV Colorado Springs A group of naked people showing porn are wreaking havoc for courtrooms across Colorado. The Fourth Judicial District tells KRDO13 Investigates that almost every district in the state has experienced issues with a group gaining access to public livestreams and creating explicit disruptions. A spokesperson tells KRDO13 Investigates one person even exposed themself on a live stream camera in recent weeks. Other people have shared pornography and explicit audio recordings and overall disrupted official court proceedings, according to court officials. KRDO13 Investigates has learned that the people doing this are posing as law enforcement officers or official media outlets to gain access to private, locked WebEx live st...
Tina Peters Trial Recap: Elections manager breaks down on stand, defense focuses on inconsistencies in state’s case
Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Tina Peters Trial Recap: Elections manager breaks down on stand, defense focuses on inconsistencies in state’s case

By Rocky Mountain Voice Staff Previously elected Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters is facing seven felony charges and several misdemeanors in a trial happening this week.  She is accused of orchestrating a breach to prove election theft. Peters has pleaded not guilty, claiming she is a victim of lawfare. The Colorado Secretary of State's office has refuted her claims summarized in three reports Peters has published, called the “Mesa Reports.”  State prosecutors allege that Peters enlisted software engineer Gerald “Jerry” Wood for IT contract work. Wood passed a background check, received his security badge, and returned it the same day. However, prosecutors claim his badge was used twice in May 2021 to access secure election facilities, capturing images of the election server...
Judge awards families of loved ones left rotting in funeral home $950M, but getting paid may be another matter
Approved, KXRM-TV, Local

Judge awards families of loved ones left rotting in funeral home $950M, but getting paid may be another matter

By Jesse Bedayn Associated Press, via Fox 21 News The Colorado funeral home owners who allegedly stored 190 decaying bodies and sent grieving families fake ashes were ordered by a judge to pay $950 million to the victims’ relatives in a civil case, the attorney announced Monday. The judgment is unlikely to be paid out since the owners have been in financial trouble for years, making it largely symbolic. The owners of Return to Nature Funeral Home, Jon and Carie Hallford, did not acknowledge the civil case or show up to hearings, said the attorney representing the families, Andrew Swan. The Hallfords, who own Return to Nature Funeral Home in Colorado Springs, about an hour south of Denver, face criminal charges in separate cases. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 21 NEWS