When a former prep school headmaster was facing 25 counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Child – or Child Pornography – charges, he was offered a plea deal of 4 years in prison. After rejecting the deal, he pushed forward with his trial choosing waive his right to a jury trial and having his case heard before the judge. The Continue Reading
Category: Courts and Procedures
Judge Rejects Plea Deal – Takes Matters Into Her Own Hands | Plea Bargains and Sentencing in Fort Collins
When a 78-year-old woman went to her sentencing hearing, she probably expected the judge to honor the agreement her attorney and the district attorney had reached. However, this was not the way her sentencing went. The woman was charged with one count of Careless Driving Resulting in Death and two counts of Careless Driving Resulting in Injury for a fatal Continue Reading
All Spring Breaks Must Come to an End | Restorative Justice in Boulder County
Most school aged children look forward to Spring Break and always end up feeling the week off of school went by too fast. Some Boulder high school students must have felt that way when they decided to extend their spring break by throwing Molotov cocktails in their high school. Luckily, the school was empty when a security guard smelled smoke Continue Reading
Big Brother Strikes Again in Fort Collins | DNA Samples from Misdemeanor Offenders
In 2010, Colorado passed a law requiring any adult arrested for felony charges to submit a saliva sample. This DNA sample is stored in a national database and is run for possible matches with unsolved crimes and held for future changes. Now, lawmakers want to be even more intrusive and require this of anyone convicted of certain misdemeanor crimes as Continue Reading
Alternative Sentencing in Larimer County
An alert was issued for an 18-year-old inmate who did not return from his unsupervised work release in Douglas County. While he is not considered a threat to the public, police still want help from the public to ensure his return to custody. He was scheduled to come back to the detention facility at 12:30 a.m., but never went back Continue Reading
Why Should I Elect for a Jury Trial in Fort Collins?
When you are facing criminal charges, you are presented with many options in the Colorado Court system. You can simply take a plea agreement, have a judge rule on your case, or take it to trial in front of a jury. Why would you want to choose a Jury Trial in Larimer, Grand or Boulder County? Well, basically, because it Continue Reading
You Have Any Weed? What Not to Text to Your Probation Officer
Be Careful Who You Text There are many rules to follow when on parole or probation. One of the most important is that you are not to possess, use, or consume any illegal drugs. You are even required to submit urine samples to test that you are abiding by this rule. So, why did a man from out of state Continue Reading
Anatomy of a Jury Trial in Larimer County, Colorado
Before I began working as an assistant at the O’Malley Law Office, I didn’t have a lot of experience in the criminal justice system. I’ve been working here for over a year now, and earlier this month was my first time watching a jury trial in Colorado. If you are reading this blog, it is most likely because you, a Continue Reading
Legal Hot Potato in Larimer County Courts
Believe it or not, the District Attorneys, sheriff’s deputies, police, courts, and probation officers are great at the game of hot potato. In this legal form of hot potato, all these people work to shift the blame to another person before they get caught with a problem in Larimer, Boulder, and Jackson County. Let’s look closer at what I mean Continue Reading
What is Hearsay in Larimer County Court? – Admissible Evidence in CO
Courts have greatly complicated the evidence principle of “hearsay” in Larimer, Boulder, and Jackson County courts. Hearsay sounds simple, but there are so many exceptions to the rule that even criminal defense attorneys can’t completely figure it out. When you are on trial for Assault, Domestic Violence, or Criminal Mischief, this rule can have an enormous impact on your case. Continue Reading