Tag: mike weissman
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EDITORIAL: Colorado’s prisons crowded? Open more
Let’s be clear: There is no “prison crowding” crisis in Colorado. The real crisis is our Democratic legislature’s quest to free as many convicts as it can — public safety be damned. To make that happen, lawmakers will grasp at any pretext, even if it has to gin one up. And all too often, Gov.…
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EDITORIAL: Lawmakers would unleash a suing spree
Leave it to one of the state Senate’s co-apologists in chief for the criminal element, Democratic Sen. Mike Weissman of Aurora, to defend the honor of the Southern Poverty Law Center. That’s the Montgomery, Ala.-based activist group that made national headlines last week when it was indicted by a federal grand jury on 11 counts…
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EDITORIAL: The death of justice — by a thousand cuts
Just how obsessed is the legislature’s “justice reform” wing with emptying Colorado’s prisons? Let’s just say if they could get away with it, they’d stage a fire drill and open the gates at every corrections facility in the state — then pretend not to notice when no one returned. The extremists among ruling legislative Democrats…
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Colorado Democratic bill would allow lawsuits against federal officials, drawing warnings from local critics
Colorado Democrats are considering a bill that would let people sue federal, state, and local officials for alleged constitutional violations — a change supporters say would check government power but critics warn could trigger a surge of lawsuits against public employees. Senate Bill 176 would allow individuals who have been subjected to a “deprivation of…
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10th Circuit dismisses challenge to Colorado legislature’s decorum rules
The Denver-based federal appeals court concluded on Tuesday that Colorado lawmakers cannot be sued for creating and enforcing rules of decorum that circumscribe the public commentary allowed at legislative committee hearings. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit agreed that the concept of legislative immunity extends to the establishment…
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EDITORIAL: Downgrading murder equals justice deformed
It might sound like an overstatement to say Colorado’s offender-friendly legislature is hellbent on decriminalizing crime itself. But, really, what else could you make of House Bill 26-1281, introduced just the other day at the state Capitol? Get ready to blink in disbelief. Members of the “justice reform” fringe among ruling Democrats at the legislature…
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EDITORIAL: Defiance of immigration laws will backfire on Colorado
The contempt for law enforcement among ruling Democrats at the State Capitol has escalated — from reckless to delusional. It was in 2020 that the Democratic majority in the legislature, led by its soft-on-crime political fringe, revoked qualified immunity from law officers across our state. It has had a chilling effect on law enforcement ever…
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Colorado lawmakers hear about increased judicial discipline complaints, fallout from Missy Woods misconduct
Members of the Colorado legislature’s judiciary committees heard about a large increase in complaints against judges and additional forensic misconduct that has come to light, during three days of oversight hearings last week. Leaders of several judicial-related agencies appeared between Jan. 20-23 to address their priorities and field questions from legislators. On behalf of the…
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Colorado Senate committee advances bill to create 29 judgeships, with lawmaker support delicate
The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced a bill to establish 29 new Colorado judgeships by a vote of 6-1 on Wednesday, with supporters and opponents both cautioning that their positions could change based on the availability of money. The committee heard testimony from numerous witnesses in support of the bill, including from sitting judges. Chief Justice…
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Judicial branch tells oversight committees that cost of new judgeships has decreased
Judicial branch leaders told lawmakers on Monday that their priority for the legislative session — the establishment of 29 new judgeships across Colorado — has come down in cost amid broad concerns about the state’s budget deficit. Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez and State Court Administrator Steven Vasconcellos previously informed the Joint Budget Committee that the cost of…