Boulder Legal Issues Blog

With marijuana legal in Colorado, but illegal under federal law, you would think the temptation to grow the plant on public land would be relatively low. Unfortunately for Colorado’s forests and mountains, illegal cannabis growers continue to cut costs by cultivating in state and national parks and forests. And, it may be getting worse,...

You worked hard throughout your parenting to create a place of trust and understanding. You wanted your child to be able to turn to you if they were in trouble. And then, one day, they do. When they call you from college to tell you that they were charged with a minor in possession...

The National Academies of Science released a comprehensive report in 2003 that examined the state of the science in lie detection. After reviewing nearly a century of scientific data and reports and visiting polygraph units run by government agencies, the NAS committee found that polygraphs were prone to both false positives and false negatives....

How safe are we in America? How about in Colorado? Reports on the crime rates were just released by the FBI and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Colorado saw increases in both violent crimes and property offenses, the nationwide rates actually dropped, on average. The crime rate is of crucial importance in criminal...

The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution contains the Double Jeopardy clause, which reads, “nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb.” The Double Jeopardy clause is meant, in part, to keep prosecutors from getting “two bites at the apple.” In other...

When colleges or universities discover an alleged rule violation that could also be considered a crime, they typically have a choice in all but the most serious types of offenses. They can refer the case out to local police and process the case as a violation of school rules, or they can handle the...

In March, Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty announced the creation of a conviction integrity unit in the county which will review criminal cases for signs that defendants are actually innocent. Since then, his office and local criminal defense lawyers have been working to create review criteria and an application process. The unit will...

Across the country, cash bail systems have been under attack as being essentially debtor’s prisons. Cash bail means that many people will be kept behind bars before trial simply because they can’t afford to pay. That can be devastating, often causing job loss, loss of housing and massive disruption in a person’s life even...

If you live in Colorado, you’ve probably heard that driving while impaired by marijuana is illegal. Unfortunately, with an increasing number of states legalizing marijuana for either recreational or medical purposes, the incidence of drugged driving appears to be on the rise. Before legalization, states defined marijuana-impaired driving as driving with any measurable amount...

Nothing is quite as upsetting as an accident with serious injuries. One day everything was fine. You were getting up, going to work, and taking care of your family. After an accident, the future can look murky, as you struggle to figure out just what you are going to do. There is a lot...