The state of Colorado is currently trying to kill eight men, primarily in metro jurisdictions, by seeking the death penalty against them. Seven of these men are racial minorities; all are too poor to hire a lawyer to defend them.
Dante Owens, Randy Canister and Trevion Washington are three African American co-defendants in Arapahoe County. Canister, who is defended by Mike Root and Lee Christian, is set for trial in June of 2002. Washington's trial is set for November of 2002. He is defended by Phil Dubois, Dennis Hartley and Ingrid DeFranco. Owens is scheduled to be tried in February of 2003, according to David Lane, who is defending the case with Rick Kornfeld and John Chanin. All penalty phases are set to commence in August of 2003, in reverse order of trial.
Abraham Hagos, who was born in Ethiopia, is facing the death penalty in Denver district court. Nathan Chambers and Forest Lewis are defending him.
Cody Neal, the only Anglo on Colorado's death row, is also the only person who got there after pleading guilty pro se and representing himself during the penalty phase. This prosecutorial "victory" is being appealed to the Colorado Supreme Court by Terri Brake. Neal's post-conviction motions are simultaneously being handled by Jeffrey Pagliuca and Michael Heher. Neal's case has drawn special interest due to the litigation it has spawned regarding Mark Pautler.
Pautler, who is still employed as a chief deputy in the Jefferson County District Attorney's office, spoke to Neal on the phone the night Neal turned himself in to authorities, after Neal asked the police if he could speak to a lawyer before deciding what to do. Pautler lied to Neal and said he was a public defender named "Mark Palmer." He told Neal that his office handled lots of murder cases and assured Neal that he would assist him.
This string of falsehoods was preserved on audio tape and, after Pautler's office assisted Mr. Neal onto death row, Pautler was ultimately censured by the Office of the Presiding Disciplinary Judge on April 2, 2001. He was suspended for three months and the period of suspension was stayed for a twelve-month probationary period. Pautler, who continues to insist that his conduct was above reproach and ethically correct, appealed to the Colorado Supreme Court. The CCDB filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the Office of Disciplinary Counsel. After oral arguments, the case is currently pending decision by the Supreme Court.
Neal's post-conviction motions, meanwhile, have not been filed pending a competency hearing scheduled for April 29, 2002.
George Woldt, convicted and sentenced to die by three judges in El Paso County, is being represented in his direct appeal by Andrew Heher. The opening brief is due before the Colorado Supreme Court on August 5, 2002.
Francisco Martinez's appeal of his Jefferson County death sentence is being litigated by Dean Neuwirth, Jean Dubofsky and Seth Benezra. The CCDB filed an amicus curiae brief in Martinez's case. Martinez's case is the first judge-sentencing appeal to be heard since the U.S. Supreme Court announced Apprendi v. New Jersey, and his briefs raise an Apprendi claim. Although oral argument was scheduled for December 15, 2002, the court informed the parties on December 13, 2002, that it would not hear the case until the U.S. Supreme Court decided Arizona v. Ring. Ring presents the question of the continued validity of judge capital sentencing in light of Apprendi.
Robert Harlan, condemned to die by an Adams County jury in 1996, is pursuing post-conviction relief in the trial court after the Colorado Supreme Court affirmed his conviction and sentence. He is being represented by Jessica West and Will Smith.
Colorado's death row population was reduced by one recently, when Frank Rodriguez died from hepatitis C. Prosecutors bemoaned the fact that the government was unable to take a more active role in killing Rodriguez than by refusing to treat his ultimately fatal disease. At the time of his death, Rodriguez's case was pending decision by the Tenth Circuit. David Lane had represented Rodriguez for the last several years.
