Boulder Reporting Lab: The City of Boulder is petitioning the Colorado Supreme Court to review a Colorado Court of Appeals ruling that found the city cannot charge fees for body camera footage related to a complaint of officer misconduct under a 2020 police accountability law.

Supporters of the appeals court decision called it a major win for police transparency and accountability across Colorado. But the city said in a June 18 petition to the Supreme Court that it would impose “enormous ongoing costs” on law enforcement agencies.

The petition marks the latest development in a lawsuit filed by Yellow Scene Magazine, which covers Boulder County and the Denver metro area, after the city required journalists to pay more than $8,000 for body camera footage of a December 2023 shooting in which officers killed Jeanette Alatorre. The lawsuit argued the fees were “prohibitive” and effectively shielded the footage from public disclosure.

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