Court briefs lay out arguments in Boulder lawsuit over fees for police body-cam footage
Are Colorado law enforcement agencies allowed to charge the public thousands of dollars for body-worn camera footage of incidents of alleged officer misconduct?
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Proposed ban on fees for body-worn camera footage dies with law enforcement whistleblower bill
A proposal to ban the charging of fees for unedited body-worn camera footage, released to the public under the 2020 Law Enforcement Integrity Act, died when the Colorado House amended and then defeated a controversial whistleblower bill.
Provision in Colorado law enforcement bill restricts fees for body-worn camera footage
A bill narrowly passed by a Colorado House committee includes a provision that prohibits law enforcement agencies from charging fees for unedited body-worn camera footage released to the public under the 2020 Law Enforcement Integrity Act.
Yellow Scene lawsuit challenges $2,857 fee for body-cam footage of fatal Boulder police shooting
A lawsuit challenges the Boulder Police Department’s insistence that a news organization pay the city nearly $3,000 to get video of a 2023 fatal shooting of a 51-year-old woman by officers.
Colorado Supreme Court will review appellate ruling that keeps peace officer database confidential
The Colorado Supreme Court will review whether appellate judges wrongly decided the Peace Officer Standards and Training Board (POST) is a criminal justice agency in a 2023 ruling that kept the state’s database of law enforcement officers confidential.
CFOIC’s 2023 year in review: Denver school board, Red Rocks, disappearing messages, CORA changes, livestreamed courts and a theater surveillance video
Several key rulings in 2023 showed why courts matter so much for enforcing and interpreting Colorado’s open government laws.
Obtaining criminal court records may take longer because of new Colorado law requiring redaction of juveniles’ names
Because of a 2023 law that protects the privacy of juveniles, the Colorado Judicial Department plans to limit attorneys’ access to criminal court records and clerks may take longer to process document requests from journalists and the public.
12 ways to improve Colorado’s open government laws
Lawmakers did not, however, tackle the No. 1 barrier to obtaining public records in Colorado — exorbitant fees. And that problem will only get worse on July 1, 2024, when inflation boosts the maximum-allowable hourly rate to process CORA requests from $33.58 to a whopping $40 or $41.
State lawmakers have made policing in Colorado more transparent and accountable. New reporting by COLab shows why additional reforms are needed.
Powerful new reporting by the Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) and news organization partners shines a light on gaps and weaknesses in Colorado’s recent legislative efforts to make law enforcement more transparent and accountable in our state.
Even with new POST database and reforms, Colorado is in the minority of states keeping comprehensive police officer data secret
The refusal to release this information makes Colorado one of just 15 states that keep this type of police officer data secret, according to a nationwide reporting project, preventing the press and public from adequately monitoring the state’s oversight of wandering or second-chance officers.