Garfield County Colorado Democratic Party

Truden: No decision yet

By Dennis WebbOctober 8, 2005 With a week remaining before she must make a decision, District Attorney Colleen Truden said she is still considering whether she will protest a recall petition against her."We're still just in the process of evaluating the options and signatures, that sort of thing," Truden said Friday.She declined to say whether she was leaning one way or another in her decision.Colorado Secretary of State Gigi Dennis ruled Sept. 29 that the recall petition was sufficient.Petition organizers gathered 9,032 signatures, of which Dennis rejected 2,406 and deemed 6,626 to be valid. They needed 5,455 valid signatures from registered voters in Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties to force a recall election. Truden is district attorney for the 9th Judicial District, which is composed of the three counties.Truden has until Oct. 14 to protest the petition. A protest could focus on the signatures' validity or the process under which they were collected.A hearing on a protest would have to be scheduled within five to 10 days after the secretary of state's office mails the hearing notice. If the protest is unsuccessful, Gov. Bill Owens would have to set an election within 45 to 75 days.Recall leaders say Truden has been dishonest, mismanaged her office and failed to prosecute cases. She says the recall effort is "petty partisan politics."

Petition is valid GPI 9-30
The recall petition against District Attorney Colleen Truden is sufficient, according to Colorado Secretary of State Gigi Dennis.What happens next is up to Truden, who has until Oct. 14 to protest the petition, which would trigger a hearing.The district attorney said Thursday she is evaluating that option, but she had not made a decision. Challenging a petition typically means protesting an alleged flaw in the collection of the signatures or in the signatures themselves.Truden on Thursday called the recall effort “petty partisan politics” and expressed confidence that she would prevail if the attempt to remove her from office moves forward to an election.“I’m fully confident that the voters are going to know, when they hear the truth and the facts, of what we’ve managed to do with this office and how we’ve improved it,” she said. “For example, felony convictions are up 13 percent and, oddly, we’ve increased the level of professionalism here.”“The way I look at it, that’s the same confidence she felt in us not getting the requisite number of signatures,” said Martin Beeson, a former deputy district attorney under Truden and one of the recall organizers. “I suspect that deep inside, she knows what’s coming down the pike.”The recall petition accuses Truden of mismanagement, dishonesty, wasting taxpayer dollars and failing to prosecute cases, among other transgressions.Her opponents submitted a petition containing 9,032 signatures, though only 5,455 were necessary to put a recall on the ballot.The secretary of state’s office announced Thursday it rejected 2,406 signatures and verified the remaining 6,626 as valid signatures from registered voters in Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties.The three counties make up the 9th Judicial District, for which Truden was elected district attorney in November 2004.Beeson said he had mixed feelings Thursday upon learning the petition would stand.“I think it’s a sad day for the district; it’s also a day of hope,” he said.“Things are going to get better for the district — that is my fervent hope,” said Beeson, who has stepped forward as a candidate for the post in the event Truden is recalled. Chip McCrory, a former assistant district attorney in the 9th Judicial District, has also declared his candidacy.If Truden challenges the petition, a hearing on the protest will be scheduled within five to 10 days from the date the secretary of state’s office mails the hearing notice. Then, if the petition survives the protest, the governor must set an election within 45 to 75 days. It’s possible a recall election, if one is held, won’t take place until early 2006.But if Truden chooses not to protest the petition, the recall can proceed directly to an election.Truden has been at the center of controversy since last April, when three deputy district attorneys resigned, citing philosophical differences with her management style. Since then, several other deputy district attorneys have also resigned, along with other staffers.She has also faced scrutiny for the handling of her office’s finances, the hiring of her husband, Fred, to do work in the office, and the veracity of statements she made to county commissioners.“From the start, this has been a petty, partisan attack on our office,” Truden said Thursday. “We’re going to look forward to informing people of the truth and the opportunity for them to understand what we’ve really been doing.”

Petitions certified for recall vote of Glenwood DA
By Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain NewsSeptember 29, 2005
State election officials announced today that they have certified enough petition signatures to trigger the first recall vote of a Colorado district attorney in nearly 30 years.
Organizers turned in 9,032 signatures earlier this month calling for a recall election for Ninth Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden. The Colorado Secretary of State’s office Thursday announced that 6,626 are valid — more than the 5,455 required to force a vote.
Truden, the top prosecutor for Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties, now has five days to signal her intent to challenge the state’s findings, and another 15 days to complete that challenge.
If the certification of the required petition signatures holds up, Governor Bill Owens would then schedule the recall vote for 45 to 75 days from that date.
It is expected that Truden, whose salary is $82,380 according to Garfield County records, will challenge the signatures’ validity. She could not immediately be reached for comment, but her opponents expressed confidence that Truden won’t stave off a vote.
"I’m very glad that we were successful in this stage of the proceedings," said Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia, a member of the recall committee. "It’s not over, yet. I believe she’ll challenge them."
Truden, who has never been a criminal prosecutor but emphasized to voters her management and administrative skills, has been assailed by her critics for performance in precisely those areas. Seven prosecutors have quit since she was sworn in, Jan. 11.
The two most recent deputy district attorneys to quit were her own hires. Several who have left cited a hostile work environment as a factor in their departures, and were also offended to find themselves being escorted from the offices short of their anticipated final workday.
In addition, Truden, 47, faces accusations of nepotism, for having hired her husband, Fred Truden, as a part-time independent contractor, working primarily on office computers.
Also, Truden is alleged to have lied to public officials, most notably Pitkin County commissioners, who’d asked about her husband being on her payroll earlier this year.
Truden insists she answered truthfully in denying that was the case, since her husband was not on the payroll, and it was his company — not him, personally — that was paid about $6,000 for 136 hours work from early February to mid-March.
Fred Truden no longer does any work in his wife’s office, and she said he has also ceased doing anything for her on a volunteer basis.
No district attorney has ever been recalled in Colorado history. The only attempted recall to go to voters was a bid to oust Pueblo District Attorney Joe Losavio in 1978. He survived that vote.

Take Truden allegations seriously By Jon Busch

What in the world is going on in our District Attorney's office? DA Colleen Truden was the runaway winner in last fall's election in no small part because the voters of Glenwood Springs wanted her. It's a small town much as is Aspen and I've often joked that there's no such thing as privacy in places like ours.
I can only conclude that Colleen Truden was well-liked downvalley. By now everyone knows of her reputed transgressions. Hiring her husband seemed a little suspect, but then again conflicts of interest in small towns are next to impossible not to have. Unfortunately the work he did appeared to be something another private contractor was doing as well. That she blew a good bit of her budget on an office remodel I could have dismissed as inexperience about financial matters. Lying to Pitkin County Commissioners in an open meeting about her husband's "volunteer" work in her office was just plain stupid. But when former Aspen City Councilman Tony Hershey, a staunch Republican, of a conservative stand who worked hard to get Truden elected quits her office -- that's serious!
This says two things to me. First of all, things must really be bad in the DA's office. Secondly it gives me a new respect for Tony Hershey. During his years on City Council we had numerous conversations which sometimes moved beyond local politics and onto the national stage. I think he really liked George Bush and his crew. Some of you do too, but national polls show continuing erosion of our confidence in him. Pundits on the news channels and in the print media are finally beginning to whisper that the emperor has no clothes. Is George Bush the Washington, D.C. version of Colleen Truden? In justifying the war he said Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when they didn't. Then the reason morphed into something else and something else again. The infamous "Downing Street Memos" implied pretty clearly that he had determined to go to war irrespective of WMDs. What do we have -- over 1,800 American citizen soldiers dead and a nation with a record deficit? And in Colorado a Fort Collins soldier returns from combat, kills his wife and then commits suicide. An Army public relations guy goes on TV saying that all soldiers are screened for mental problems before being returned to civilian life.
I feel sorry for our citizen soldiers. They went into the military reserves. Sure they knew that they could end up in harm's way. The National Guard might have to get involved in riot control -- they did at Kent State when someone panicked and killed a student. There might have been a street riot somewhere, but who would have thought these guys, most of whom have families, would be involved in a war in a foreign land where they get killed and kill others. Some cynics believe this whole war was about avenging the attempt on Bush senior's fife by Hussein. The problem now of course is that we can't get out. We can't leave Iraq because chaos would erupt and we'd leave the nation in a bloody civil war.
But here's the thing. Slowly the "Tony Hershey" Republicans are finding independence. There comes a point at which, no matter how loyal to the party, one has to take a stand against wrongs. Christine Whitman, a powerful Republican organizer and former governor of New Jersey, spoke here about taking the high road and calling on her party to throw off the yoke of party extremists. The James Dobsons of the Religious Right have been given too much power. Are his threats that he will see to it that those who oppose his views never get elected to office for real? He can only if an apathetic citizenry does not stand up to him. Wasn't it Richard Nixon who came up with "the silent majority?" What a clever way to co-opt people. If you don't tell us you're against what we do, then you're with us. I have come very close to seceding from my church. I don't want to be counted as one of Dobson's minions and he will count me. Larry King Live had a bunch of ministers on his call-in show the other night. They want a Christian nation under God's law. Tell me that's any different except by degree than all those radical mullahs of Islam who want to impose Allah's law on the Middle East?
I signed the Colleen Truden recall petition and I take that action seriously. Law and order not withstanding, the District Attorney's office is very important and it must be beyond reproach. To remain silent is to condone the actions that office takes. Colleen Truden can have her day in the court of the electorate. Perhaps she can explain her actions. In the meantime many of those who worked for her have left in disgust. When one of your own, a fellow Republican, leaves the allegations against her need to be taken seriously.

Commissioners join recall effort
Ireland, Owsley help plot strategy to oust Truden Carla Peltonen looks for people to sign the petition to recall District Attorney Colleen Truden on Wednesday at the Woody Creek Store. (Mark Fox/The Aspen Times)
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By Chad AbrahamSeptember 1, 2005 Among those trying to recall District Attorney Colleen Truden, add a couple of names: Pitkin County Commissioners Mick Ireland and Michael Owsley.They were part of a small group of recall proponents who met Wednesday evening at the Woody Creek Store to plot strategy on how to get thousands of more names on petitions before Sept. 16.Sitting around an old wooden table, Owsley, Ireland, recall organizer Sherry Caloia and six others discussed the pros and cons of locations where petitioners can go and other details of the campaign.Even though he and Ireland are supporting the effort to oust Truden, Owsley said the atmosphere wouldn't be awkward the next time Truden meets with the commissioners."I signed the petition. If she reads every signature, it's going to be awkward 8,000 times for her," he said.Ireland, who won two recall campaigns against him as a commissioner, said having adversaries is part of political life. Truden will be treated fairly by county officials, he said."I supported Lawson [Wills] in the primary and she knew that, and I was the one who advocated that she be paid fairly, and that happened," Ireland said. "But I also have a public obligation to protect the integrity of the process to make sure people are honest with the county commissioners. Yeah, there's a conflict there, but win or lose, she'll be treated fairly."Ireland also cited the fact that he is an attorney, which comes with obligations "to police your profession. We have disciplinary channels and a binding code of ethics with consequences," he said. "One of my obligations ... is to protect the profession from people being dishonest. I think it's very corrosive for the public to feel that the DA is not being straight with them. To this date, she has not reconciled her statements to the board of county commissioners with her conduct. And that needs to happen, one way or another."He was referring to Truden's statements to the Pitkin County commissioners on April 26. At that meeting, she said that not a single deputy district attorney or administrative staffer was escorted out before his or her scheduled last day. Multiple former employees of the 9th Judicial District have said Truden's statements to local leaders were not truthful.The recall was also sparked by the fact that she hired and paid her husband $6,000 for six weeks of computer work; allegations that she has mismanaged her budget; and the belief that cases are not being prosecuted. Truden has refuted the last charge, contending that her caseload and conviction rates are higher than her predecessor's.At Wednesday night's meeting, the group talked about petitioning at the Jazz Aspen Snowmass Labor Day Festival, which begins today. Caloia said petitioners can be at the Brush Creek parking lot but are not allowed on the festival grounds.Meanwhile, at the Aspen Community Picnic on Wednesday, Tricia McKenzie wandered through the crowd at Paepcke Park with large recall signs on her front and back."We need more bodies and more volunteers. It's a slow-go," she said.Before the picnic began, McKenzie had been standing on a Main Street corner near the park. She said she was getting about 10 names an hour - "we're not talking droves."Her involvement began about a week ago, McKenzie said."I was like everybody else: I thought this was a no-brainer, that this was a done deal," she said of the recall effort. "When I learned that they were actually falling short of what they needed and there weren't people circulating the petition at this end of the valley, I went, 'Wait a minute, I know how to do this.'"Her interest stems, she said, from what lawyers and law enforcement officials have told her about Truden.Back in Woody Creek, Ed Colby, a former Aspen Times columnist, asked whether a petition would still be accepted if the space on the form for "state" wasn't filled out. Caloia said that didn't matter, "just the city is needed."Ireland told the group he would have extra petitions and information packets at his house to disseminate when needed."We can do it," Sunny Redmond said of getting the names of 5,455 registered voters by the deadline. "We just have to make ourselves available to the people who want to sign."Chad Abraham's e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

Truden nay By Su Lum

August 31, 2005

There's only a couple of weeks left to sign District Attorney Colleen Truden's recall petitions, so get cracking. Exactly 5,455 valid signatures are needed, which means about 8,000 must be gathered, because you know how sloppy we are, and if the printed names are illegible, or you put the county in the date box, they will be thrown out as sure as sure can be.In Aspen, here are some places where you can find petitions:1. The Hair Company, the salon above what used to be Aspen Drug on the Hyman Avenue mall at Galena, with the bright blue trim. Some kind of timeshare operation is now in the Aspen Drug spot.2. Gracy's, which has moved to 312 E. Hyman between the old doomed Mother Lode and (long may it live) the Crystal Palace.3. Main Street Bakery on (duh) Main Street, next to Paepcke Park.4. Petitioners will be at the Aspen Community Picnic in Paepcke Park today, Wednesday, starting at 5 p.m.5. Also today, there will be a meeting at the Woody Creek Store starting at 6 p.m., where you can sign petitions, volunteer to distribute them and learn about the issues.6. Tony Hershey will be collecting signatures on the Hyman Avenue mall on Thursday and Friday, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and you can get his story straight from the horse's mouth. He was hand-picked by Colleen Truden and valiantly refused to say a word against her until he had HAD IT with her abuse and paranoia.7. Carla Peltonen has petitions; call her at 925-2584.8. I have them and can be tracked down at 925-7839, or stop me in the street.Incredibly, the saga gets worse and worse. Katherine Steers just resigned, the seventh prosecutor to leave Truden's office, another hand-picked deputy D.A. Eleven employees have fled this sinking ship, seven of them prosecutors, and no one is at the helm unless you count Truden, who has clearly lost control of her crew.The way the recall works is this: If enough signatures are gathered, you will be asked to vote for (yes) or against (no) Truden's recall. The second question will be to vote for the candidate(s) running for D.A. in the event of Truden's recall.If the "no" votes win, Truden stays in office. If the "yes" votes win, she is recalled and whoever gets the most votes to replace her (Truden cannot be a candidate) will become the new district attorney. The only announced candidate so far is Martin Beeson, one of the seven prosecutors who resigned.

Post Independent Editorial BoardAugust 22, 2005
Some comments can be as revealing as a Las Vegas showgirl’s wardrobe.Even the state’s top lawyer questions some of 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden’s management decisions during her first seven months on the job.State Attorney General John Suthers didn’t say a lot about the embattled DA, but what he did say was loud and clear.“She clearly made a mistake in hiring her husband. ... You just don’t do that in public office,” Suthers said Friday.Concerning the staff turnover in the DA’s office, Suthers also offered a critical observation.“Given the size of the office, the level of turnover that has occurred so far appears extraordinary to me,” said Suthers, who is a Republican.When it comes to District Attorney Truden, everyone seems to have an opinion. This is one soap opera that has gotten old fast.Since the effort to recall Truden began July 12, the controversy surrounding the DA’s office and other related circumstances has continued.Most first-term DAs have hurdles to overcome and challenges to confront. But Truden’s first seven months have been rough as sandpaper.A total of nine attorneys and staff members left the DA’s office during Truden’s first few months on the job. Then came the questionable hiring of Fred Truden to do contract computer work. Colleen Truden originally said her husband wasn’t being paid, but after a check of public records, that proved to be a false statement — Fred Truden was paid $1,000 a week for six weeks.There have been questions about Truden’s budget spending, then the Garfield County Commissioners scrutinized the accounting practices within Truden’s office and recently yanked credit cards from some of Truden’s employees.The turmoil has continued lately. Attorney Tony Hershey, who was hired by Truden, offered a damaging blow to the DA’s reputation when he resigned Aug. 3. In his resignation letter, Hershey said he could not work “in an atmosphere of abuse, disrespect and outright hostility.”Then Fred Truden hopped back into the spotlight when he confronted recall supporters at Silt Heyday. He was slapped with a temporary restraining order, which was dropped a few days later. Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter also was accused of confronting recall supporters at the Silt event.One thing after another — Truden’s first seven months have been a ridiculous ongoing saga.The recall effort reportedly has more than 3,500 signatures. To force a recall election, 5,455 valid signatures are needed by Sept. 16.Opinions will continue to vary on Truden’s job performance during her first seven months. With so many problems and so many questionable management decisions, Truden should be held accountable by the same people who voted her into office last November.Truden’s job performance should be questioned and a recall election is the best way to resolve this soap opera. The voters should have the opportunity to settle this issue and have their opinions heard.Votes always come across loud and clear.

Ex-prosecutor filing complaint against DA
Dennis WebbPost Independent StaffAugust 27, 2005
A former prosecutor in the office of District Attorney Colleen Truden said Friday she is filing an ethics complaint against Truden.In fact, Katherine Steers may have little choice.If Steers feels Truden has committed ethical transgressions, she is legally bound to report her concerns to the Colorado Supreme Court office that handles complaints against attorneys.Steers resigned from Truden's office Thursday. She accused Truden and assistant district attorney Vince Felleter of abusing their power by making prosecution decisions based on their views about defense attorneys, instead of the case itself and what's right for the defendant.John Gleason, regulation counsel for the Colorado Supreme Court, said any lawyer in Colorado who believes another attorney has engaged in an ethical violation is obligated to report it.Rule 8.3 of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Colorado attorneys reads: "A lawyer having knowledge that another lawyer has committed a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct that raises a substantial question as to that lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects shall inform the appropriate professional authority."Steers said, "I have knowledge of what's going on, so I guess that puts me in the category of someone who at least requests such an investigation."Gleason said he has no opinion on the merits of Steers' allegations, but said it would be the job of the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel to look into her concerns if she files a grievance.Said Gleason: "If that lawyer believes that this DA engaged in this conduct then she has a duty to report it."Steers said she contacted Gleason's office Friday and has begun the process of filing a complaint.Truden has not returned calls for comments since Steers went public with her concerns. In an interview Friday, Felleter said the Supreme Court office is the appropriate forum for hearing Steers' allegations."Let's have that hearing and let's let the ethics board decide if there was anything wrong. But I assure you that there's nothing there."Gleason said the Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction over all lawyers and judges in Colorado. He's aware of the ongoing attempt to recall Truden, but said his office's only concern is lawyers' professional conduct."The political aspects of it are of no consequence to us. We are not going to involve ourselves in any of that," he said.When grievances are filed, the response after an investigation can range from dismissal of the grievance, to suspension of the accused attorney, to disbarment. Bob Grant, executive director of the Colorado District Attorneys Council, said DAs are required to have a license to practice law.He said he's not aware of any concerns being raised to the Colorado District Attorneys Council about Truden.Gleason said he isn't allowed to say whether complaints have been filed against Truden. "I can't reveal the existence of the complaint until there's a public proceeding," he said.Those who file complaints aren't bound by the same rules of confidentiality, he said.Gleason said no public proceedings are taking place against Truden.Sherry Caloia, a Glenwood Springs attorney heading the recall drive against Truden, said others looked into the possibility of filing a grievance earlier this year because of the belief that Truden had lied about whether her husband had worked for her office. She said her understanding is that the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel responded that unless Truden's comments were made at a recorded meeting, there was no way to go forward with the complaint and prove she lied.Gleason said while he can't address specific issues, "our burden of proof is clear and convincing evidence, so that's a pretty high burden."He said it's not unusual for the office to be told of allegations that can't be substantiated. But his office would never advise against filing a complaint, he said."Until we investigate it we don't know what kind of evidence we have," he said.Gleason said it's rarely the case that attorneys who fail to meet their duty to report concerns about other attorneys face complaints for violating the rules themselves. Still, Caloia said the requirement to report suspected violations "is a very touchy area for lawyers.""The extent of that obligation is something that all attorneys are very nervous about. It makes us have to make the call of whether or not there was a violation, and in certain cases that's difficult."In the case of Steers' allegations, politically motivated decisions would be hard to prove because so many considerations go into making plea bargain determinations, Caloia said.Contact Dennis Webb: 945-8515, ext. 516

7th prosecutor quits, cites 'hostile' setting
By Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain NewsAugust 26, 2005
A seventh prosecutor resigned Thursday from the 9th Judicial District Attorney's office, where first-year DA Colleen Truden is facing a possible recall vote.
Katherine Steers, a deputy district attorney assigned to the Garfield County Court in Glenwood Springs, informed Truden's human resource manager on Thursday - because Truden was not in the office - of her intention to immediately leave the job for which she'd been hired just six months ago. Steers' resignation letter cited a hostile work environment, for which she blamed Truden directly. Several prosecutors who have quit the office have cited claims of mismanagement, a hostile work environment or a lack of accountability on the part of Truden.
Truden did not return a call seeking comment. The 9th Judicial District encompasses Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties. At full staff, Truden's office employs 11 lawyers, counting the district attorney. "I think the attorney general needs to step in," said Steers, shortly after resigning. "I'm really worried about that office. I think someone competent needs to come in and take over." Attorney General John Suthers could not be reached for comment.
Steers is a Denver native who graduated last year from Baylor Law School. She was admitted to the Colorado Bar on Oct. 25, 2004, and was sworn in as a deputy district attorney Feb. 28.
"Based on my ethical oath (of office), I can no longer be a part of what I see happening there," said Steers. "These are not the people I should be learning from."
The first five prosecutors to quit were holdovers from Truden's predecessor, the term-limited Mac Myers.
The sixth prosecutor to quit, Tony Hershey, left Aug. 3. Hershey and Steers were each hired by Truden. Both asked that their resignations be effective immediately.
Steers' letter accused Truden of "the hostile work environment that you fostered and continue to promote.
"I simply cannot work, when normal standards of respect and courteous behavior are not observed.
"Moreover, I cannot meet my obligations to our legal profession, our oath of office, and those that we serve, if I were to continue employment under such negative and hostile circumstances, all of which appear to have spiteful and harmful motivations."
A recall movement, spearheaded by Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia, was launched July 11, six months to the day that Truden took office, and the first day permissible under state law.
The recall petition specifies six charges against Truden. They allege that she has lied to public officials and the media; wasted taxpayers' money; hired her husband to assist with a computer upgrade in the office; failed to take serious felony cases to trial, resulting in dismissal or reduction of charges; and mismanaged with incompetent leadership and a lack of accountability.
brennanc@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-2742

DA’s office loses another member
A prosecutor accused District Attorney Colleen Truden of ethical improprieties Thursday evening after joining the growing list of attorneys to resign from Truden’s office.Katherine Steers said Truden abused her power by making prosecution decisions according to what defense attorneys have said publicly about the DA’s office, “instead of basing them on the case and doing what’s right for the defendant.”“It’s wrong. It’s ethically immoral,” Steers said. “I’m embarrassed that I worked for her just because of what I saw happen.”Steers also criticized Truden for filing a contempt of court charge against defense attorney Ted Hess, and said financial difficulties appeared to be hindering Truden’s willingness to take cases to trial.Truden could not be reached for comment Thursday evening.Steers submitted a letter of resignation Thursday.“I am forced to take this action at this time to remove myself both personally and professionally from the hostile work environment that you have fostered and continue to promote,” Steers wrote to Truden. “I simply cannot work where normal standards of respect and courteous behavior are not observed.“Moreover, I cannot meet my obligations to our legal profession, our oath of office and those that we serve if I were to continue employment under such negative and hostile circumstances, all of which appear to have spiteful and harmful motivations.”Steers joins a chorus of ex-employees who say working conditions under Truden are intolerable.“It’s like a broken record. It’s the same song, over and over, the same lines,” said Martin Beeson, another former prosecutor for Truden, who is helping lead an effort to recall Truden.Steers is the seventh prosecutor to leave Truden’s office since Truden took over as DA at the start of the year, Beeson said. She is at least the 11th staff member to leave under Truden. Steers is the second attorney hired by Truden to resign. The first was Tony Hershey, who also has raised concerns about how Truden runs her office.Steers said she was friends with Hershey, and she was treated differently after Hershey quit.“Ever since Tony left it’s been hell for me,” she said. “… I was painted in the enemy’s corner because I was friends with Tony.”She said Truden told her she was still part of the DA office team, but she felt isolated and Truden had little contact with her.“It got to a point where it was unbearable.”Steers, 28, is a Baylor University graduate who started with Truden at the end of February, in what was her first full-time legal job out of law school.“I thought, ‘Wow, what a great opportunity, what a great area, what great people to work with.’”She had no idea then about the controversy surrounding Truden’s office.“I had no clue,” she said. “And then when I got in, at first I was like, these people who were leaving just don’t like the change. She’s a new person, give her a chance, it will work out.”She said she assumed Truden had just made a few mistakes and would correct them, but that turned out not to be the case.“The longer I stayed, the more I knew. When I became knowledgeable of the stuff going on in that office, for my own professional well-being I had to leave. … I realized, ‘Oh my God, what they’re printing in the papers is absolutely true.’”She said assistant DA Vince Felleter is the only prosecutor with prosecutorial experience in the Glenwood Springs office, and didn’t communicate with her.“I know that that’s not a place that I can grow professionally,” Steers said. “I thought that this isn’t the lawyer I want to be.”Steers said she loved her job, and working with defense attorneys and judges.But ultimately, “Knowing what I know, I feel like I’m responsible for part of it if I stay, like I’m endorsing it, and I don’t want any part of it,” she said.She said prosecutors are unable to do their job because Truden and Felleter are “obsessed with the political climate.” She said they “locked themselves in their office for two hours just to go through the (news)papers.”She said they threatened defense attorneys with bad plea deals on cases if they didn’t cooperate with the DA’s office, and good treatment “as long as they didn’t speak out against the office in the paper.”Steers said when she went to Felleter with questions about how to handle cases, he would ask what defense attorney was handling the case. Those who didn’t say anything bad in the press were offered better deals for their clients.She said what Truden did violates national standards for how prosecutors should handle plea bargains, and personal considerations between attorneys should not dictate how defendants are treated. She said the charge against Hess resulted from the fact that Felleter doesn’t like Hess.“To use the power of our office to serve somebody with a summons and complaint, for another attorney to intimidate him, I don’t know what his intent was other than to hurt him,” Steers said.Hess was charged after exchanging harsh words with deputy DA Billie Burchfield in court. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge and described it as “bullying.”Felleter could not be reached for comment Thursday evening.Steers said Felleter is overworked.“I think it’s a volatile situation to put someone (into Felleter’s job) with a hot temper anyway, and then overwork them,” she said.Steers worries about how Truden’s office will manage taking over her cases. She said only three attorneys are left in the Glenwood Springs office, not counting Truden, who hasn’t handled anything in court. Truden has been criticized for her lack of prosecution experience.This week, Truden defended her work as DA by saying felony convictions in the 9th Judicial District are up 8 percent so far this year, compared to the same time period last year under former DA Mac Myers. Felony filings in Garfield County are up 58 percent, she said.But Steers said she saw a lot of felony cases pleaded down to lower charges for sentencing. She said Felleter has taken only one case to trial. She said her understanding is that more cases aren’t going to trial because of a lack of money to prosecute them and pay for expert witnesses.Truden has gone over her budget so far this year.Steers took three cases to trial herself.“I was very excited to go to trial. I was ready to go for it, I enjoyed it,” she said.She said she lost all three cases, but they were tough ones that would have been difficult even for experienced prosecutors to win.Said Beeson, “I know (Steers) was young and green when she first came on, but she was eager, she was a hard worker and she was a fighter.”He said it’s his understanding that after he left, she was one of the few prosecutors “who had the courage to go to trial.”He’s not surprised she quit.“I just knew it would be just a matter of time before she realized if she wanted to lose her reputation and professionalism, the way to do that is to stay with this administration.”Steers said she has no job lined up. Beeson said five of the seven attorneys to leave Truden’s office, himself included, have had no other jobs waiting for them.“It rings a bell loud and clear when people are resigning with nothing to fall back on,” he said.Recall petitioners have until Sept. 16 to raise the required 5,455 qualified signatures to force a recall election. They have about 4,000 now, and Beeson thinks they’ll need about 7,500 or 8,000, to allow for signatures that will be disqualified.He’s confident the petition drive won’t fall short. He said recall leader Sherry Caloia was flooded with calls from people wanting to help out after articles appeared in the Post Independent and Aspen Times Thursday describing the challenge that remains in meeting the signature threshold.“I think when (Steers’) resignation becomes public knowledge … I think it’s going to convince a lot of people who are on the fence,” he said.Contact Dennis Webb: 945-8515, ext. 516dwebb@postindependent.com

Time to Recall Sheriff Vallario?

Supporter: Recall tough on Truden

More From News

By Chad AbrahamSeptember 1, 2005

The recall campaign has been a hard road for District Attorney Colleen Truden, affecting her personally and professionally, one of her supporters said.Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario, who campaigned for her during last summer's primary election, said Truden feels as if she's being attacked."I think personally it's bothering her a lot," he said. "Professionally, I would say it's creating difficulty because she's spending so much time being diverted from what she should be doing" by freedom of information requests and other recall issues.He said as a friend it was hard to see her go through the process of being recalled. But Vallario said he also has other problems with the campaign to remove her from office."I like her. I think she's going to do a good job once all the dust settles," he said. "I'm more concerned about the whole recall process in general, more than it's just specifically toward her."He said that as an elected official, he is concerned that anyone can start a recall campaign against himself, for instance, "for no apparent reason.""Why do we have elections if ... I fire somebody who's upset with me and they go out and start a recall campaign against me because they don't like the way they were treated?" he asked. "That's my concern."Asked if he thought there was anything about the recall effort that may be justified, he said, "You know, I don't. I think that everything that's on [the petition] can be answered. All I would say - and I'm not at all apologizing for Colleen. It's her issues to deal with - but having kind of been there, done that [as] a newly elected official in a new position, yeah, I stumbled and made some bad choices and decisions, too."He said the key is recognizing poor decisions and correcting them.While he gives Truden advice, Vallario conceded that "the wheels are in motion" for a recall."You really can't undo it. We're just going to have to see how it shakes out, whether enough signatures get filed or not," he said. "Obviously she has to get in more of a campaign mode again." Chad Abraham's e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

Deputy DA deems defense attorney conduct disorderly
Friday, August 12, 2005
By MIKE McKIBBIN
The Daily Sentinel
RIFLE — A Glenwood Springs defense attorney could face a disorderly conduct charge for arguing with a prosecutor from the 9th Judicial District Attorney’s Office last month in Garfield County court in Rifle.
The incident comes during an ongoing recall petition drive against District Attorney Colleen Truden. Earlier in the week, Truden’s husband, Fred, was issued a temporary restraining order for allegedly disrupting petition efforts at a festival in a Silt park. He faces a hearing on the matter today.
Attorney Ted Hess, a critic of both Truden and former District Attorney Mac Myers, faces the possible disorderly conduct charge after a July 15 dispute with deputy District Attorney Billie Burchfield during and after a hearing on a harassment case.
Hess was in a jury trial Thursday and unavailable for comment, an office spokeswoman said, but he filed a motion this week to seek Burchfield’s removal from the case.
In his motion, Hess said Burchfield announced during her closing argument that she was filing amended charges against his client. After Burchfield “threw the amended summons and complaint” on Hess’ desk, she “continually tapped on the amended complaint with her fingers,” Hess’ motion said.
Burchfield appeared increasingly upset during the hearing, and her hands and body seemed to shake at times, Hess said in the motion.
After the hearing, Hess said he asked Burchfield why she “was doing this, or words to that effect. Ms. Burchfield then responded that she was taking this case personally and that she was personally offended.”
Hess responded that “I think you will regret it, or words to that effect,” the motion said.
When Hess approached Burchfield outside the courtroom, he again asked Burchfield what she thought she was doing, and “a vigorous discussion ensued” before Hess left, the motion said.
Truden could not be reached for comment Thursday, and she has a policy that forbids her deputies from speaking to the news media.
A judge removed Burchfield from the harassment case Wednesday, and the District Attorney’s office voluntarily removed itself from prosecuting Hess’ disorderly conduct charge because Burchfield is listed as the victim.
A special prosecutor from Routt County will have to prove that Hess “engaged in a coarse and obviously offensive utterance, gesture or display in a public place,” according to the definition of disorderly conduct in state statutes.
If convicted, a disorderly conduct charge carries a penalty of up to six months in jail and a $500 fine, plus other costs. A hearing on the charge is scheduled for Aug. 17.
Mike McKibbin can be reached via e-mail at mmckibbin@gjds.com.

Judge issues a restraining order against DA’s husband
By Donna GrayFred Truden, husband of 9th District Attorney Colleen Truden, allegedly ran afoul of a recall volunteer at Silt’s annual Heyday celebration Saturday.A judge issued a restraining order against him Monday at the behest of Christina Chapin who alleges Fred Truden accosted her while she was collecting signatures on a petition to recall his wife.An Eagle County judge signed the restraining order, reportedly because 9th Judicial District judges recused themselves because of their involvement with the district attorney’s office.Chapin is married to James Leuthauser, a former deputy district attorney who worked for Colleen Truden’s predecessor Mac Myers.According to a statement on the application for the restraining order, Chapin, of Glenwood Springs, was collecting signatures on the petition “when an irate man came up and started screaming at me. He said he was Fred Truden, Colleen’s husband, and demanded to know what I thought I was doing. He was very angry and was screaming that I was a liar and full of lies.”Chapin said she feared for her safety and walked away from Fred Truden, who followed her for a short distance. Although “somewhat rattled,” she continued to collect signatures. After circulating through Silt’s Veterans Park a man came up to sign her petition and “Fred Truden came up and began yelling at the man signing and myself. He demanded to know why the man would sign it. He was screaming and was very hostile and angry,” Chapin said in her statement.According to Chapin, Fred Truden and the petition signer, whom she identified as Brian Snode, of Silt, got into an argument. She said she “told Fred that neither I nor anyone else at the park were going to allow him to intimidate us. I asked him to please try to be professional.” Snode then contacted Silt police, Chapin said.On Tuesday, the Post Independent reported that Silt police chief Paul Taylor said, “It wasn’t even an incident. It was nothing,” after receiving the report.Snode confirmed Chapin's account of Truden's angry encounter with him.“He was very agitated. He asked me why I was signing the petition and I said it was my right as a citizen. He said, ‘Do you know the facts?’”Snode replied that it was none of his business. Snode said he ran into Taylor in the park and told him about the incident and asked him to escort Truden out of the park. Taylor chose not to eject Truden.Fred Truden was unavailable for comment.The incident left Chapin shaken. “I felt … very fearful for my safety,” she said.However, she continued to collect signatures in the park, leaving about 2 p.m.“I felt it was very important to remain … despite feeling intimidated. Although I felt Mr. Truden’s behavior was inappropriate and out of control, I also felt it was important not to let his bully tactics succeed.”In a phone interview Tuesday, Chapin said her efforts to collect signatures for the petition have gone very well. So far, about 3,000 signatures have been collected, said Sherry Caloia, a Glenwood Springs attorney who is organizing the recall. A total of 5,455 signatures, or 25 percent of the votes for Colleen Truden during the 2004 election, are required to mount the recall. In addition to passing petitions at Silt Heyday, volunteers also passed petitions in Aspen this past weekend.According to the restraining order, Fred Truden must keep a distance of at least 25 yards from Chapin and have no contact with her either directly or through a third party.A hearing on the order is set for 10 a.m. Friday in county court.

DA’s spouse in hot water after spat over recall

By By MIKE McKIBBIN The Daily Sentinel
Thursday, August 11, 2005
GLENWOOD SPRINGS — The husband of 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden was issued a temporary restraining order after he allegedly tried last weekend in Silt to disrupt a volunteer gathering signatures on a petition to recall his wife.
Fred Truden, according to court records, allegedly became irate when he saw Christina Chapin of Glenwood Springs collecting signatures at Silt’s annual Hey Day festival on Saturday.
Chapin told officers Truden identified himself and “demanded to know what I was doing. He was very angry and screamed that I was a liar and full of lies.”
Chapin is married to former deputy DA Jim Leuthauser, who worked for Mac Myers, Colleen Truden’s predecessor. Several former deputy prosecutors for Myers have volunteered to help the recall effort.
Chapin said she worried about her safety and tried to walk away from Fred Truden, who followed her and started to yell at Brian Snode of Silt as he signed a petition.
Snode contacted Silt police and Chapin continued to collect signatures until the early afternoon.
Eagle County Judge Frederick Gannett approved the temporary restraining order that requires Fred Truden to stay away from Chapin, after judges in the 9th Judicial District declined to act since they consider cases handled by the DA’s office.
Neither Fred nor Colleen Truden could be reached for comment Wednesday.
A hearing is set for Friday morning at the Garfield County Courthouse in Glenwood Springs to determine if the restraining order will remain in place.
“I will be there, and I’ll have numerous witnesses that were at the park when this happened,” Chapin said Wednesday.
Recall backers claim Colleen Truden should be removed from office due to dishonesty, nepotism, a lack of prosecution of cases since Truden was sworn into office on Jan. 11 through the time the petitions were approved by the Colorado Secretary of State last month, misuse of taxpayers money, mismanagement of her office environment and a lack of accountability.
Colleen Truden paid her husband approximately $6,000 for computer work he did in her office while a private company was under contract for the work.
Mike McKibbin can be reached via e-mail at mmckibbin@gjds.com.

Time to sign a recall petition

By Su LumAugust 10, 2005 Print EmailThe last time I voted to recall anyone from public office was, if I recall correctly, in the early '70s when the electorate ousted Bill Comcowich from the Aspen City Council, so I'm not one to jump quickly onto any recall bandwagon.However, the situation in the district attorney's office has gotten so far out of hand that it is clear that a house-cleaning is definitely in order and Colleen Truden must be replaced.This is our district attorney, for godsake, the upholder of truth, order, justice and fair trials for everyone in Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco counties, and what is coming out of that office is disorder, chaos, mistruths, secrecy, miscarriages of justice and a whole lot of denial.As late as July 10, when the Aspen Times Weekly ran a cover story on Colleen Truden to give her side of the story, she was still saying of the recall effort, "I think it's limited to a couple of individuals and we'll see where it goes."Asked if she had considered resigning, she said, "Absolutely not," referring to "a couple of people calling me names."She blamed the media, "They put it in there to stir up controversy to sell newspapers. It's one of those things (when) you go, 'Why talk?' Because it's not going to be printed accurately." To sell our free newspapers?I'm a big believer in the power of the press, but I know the press doesn't have the power to whip up a story like this one on the basis of a couple of dissenters. Colleen Truden has her head in the sand and over 2,000 recall signatures have already been gathered in support of her recall and they've barely tapped Aspen/Snowmass yet. When I've asked people close to the story if the press exaggerated the facts they've said, "No, it's much WORSE!" Then there's the Tony Hershey factor. Tony Hershey is as Republican as you can get, and it seemed quite fitting that he would have been chosen by Colleen Truden to work in her office. He could also have been her best spokesperson when the excrement hit the fan and her ex-employees were streaming out of her office like lemmings to the sea.Instead, he was under gag rule and could only say, "I can't talk to you guys." Well, he's talking now.Secrecy and paranoia rule in the district attorney's office. Even during the primary, Colleen Truden refused to debate Lawson Wills, convinced that silence was her best offense. Now, you need to get out there and find those petitions. Better yet, put them in your shops where people can easily find you or help man tables around town.You can sign them at The Hair Company, 420 East Hyman in Aspen, at the Snowmass Village Community Picnic next Saturday from 5-9 p.m. in Snowmass Community Park, at the Ducky Derby on Saturday in Rio Grande Park from 10 a.m. on (look for the "recall petition" T-shirts) and in the Clark's Market mall today from 2-4 p.m. Call Carla Peltonen at 925-2584 (or e-mail c.peltonen@comcast.net) for information or to volunteer.Call Sherry Caloia at 945-6067 (or e-mail scaloia@sopris.net) if you'd be willing to circulate petitions - we need a lot more of them. Su Lum (su@rof.net) is a longtime local who will be keeping her nose clean. This column appears every Wednesday in The Aspen Times.

Prosecutor quits, cites 'outright hostility'
By Ellen Miller, Special to the NewsAugust 5, 2005
A deputy district attorney hired by Glenwood Springs District Attorney Colleen Truden resigned this week, citing an "atmosphere of abuse, disrespect and outright hostility.''
"You can rule with fear for a time . . . It worked in czarist Russia for hundreds of years, but I am not a serf . . . and you are not a Russian empress," attorney Tony Hershey wrote in his resignation letter Wednesday.
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He is the sixth prosecutor to quit the office this year and the first hired by Truden to leave.
Truden, who took office in January, is the target of a recall petition circulating in Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties, which make up the 9th Judicial District. The petition accuses Truden of dishonesty, wasting taxpayer money, nepotism by hiring her husband to do computer work, not prosecuting serious felony cases and a lack of accountability.
Hershey, a former assistant prosecutor in New York and former Aspen City Council member, said he was introduced to Truden by Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario. He said she offered him a job after she was elected.
At first, Hershey was a supporter of Truden, he said, but tension grew among him, Truden and Assistant District Attorney Vince Felleter.
Truden, in an e-mail response Thursday to a request for comment, said that prosecution is difficult and challenging, and that "added pressures from outside the office have only made it more difficult. Individuals handle emotional pressures differently. We are sorry to see Tony go and we wish him the best."
Felleter declined comment.
Hershey said Felleter took him on a walk on July 25 "and told me things I had to fix. One of them was talking to reporters; we weren't supposed to do that. I also was too friendly with the staff, and he said you can't trust them, things like that. I'd talked to a county commissioner and he said I shouldn't have done that."
Earlier this week, Hershey said, he was talking with Jim Leuthauser, a former deputy district attorney who now works as a defense attorney, about a juvenile case they were handling and "when Felleter saw us, he blew up."
At a staff meeting Tuesday evening, "Felleter continued belittling me in front of the others. I said I was leaving because I'd say something I shouldn't unless I did. I thought I was fired right then."
He called in sick Wednesday and later that day faxed his resignation.

Commissioners cancel DA’s credit cards
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
By MIKE McKIBBIN
The Daily Sentinel
GLENWOOD SPRINGS — A lack of proper accounting practices caused Garfield County to recently cancel 10 credit cards issued to 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden.
However, county commissioners approved a nearly $406,000 supplemental budget for Truden. She also requested and received $191,000 in supplemental funds from Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties, the other two counties in the 9th district.
County officials criticized Truden, the subject of a petition drive to recall her from office, for spending more than half her annual budget in her first six months in office.
County Finance Director Patsy Hernandez, in a letter to Truden, said the office had used Visa cards issued to staff members in January, when she took office. While the county paid the bills for those cards through June,
Hernandez said the relevant Visa receipts had not been copied and forwarded to the finance department, as required by county rules.
County Administrator Ed Green said that by the end of June, Truden’s office had spent $546,467 of the county’s budget share of $736,072 for this year.
Truden could not be reached for comment Tuesday, but reportedly may ask for another supplemental budget for an unbudgeted $44,000 rent payment.
The credit card issue arose after Truden asked the county to help with her office’s accounting, Green said. That gave the county more oversight of her financial records.
Truden has agreed to handle her credit cards within the office budget, Green said. That removes any county financial liability.
Mike McKibbin can be reached via e-mail at mmckibbin@gjds.com.

Former DA accuses Truden of 'lies'
By Troy Hooper/Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

Former District Attorney Mac Myers blasted Colleen Truden on Wednesday, accusing his beleaguered successor of demonstrating a "lack of honesty and cluelessness about the job" in an e-mail sent to commissioners in Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties.

"It has come to my attention that Colleen is blaming her budget problems on my administration. I feel like all of you, the county commissioners for the counties in the 9th Judicial District, need to hear from me," Myers wrote in the e-mail, which the Aspen Daily News obtained Thursday. "We went out of our way to affect a smooth transition and all we got in return was peevishness, procrastination, and condescension sprinkled with misrepresentations and lies."

Truden's budget came under attack after a Colorado Open Records request revealed that she paid her husband's company, Mediate It Inc., over $1,000 a week for six weeks to work on problems that two other computer companies were also getting paid to fix; she spent over $15,000 on a controversial expansion and remodel of her office; and exhausted $21,759 to replace a server that Myers and others said worked just fine. During this time, Truden withheld an already approved cost-of-living pay increase from her employees for several months.

The new district attorney is also accused of lying to county commissioners, telling them that "not one" of the five prosecutors who recently resigned from her office was asked to leave prior to their scheduled departures and that none of them were escorted out of their offices. Her story contradicts other prosecutors.

Truden is scheduled to meet with Garfield County commissioners next month.

At least two downvalley attorneys have implored Truden to resign, as her detractors prepare for a recall effort scheduled to get under way July 11.

In recent interviews, Truden has deflected some of the criticism of her finances to Myers, claiming that he left her budget in a lurch with a stack of outstanding bills and other expenses she alleges have caused her problems. Truden did not return a phone message seeking comment Thursday.

The 9th Judicial District's county commissioners received a 1,393-word e-mail from Myers that methodically disputes Truden's allegations against his office.

"We made and kept copies of our financial records for 2004 and if you would like to see what kind of shape they were in when we closed the 2004 books, I would be happy to make them available to any of you who want to see them," Myers wrote. "Further, we left those records with Colleen in banker's boxes along with copies of every check written stapled to the voucher and invoice or other document supporting the expenditure. We also provided her with bank statements from every account with reconciliation statements attached to each bank statement. They were left in the administrator's office and I personally pointed them out to both Colleen and her administrator Robin Steffan the evening of January 10 when we turned the office over to Colleen," he wrote.

The e-mail takes exception with Truden's allegations point by point.

Reached at the 22nd Judicial District in southern Colorado, where he moved after term limits forced him out of the 9th Judicial District, Myers, who is now a deputy district attorney for one of his former employees, declined to comment. He said he did not intend for the e-mail to be made public and he did not wish to speak about Truden's tribulations, other than to defend the work of his office.

His e-mail to the county commissioners emphasized that same message.

"While I am content to let Colleen's problems play themselves out, I will not allow my administration to be a scapegoat for her mismanagement," Myers wrote.

hoop@aspendailynews.com

YOU Dem-o-rats just have sour grapes!! Colleen has kept her promises!!!

She said she would have an open door policy. She spent thousands on a new spacious entryway. Her beautiful, new, Open door - don't you understand?
She said she would work closely with law enforcement. The whole community knows how close she and Lou are...What do you people want!?
She said she would make it harder for bad check writers. Don't you think all this mess in the press has been hard for the bad check writer that wrote several for Fred? You people are never happy.
She said she would protect this community. I feel safer already. Under your old guy all we read about were court cases and trials of criminals and stuff. Now, she obviously cleared the courts and the bad guys are obviously scared to do anything because she's so tough on crime.
She said she would be tough on domestic violence. And to prove it she brought in that Vince Fellator guy. He has harrassment experience.
You are just jealous. get over it. Like John Martin said 'She's a fun lady to be around'.

RECALL INTERVIEW ON SATURDAY - - RADIO DETALS TO FOLLOW

Remove Truden Now!

Three former deputies say Colleen Truden is lying. Their allegations must be investigated immediately.If they are found to be true, Truden should be removed from her job. The citizens of the 9th Judicial District should not have to wait to recall her.It's bad enough that Truden has lost five of six experienced prosecutors because of her management style. But if she has lied in testimony to the Pitkin County commissioners, then she has tainted her office and every case it prosecutes - every conviction will be subject to appeal on the grounds that the DA is a liar. That is a recipe for a breakdown of law and order, and it is intolerable.

Dave ReedCarbondale

Truden Ethics Violations

Truden may have violated state rules
Supreme Court mandates honesty from attorneys
District Attorney Colleen Truden may have violated state rules regarding the conduct of attorneys.By Chad AbrahamMay 10, 2005

District Attorney Colleen Truden may have violated state rules governing lawyers’ conduct when she spoke to the commissioners from two counties about the dismissals of employees and the hiring of her husband.Lawyers in Colorado must abide by the honesty requirements of the state Supreme Court’s rules of professional conduct. District attorneys are held to the same standards.“They’re not any different than any other lawyer,” said John Gleason, the Supreme Court’s regulation counsel. The court’s Offices of Attorney Regulation governs the state’s judges and district attorneys, along with other lawyers.The section on the rules of misconduct lists multiple ways an attorney can violate the code.“It is professional misconduct for a lawyer to engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation,” rule 8.4 states.At an April 26 meeting, Truden told Pitkin County officials that not a single deputy district attorney or administrative staffer was escorted out before their scheduled last day. Multiple former employees of the 9th Judicial District have said that Truden’s statements to local leaders were not truthful.Last week, she told Garfield County commissioners that her husband was hired as a stopgap to work on computers in the district’s office in Glenwood Springs. Truden said he was contracted because the county’s computer systems manager didn’t have time to work on the district’s software and that a private company’s fee was too expensive.But according to records obtained by Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia, Truden was paying a private firm.The records show the office paid Mediate It Inc. $6,032.50 for six weeks of work. Frederick Truden is the registered agent of that firm, according to the Colorado Secretary of State’s office. At the same time payments were being made to Mediate It Inc., the office paid another computer company nearly $9,000 for some services that were similar or identical to what Frederick Truden performed.“She’s lied,” Caloia said yesterday. Truden did not answer a message left at her home yesterday seeking comment.Asked at the Pitkin County meeting whether her husband worked in the office in Glenwood Springs, she said, “My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney.” She added that “he does provide some services [in the office] and does some volunteer work.”Gleason said nepotism-related cases could be the subject of an investigation by his office. Hiring a spouse does not violate the conduct standards, but allegations of dishonesty are always taken seriously, he noted.“There are rules regarding honesty and the way you deal with the public or anyone. Lawyers have to be honest 100 percent of the time,” Gleason said. “If there are issues of honesty, we investigate those.”When told about Truden’s payments to both her husband and the other computer company, DeskTop Consulting Inc., Gleason said he could not comment on specific cases.But he did say “if you have a case like that, that involves a lawyer’s duty of honesty, those are all the kinds of cases that we investigate.”Caloia said she had thought long and hard about filing a formal complaint with the Offices of Attorney Regulation, but has not done so. No one else to her knowledge has, either, she said.“If someone has a concern about any lawyer, all they have to do is call this office and we’d be delighted to conduct an investigation,” Gleason said. He would not reveal whether his office has received any complaints about Truden, saying that preliminary investigations are confidential.“It’s very, very serious when you’re going after somebody’s license,” Caloia said.Pitkin County Commissioner Mick Ireland was at that April 26 meeting. He said he has not filed a complaint with the Supreme Court.“I don’t anticipate doing so, but I anticipate that might be happening regardless of my participation,” Ireland said.Asked whether Truden’s comments to him and the other commissioners warranted a Supreme Court investigation, Ireland said, “I haven’t made an assessment of that. I was disappointed that those comments appeared to deviate from the facts as she knew them.“You have to understand, I’m not used to having to deal with that sort of issue,” he said. “Most people who come before us, even the ones we don’t agree with, are generally honest. And when they’re not, of course, we’re always very unhappy.”Both Caloia and Gleason said anyone can file a complaint with the state Supreme Court against a judge, lawyer or district attorney.If an investigation is launched, the attorney by law must cooperate with inquiry-related requests, Gleason said.“This is an office of the Supreme Court. We do anything we need to do,” he said. “If we need to subpoena records, we subpoena records, and if we need to depose people, we depose people.”Those found to have violated the conduct rules are sanctioned. The penalty depends on the severity of the offense and could range from going through a diversion program to disbarment.“[Penalties are] very specific with regard to the nature of misconduct, the nature of the harm and whether the lawyer has any prior discipline history,” Gleason said.After an investigation, the Offices of Attorney Regulation will make public any violations of rules.Rule 8.4 on misconduct also includes a commentary section by the ethics committee of the Colorado Bar Association.“Although a lawyer is personally answerable to the entire criminal law, a lawyer should be professionally answerable only for offenses that indicate a lack of those characteristics relevant to law practice,” the rule says. “Offenses involving violence, dishonesty, breach of trust or serious interference with the administration of justice are in that category.“A pattern of repeated offenses, even ones of minor significance when considered separately, can indicate indifference to legal obligation.”The closing paragraph of the commentary says, “Lawyers holding public office assume legal responsibilities going beyond those of other citizens. A lawyer’s abuse of public office can suggest an inability to fulfill the professional role of attorney.”Chad Abraham’s e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

Supreme Court says attorneys must be honest
District Attorney Colleen Truden may have violated state rules governing lawyers' conduct when she spoke to the commissioners from two counties about the dismissals of employees and the hiring of her husband.At an April 26 meeting, Truden told Pitkin County officials that not a single deputy district attorney or administrative staffer was escorted out before his or her scheduled last day. Multiple former employees of the 9th Judicial District have said that Truden's statements to local leaders were not truthful.Last week, she told Garfield County Commissioners that her husband was hired as a stopgap to work on computers in the district's office in Glenwood Springs. Truden said she contracted him because the county's computer systems manager didn't have time to work on the district's software and that a private company's fee was too expensive.But according to records Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia obtained, Truden was paying a private firm.The records show the office paid Mediate It Inc. $6,032.50 for six weeks of work. Frederick Truden is the registered agent of that firm, according to the Colorado Secretary of State's office. At the same time payments were being made to Mediate It Inc., the office paid another computer company nearly $9,000 for some services similar or identical to what Frederick Truden performed."She's lied," Caloia said Monday.Truden did not answer a message left at her home yesterday seeking comment.Lawyers in Colorado must abide by the honesty requirements of the state Supreme Court's rules of professional conduct. District attorneys must meet the same standards."They're not any different than any other lawyer," said John Gleason, the Supreme Court's regulation counsel. The court's Offices of Attorney Regulation governs the state's judges and district attorneys, along with other lawyers.The section on the rules of misconduct lists multiple ways an attorney can violate the code."It is professional misconduct for a lawyer to engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation," rule 8.4 states.At the meeting with the Pitkin County Commissioners, Truden also denied that the assistant district attorney she hired was the subject of an investigation into his alleged harassment of co-workers at a previous job. Asked at the meeting whether her husband worked in the office in Glenwood Springs, she said, "My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney." She added that "he does provide some services (in the office) and does some volunteer work."Gleason said nepotism-related cases could be the subject of an investigation by his office. Hiring a spouse does not violate the conduct standards, but allegations of dishonesty are always taken seriously, he noted."There are rules regarding honesty and the way you deal with the public or anyone. Lawyers have to be honest 100 percent of the time," Gleason said. "If there are issues of honesty, we investigate those."When told about Truden's payments to both her husband and the other computer company, DeskTop Consulting Inc., Gleason said he could not comment on specific cases.But he did say "if you have a case like that, that involves a lawyer's duty of honesty, those are all the kinds of cases that we investigate."Caloia said she had thought long and hard about filing a formal complaint with the Offices of Attorney Regulation, but has not done so. No one else to her knowledge has, either, she said."If someone has a concern about any lawyer, all they have to do is call this office and we'd be delighted to conduct an investigation," Gleason said. He would not reveal whether his office has received any complaints about Truden, saying that preliminary investigations are confidential."It's very, very serious when you're going after somebody's license," Caloia said.Pitkin County Commissioner Mick Ireland was at that April 26 meeting. He said he has not filed a complaint with the Supreme Court."I don't anticipate doing so, but I anticipate that might be happening regardless of my participation," Ireland said.Asked whether Truden's comments to him and the other commissioners warranted a Supreme Court investigation, Ireland said, "I haven't made an assessment of that. I was disappointed that those comments appeared to deviate from the facts as she knew them."You have to understand, I'm not used to having to deal with that sort of issue," he said. "Most people who come before us, even the ones we don't agree with, are generally honest. And when they're not, of course, we're always very unhappy."Both Caloia and Gleason said anyone can file a complaint with the state Supreme Court against a judge, lawyer or district attorney.If an investigation is launched, the attorney by law must cooperate with inquiry-related requests, Gleason said."This is an office of the Supreme Court. We do anything we need to do," he said. "If we need to subpoena records, we subpoena records, and if we need to depose people, we depose people."Those found to have violated the conduct rules are sanctioned. The penalty depends on the severity of the offense and could range from going through a diversion program to disbarment."(Penalties are) very specific with regard to the nature of misconduct, the nature of the harm and whether the lawyer has any prior discipline history," Gleason said.After an investigation, the Offices of Attorney Regulation will make public any violations of rules.Rule 8.4 on misconduct also includes a commentary section by the ethics committee of the Colorado Bar Association."Although a lawyer is personally answerable to the entire criminal law, a lawyer should be professionally answerable only for offenses that indicate a lack of those characteristics relevant to law practice," the rule says. "Offenses involving violence, dishonesty, breach of trust or serious interference with the administration of justice are in that category."A pattern of repeated offenses, even ones of minor significance when considered separately, can indicate indifference to legal obligation."The closing paragraph of the commentary says, "Lawyers holding public office assume legal responsibilities going beyond those of other citizens. A lawyer's abuse of public office can suggest an inability to fulfill the professional role of attorney."

McInnis stands by his Woman!

“Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows.” William Shakespeare

Former political and business enemy Scott McInnis in a vain attempt to gain support for his failed gubernatorial race is now defending District Attorney Colleen Truden’s unethical conduct and betrayal of the public trust. At least Scott is not using his state office against the Division of Wildlife to gain advantage in a shady unethical land deal again. He has no office to abuse anymore.

McInnis: Attacks on DA 'self serving'By Troy Hooper/Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

Not long after 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden won the district attorney election last fall, former U.S. Rep. Scott McInnis (R-Colo.) phoned Truden to congratulate her, wish her luck and offer her a few words of advice.
Now McInnis says he wishes his former employee had listened better.
"I would have put my team in place on day one," the former six-term representative of Colorado's 3rd Congressional District said he told Truden. "People are pretty unforgiving when you beat their candidate. There can be a lot of backbiting. It's politics."
McInnis, who decided not to seek reelection last year, currently is a partner with the Denver law firm Hogan & Hartson LLP. He is mulling a bid for governor in 2006.
In a telephone interview Monday, McInnis said he has been following the press coverage of the controversies swirling around Truden's administration. Truden once worked for McInnis when he had a law practice in Glenwood Springs.
Political observers say McInnis' endorsement of Truden last year played a vital part in her triumph, thanks to his popularity in Garfield and Rio Blanco counties, which, along with Pitkin, make up the 9th Judicial District.
When Truden took office Jan. 11, McInnis, who now lives in Grand Junction, said he believes she should have graciously overhauled her prosecutorial roster. But after Truden beat then-Assistant District Attorney Lawson Wills in a bitter Republican primary in August, she kept several of the same prosecutors who worked with Wills and then-District Attorney Mac Myers, who was term-limited.
"Although campaign opponents assured divisive turmoil and significant employee turnover, DA-elect Truden retained current deputies and support staff wishing to maintain employment. All personnel changes only fill vacancies created by individuals choosing to seek other opportunities," read a press release Truden issued to local newspapers just two weeks before she took office.
In the months that followed, five prosecutors resigned. Most of them cited philosophical differences with Truden and a suffocating office atmosphere as reasons for their departures. Truden has also come under fire for hiring her husband for computer-related services, questionable spending, failed campaign promises, and for hiring a lead prosecutor with a checkered past in Mesa County.
A recall effort is under way. At least two attorneys, one a former deputy district attorney who worked for Truden, have publicly called for her resignation.
"(Former DA) Mac Myers' had intense loyalty from his staff. When you take out the popular guy, you're not going to win the support of his team. It's expected. Mac's people worked for Colleen's opponent. They're not going to be your pals. ... (The decision to keep existing staff) is going to continue to haunt you because these people's interests don't match yours," McInnis said.
He added: "My guess is these (political attacks) are self serving."
Most of her ex-prosecutors say that Truden reneged on agreements they had with her to stay on and finish their cases. They say Truden ordered her two most trusted confidantes to lead them off the premises in a degrading manner.
"Most businesses do that. When you have somebody unhappy with you, you walk that person to the door. That's what banks do, that's what law firms do. That's not unusual in the business," said McInnis.
One of the first members of Truden's team that she personally selected is Vincent Felletter, a former prosecutor in Mesa County who has been accused of harassing coworkers to the point that one of them began carrying a gun to work.
"There's no substance to any of that. All that is somebody trying to throw mud on Colleen," said McInnis.
He also said Truden should have never made a campaign promise to implement an Open Door Policy, under which all calls and inquiries would be answered.
In recent weeks, Truden and her staff have not returned phone messages left by the Aspen Daily News, The Denver Post, the Rocky Mountain News and other media.
"Why show up for a beating?" McInnis asked.
McInnis said he hasn't been following press coverage "day to day" and was not aware of invoices that show Truden paid upwards of $6,000 to her husband's company for six weeks' of computer services that other firms were also paid to perform.
Last year, the Colorado Democratic Party filed a complaint questioning McInnis' payment of $39,000 to his wife from his campaign committee. His opponents reportedly described the funds as excessive and "unseemly." McInnis filed a response to the complaint with the Federal Elections Committee, contending that the payments to his spouse were legitimate and complied with rules. Federal law does not prohibit politicians from paying their spouses with campaign money.
At the time, McInnis called the complaint "a political cheap shot." Now he suspects Truden is getting hit with accusations tinged with similar motives.
"You have to stand back. Who is really firing the rockets here? Where do their interests lie?" he asked.
Truden's detractors say their interests lie in restoring credibility to the district attorney's office. Truden created her own problems, they say.
Ex-prosecutor Martin Beeson, a Republican, said Truden is spinning "a tangled web of half-truths and untruths. ... I believe the breech of public trust is so deep that it cannot now be fixed. I think she has gone beyond the point of return. This whole situation is just a mess - a big mess that needs to be cleaned up. But I don't think she can clean it up. ... I believe she should resign."
hoop@aspendailynews.com

Rocky Mountain News Reports Recall of DA Truden

Attorney set to begin recall drive against DA
Truden oversees 9th District office
By Ellen Miller, Special to the NewsMay 7, 2005
A Glenwood Springs attorney wants to recall the new district attorney she claims ran off experienced prosecutors, misled commissioners and spent $15,000 on computer contract workers, including $6,000 to her husband.
"We'll start the petitions July 11, which is the first day we can," said Sherry Caloia, an attorney in private practice that includes prosecuting municipal crime in Carbondale and Basalt.
Caloia, who obtained records from 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden's office through the Colorado Open Records Act, distributed results to reporters Friday and decried Truden allegedly spending $25,000 on a new computer server, $9,587 to Desktop Consulting to install and troubleshoot it and $6,023 to her husband, Fred, through his company, Mediate It Inc., for the same services.
"None of it was in the budget and the old server is fine," Caloia said. "It looks like she was upgrading, but she doesn't even have a full staff. . . . It's not the way you run things."
Truden, her husband and Desktop Consulting didn't return calls for comment Friday.
Truden won the Republican primary last year. She had no Democratic opponent, so she was sworn in Jan. 11, overseeing Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco counties. There were 11 attorneys in the office during the eight years her predecessor was in office. Truden is down to five or six.
Former Deputy District Attorney Gail Nichols gave notice in early April that she would leave the office in a few weeks but was told a few days later by Truden, Assistant District Attorney Vince Felleter and an investigator to leave immediately, according to the Aspen Daily News. She was escorted from the office by the investigator, according to the News. Several other former deputy district attorneys got the same treatment, according to the two Aspen newspapers and the Glenwood Springs Post Independent.
Truden has said not one deputy district attorney or office worker was escorted off the premises before the scheduled last day of work.

Truden paid husband $6,000

By Allyn HarveyMay 7, 2005 Colleen Truden paid more than $6,000 to a company owned by her husband for computer consulting work performed over a six-week period this year, raising questions of whether the newly elected district attorney violated state public disclosure laws.The exact amount that Fred Truden was paid came to light yesterday, after Truden released computer-service related invoices, payroll and other office expenses in response to an open records request from Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia.At the same time that she authorized payment of $6,032.50 to Fred Truden's company, Mediate It Inc., Colleen Truden also paid $6,350 to another company, DeskTop Consulting Inc., for what appears to be largely duplicative services. Truden also purchased a new, $22,000 computer server."I was surprised by how much money was spent on computers," Caloia said. She said the total amount spent on hardware, software and consulting was approximately $40,000. "I think the computer budget for that office is approximately $20,000 per year."Caloia, a Democrat and prosecutor for the towns of Basalt and Carbondale, requested the information under the Colorado law known as the open records act, which requires government agencies to open their budgets and release other documents to the public on demand.Fred and Colleen Truden could not be reached for comment. The release comes after several weeks during which Truden avoided disclosing details of her husband's relationship with her office. Fred Truden's employment at his wife's office came to light in an article published in The Aspen Times on April 21. When questioned about the situation by the Pitkin County commissioners on April 26, she replied, "My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney." But she added that "he does provide some services [in the office] and does some volunteer work."During a May 2 meeting with the Garfield County commissioners, Truden clarified her husband's business relationship with her office, explaining that he had been contracted as a computer consultant through his company, Mediate It Inc.Records of incorporation filed with the Colorado secretary of state's office confirm that Mediate It Inc. is owned by Fredrick A. Truden of Glenwood Springs. The company was formed in May 2003."She should have disclosed that she was going to hire her husband to the secretary of state or the county commissioners," Caloia said. Caloia said state law requires elected officials to disclose any benefits they may accrue from the expenditure of funds they oversee.Caloia requested a list of all expediters from January through April 2005; copies of contracts for computing services; copies of invoices for architectural services regarding the potential remodel; and documentation concerning the issuance of an employee badge for Fred Truden. In a letter dated May 5, Robin Steffen, administrator for the 9th Judicial District Attorney, said Fred Truden never received an employee badge because he wasn't a staff member. But with the letter were all the other documents requested by Caloia.They indicate Fred Truden was paid $50 an hour for work relating to hardware and software installation. Some of the services listed include software installation, perhaps in connection with Colleen Truden's decision to switch her office from using Microsoft Word for word processing to WordPerfect, server installation, updating workstations, testing the computer security systems, laying cables, installing a new copier and moving furniture around the office.For February, Fred Truden charged the district attorney's office $3,207.50 for 64.15 hours of work at $50 an hour. In March, he charged $2,825 for 72 hours of work - 31 hours at $25 an hour and 41 hours at $50 an hour.At the same time Fred Truden was working on the computer and office systems, a consultant from Glenwood Springs-based DeskTop Consulting was performing similar, sometimes identical tasks for $130 an hour.For instance, on Feb. 7, Fred Truden billed his wife's office $100 for two hours for "server software installation"; on Feb. 8, DeskTop Consulting billed $260 for two hours to "begin server set up."Fred Truden charged his wife's office $537.50 for 10.5 hours of work performed over two days - "firewall connect conversion ..." on Feb. 14, and "complete firewall conversion-initiate installation of Proliant Server." DeskTop Consulting charged $1,680 for work on the firewall and server conversion Feb. 17, 18 and 21.The district attorney's office appears to have been double-billed for other, more menial installation work as well. On March 9, DeskTop Consulting charged Truden's office $260 for two items including the installation of a copier. On March 10, Fred Truden billed his wife's office $87.50 for "Minolta Copier install."Michael Wynn with DeskTop Publishing declined to explain the duplication. "Our company's policy is that we don't comment without our client's permission," he said. "We contacted our client and she requested that we not grant any interviews."In addition to being paid for computing services, Fred Truden was the beneficiary of a campaign funds disbursement in January of more than $5,000, ostensibly for reimbursement of contributions. He had to repay the money after it was discovered he didn't actually donate to his wife's campaign. The reimbursement check was reissued to Colleen Truden, who had contributed to her own campaign.Caloia said yesterday that she has no plans to run for district attorney should Truden be recalled. But Caloia made it clear she would work to have Truden recalled if a petition to do so is circulated.

DA spending under attackBy Troy Hooper/Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

Embattled 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden paid four times more to her husband than her predecessor did to a Glenwood Springs outfit for computer work, and she has spent in excess of $15,000 for a controversial expansion and remodel of her office, according to financial records released Friday.
The records, which were provided in response to an open records request made by local attorney Sherry A. Caloia, offer the first particulars concerning compensation Truden paid to her husband's company, Mediate It Inc. She initially said her husband, Frederick, was not on her payroll, but later admitted that her husband had received compensation. For six weeks of work, Truden paid her husband's company more than $6,000 for computer-related assistance and other office chores, such as surveying the office and assisting with its rearrangement.
Additionally, Truden paid more than $8,700 to DeskTop Consulting Inc., in part to fix computer problems that her ex-prosecutors say were created by her husband.
"Clearly that was the case. I don't think anyone who is objective or truthful about it would tell you otherwise," Martin Beeson, who resigned in frustration last month, said when asked if computer problems coincided with the arrival of Mediate It Inc.
"There were very few problems at all before the arrival of the new administration. When Fred came in, the problems increased exponentially. It is amazing the number of difficulties I had getting into my computer and accessing information from my computer," said Beeson.
Further muddying the waters is that the computer firm Micro Solutions, which former District Attorney Mac Myers contracted for $1,080 a month during his final term, received payment from Truden for the months of January and February. Earlier this week, Truden told Garfield County commissioners that her husband was brought in as a stopgap because no one else was available to perform the work.
"It looks like she was triple-paying for these services," said Caloia, adding that she does not believe Truden provided all the records she requested.
Caloia said she plans to file another open-records request.
The owners of Micro Solutions have disputed the story Truden told Garfield County's commissioners. Co-owner Jon Wiethoff said his firm wanted the work.
Continuing their penchant for avoiding media inquiries, and despite campaign promises to the contrary, Colleen and Frederick Truden did not return phone messages Friday. They also have not returned numerous other calls in recent weeks.
Frederick Truden has been described as a mainstay in the office, working most days of the week. Ex-prosecutors say Frederick Truden wore an employee badge, appeared on an employee roster and showed up to employee meetings. His voice is also the one heard on the office's automated answering service, which could stand to be updated: Four departed employees are still listed in the phone directory.
The newly released public records show Truden also paid $21,759 on March 10 for a new server and for its installation. The prior server was four years old.
"The server was running just fine when we left on Jan. 10," former district attorney Myers said. "And our computer service was fine, too. Those guys at Micro Solutions were great. You'd phone them up and they'd be there in 15, 20 minutes."
Myers' total computer expenses were less than $20,000 a year during his terms.
Garfield County Commissioner Trèsi Houpt, who serves on a three-person board that approves a major portion of the budget for the district attorney's office, said Truden's spending requires a thorough examination at a workshop scheduled in June.
"We'll be asking her very specific questions about any remodeling she's done or any other capital projects," Houpt said. "I don't remember money being in the budget for that. If she is spending money that was not allocated in her budget, it would be our expectation that she would come to us prior to having any work done."
When informed that records show Truden paid a total of $10,754.68 to C.F. Brenner Inc. for an office remodel, plus another $4,711.88 to Grand Junction-based RLR Engineers LLC for what appears to be related engineering work, Houpt responded: "I'll be very interested to hear her explanation on that."
As far as Beeson is concerned, Truden's office expansion is puzzling.
"There has not been an increase in staff. We were getting along fine with the office space we had, so I don't see the point in expanding or remodeling when the office space available was clearly sufficient, and it was," he said.
Beeson said he has been told that Truden intends to give her staff a county-approved, cost-of-living raise of 4 percent effective this month, but he said her foot dragging before doing it makes her behavior all the more dubious.
"She was paying Fred a thousand dollars a week when she was not paying the staff their authorized cost-of-living increases," said Beeson, noting that there are single mothers in the office just trying to make ends meet. "That's just unconscionable in my estimation. I don't know how a public employee who holds office of public trust can withhold money from those who have earned it and increase her own household income at their expense. That's not leadership."
Beeson is imploring Truden to make the raises retroactive to Jan. 1.
Since Truden took office Jan. 11, five deputy prosecutors have quit. Three of them have said they were escorted out of their offices in a degrading manner. Truden denies this, prompting several former employees to accuse her of lying.
hoop@aspendailynews.com

DA Colleen Truden gives herself a Big Fat Kick-Back using the people's tax dollars! First She gives herself her Republican Contributions then she awards public contracts, in violation of state law, without any bids, to her husband to do no work. This is your money she is paying herself. She lied about it now she admits the wrongdoing. Who police(s) the police? (Lou Vallario? ha ha ha) Who prosecutes the prosecutor when she steals your money? CLEAN HOUSE of the corruption and graft!


GPI BREAKING NEWS 5-6-05

Truden opens records

Less than a week after district attorney Colleen Truden admitted her office paid her husband, Fred, for computer services, the district attorney’s office responded to an open records request showing the office paid over $6,000 to her Fred Truden’s electronics consulting company, Mediate It, Inc. The service services appear to overlap or assist services for which the office paid the firm DeskTop Consulting Inc. $6,530 during the same perios of time.The records included district attorney’s office expenditures for January through April 2005, and were sent to Glenwood Springs-based attorney Sherry Caloia, who requested the records. The Post Independent’s own request has not been answered.Mediate It billed the district attorney’s office for 136 hours worked between February 2 and March 15. Mediate It was paid at the rate of $50 per hour for all but 31 of the hours worked. For those 31 Mediate It was paid $25. The company was apparently paid the lesser amount for non-technical work — such as setting up and moving furniture.Neither Colleen nor Fred Truden returned phone calls seeking interviews.

Citizens Demand Recall For Aspen's GOP DA

by The District Attorney reports to no one but the voters directly, although the counties in her district provide funding. You know what they say about power. In the case of District Attorney Colleen Truden, whose district includes Aspen, the maxim seems to have some merit.
Fred Truden, her husband, told the Aspen Times Sunday night that:
He said he did "absolutely nothing" for the D.A.'s office. "I don't know anything about that," he said.
And she previously told reporters on April 26 that:
"My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney," She added that Fred Truden "does provide some services and does some volunteer work."
But Monday, she told a group of county commissioners that she paid her husband to do work on the county's computer system.
This isn't her only problem:
Five prosecutors have quit since Truden took office in January. Some claim they were ordered to leave their offices immediately after resigning even though they offered to serve for several weeks after giving notice. At the meeting with Pitkin County commissioners, the district attorney said that "not one" deputy district attorney or office worker who resigned in recent weeks was escorted off the premises ahead of the scheduled last day.
Newspaper reports indicate that she is not telling the truth on that point either. She is also accused of pointless instances of dishonestly, like lying to her staff about where she would be going when she left the office on an out of state trip.
The Colorado legal directory indicates that her office has seven attorneys, in addition to the DA herself, in Pitkin County, which is home to Aspen, and three attorneys in the outlying counties. Four of the resignations are in the Aspen office, while the fifth is in an outlying county. At least one legal assistant in the office has also left.
Staff have also expressed concern about her assistant, former Mesa County prosecutor Vince Felletter. Felletter was alleged to have sexually harassed and stalked a co-worker in the Mesa County District Attorney's office, but no charges were filed after an internal investigation.
She has also failed to comply with county requests for information on her funding as required by law, but has found money to remodel her office.
A recall effort is being discussed, but can't be brought until July 11, 2005, because she has not been in office long enough yet. The same judicial district recalled a district attorney in 1977 for using county money to favor a loved one. The effort is being led by the Garfield County Attorney (Garfield County is in the District and county attorneys handle civil matters for the county), who is not seeking the fill the post herself. The recall effort appears to have bipartisan support.
Truden is a former municipal court judge who ran unopposed as a Republican for the office last November.

Truden fails the trust test, needs to come clean
An Aspen Times Editorial
May 6, 2005 Its time for District Attorney Colleen Truden to come clean.Over the past few weeks, citizens in the 9th Judicial District have watched as attorneys have left her misministration, leaving Truden with a staff just a fraction of the size needed to do the job. Several of these lawyers say they had intended to continue working for Truden for a few weeks or a month, but were then abruptly dismissed before their time was up.On the face of it, there's nothing necessarily wrong with this; a district attorney certainly has the right to hire and fire employees, and a degree of turnover is to be expected with a change of administration. However, from a management standpoint there's something troubling about these events. Why get rid of these attorneys so quickly when there's nobody to take their place? What happens to the caseload? Will criminals just go free for a lack of prosecutors?And it just gets more troubling from there.When she appeared recently before the governing boards of Pitkin County and Garfield County, Truden denied any of these prosecutors had been escorted out of their offices. Since then, several of these assistant district attorneys have publicly rebutted Truden's version of events.Beyond that, in an apparent conflict of interest, Truden appears to have hired her husband to do some contract work for her office. Worse, when originally asked about it by the Pitkin County commissioners, she was evasive, answering that Fred Truden was not on her payroll. She later told the Garfield County commissioners that, in fact, her husband had been paid to work on the office's computer system. At the least, this is curious behavior for an elected official. At the worst - nobody's quite sure at this point what's going on - we have a public prosecutor who is being less than truthful to elected boards within her jurisdiction and to the public. Whatever the case, regardless of who is twisting the truth, the 9th District has a district attorney whose reputation and credibility have been severely tarnished.When asked by The Aspen Times during her campaign about her philosophy for the district attorney's office, here's what Truden answered: "I see a job where the people have trust and confidence in the elected official - to protect them and keep them safe. A person for whom the people within the office have trust and confidence, and with whom they have an open and professional working relationship."Whatever her skills and strengths, Colleen Truden has failed to establish that trust and confidence.The citizens of the 9th Judicial District deserve to hear clear answers from their district attorney to the following questions and arguably a number of others: How were the various prosecutors dismissed and why? What work did Fred Truden perform for the district attorney's office? Is he still working there and how much has he been paid? Was the job bid out or just given to him? And, perhaps most important, what is Colleen Truden's plan to set her administration back on course and restore her own credibility?It's time to come clean.

Allegations continue to mount against district attorney Colleen Truden. Yesterday one former deputy district attorney said Truden made changes in the district attorney’s office for the sole purpose of distinguishing herself from her predecessor Mac Meyers and lost touch with the office’s mission of justice.Truden hired her husband to replace Glenwood Springs-based computer firm Micro Solutions, remodeled the office, and issued picture ID cards for no reason other than to distinguish the new administration from the old, said former deputy district attorney Martin Beeson, who left Truden’s office April 22.“In my view the new administration engaged in change just for the sake of change,” he said.Truden had also asked staff to pick out new district attorney office badges, at a cost of about $100 each, by the time Beeson left, he said.

http://www.ago.state.co.us/AGO/AGO01/ago01-1.htm


DA's office denies request for records
By Chad AbrahamMay 5, 2005 The district attorney's office in Glenwood Springs turned down an open records request sent in an attempt to find out how much Colleen Truden's husband was paid for working in her office.In a reply to the request Wednesday, the office's administrator, Robin Steffen, wrote that "Mr. Fred Truden does not receive a salary nor does he have a job description as he is not an employee of the district attorney's office. Therefore, I have no documentation to provide for your review or access."But at a meeting with the Garfield County commissioners Monday, Truden admitted to hiring her spouse."As a stopgap, Fred provided some immediate service to meet the needs of the computers," she told the commissioners.That is different from what Fred Truden told a reporter earlier this week. Reached at home, he said he did "absolutely nothing" for the office. Until her meeting with the Garfield County commissioners, Colleen Truden had not been completely straightforward about her husband's relationship with her office. Last week, she told the Pitkin County commissioners, "My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney."Steffen did not return a message seeking clarification on Fred Truden's role in the office or what he has been paid.The Aspen Times made another request Wednesday under the state's open records law seeking records of any payment made to Truden for services he performed.Chad Abraham's e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

Deputy DA speaks out about resignation

Donna Gray
Post Independent Staff
May 5, 2005

Wednesday, Jeff Cheney was in his side yard wielding a weed-whacker. Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, he hardly looked like his former suit-clad self as a deputy district attorney, which was his normal mode until two weeks ago.

When he resigned from his position, Cheney said he promised himself he would keep mum to the press, but he decided to speak out, in an interview last week, and also on Wednesday. He said it was because of District Attorney Colleen Truden's "misrepresentations" in the press and to the Pitkin and Garfield county commissioners. Those misrepresentations, he said, included everything from her husband's employment in her office to the resignations of five out of 11 attorneys in her office.

One of the positive outcomes of his and other attorney's public statements, Cheney said, has been a cost-of-living raise for the office staff, which the county commissioners approved five months ago. Truden withheld them because she did not believe in cost-of-living raises and would base them on merit only.

In a broader sense, public scrutiny of the embattled DA points to a larger issue.

"The fact is, the more public attention there is on this (the better). This is an incredibly powerful position."

Although Cheney has spoken out about his dissatisfaction with the way he was let go, he is now convinced that the public needs to draw its own conclusions about how the office is operating.

"Ask yourselves, 'Does integrity and trust need to be restored to this office?' It is truly a question only the public can answer. I can't answer for them," he said.

Cheney believes Truden should be recalled and said there is a groundswell building toward that end.

"I think there needs to be a recall. There's a populist movement coalescing (that's) not Democrat or Republican."

Cheney has been mentioned as a likely candidate, but has said repeatedly it is premature to declare his intentions.

"If anything comes out of this, recall or not, people are paying attention. I'm fielding countless phone calls (from people) who are appalled at this compromise of public trust and want to do something about it."

At issue for Cheney was Truden's refusal to include her experienced staff in decision-making.

"People in the office have a wealth of experience. They were ... doing their job out of devotion and not out of a desire to possess power and influence but devotion to doing the right thing."

Those on staff in January when Truden took office wanted "a new leader to consult with them in the decision-making process so (they) are based on accurate assessments (of cases). ... The people who have been doing the job and have the experience were not consulted for anything of consequence."

Truden's lack of experience will "derail" the office, Cheney said.

"People have tried to categorize what's happening as a normal transition, but they're ignoring the obvious; it's the exact opposite. The people who left are Republican and Democrat. It's sugarcoating a very serious problem to categorize it as a normal transition."

Cheney said he's had a number of offers of work both here and outside the valley. For the near term, he'll go to a National Guard conference in Florida in mid-May and will also take the family to Disney World.

"If there's anything I've learned out of all this, it's a shame the DA's office is a political office. It might be a place where the best of the best rise to the top and you earn your way through the ranks.

"You can't just be a manager; you have to lead by example."

VJ Editorial - More openness needed from Truden's office.

Newly elected Ninth Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden has finally come out from hiding and addressed some of the mounting questions about her ability to direct such a complicated endeavor as the sprawling, three-county district.But there remain some serious concerns, not only about her competence as an administrator, but about her willingness to live up to her campaign promises.Mainly, this second concern is about Truden’s failure to come out front in the beginning and talk to the public about what has been termed the “exodus” of highly qualified, experienced prosecutors from the district, which has dominated headlines in the valley’s daily papers for the last couple of weeks. A total of four prosecutors, as well as her administrative assistant, have all departed, apparently in varying degrees of what one could only refer to as an inexplicable hurry. Truden has not returned calls from reporters, despite her campaign pledge to have an “open door policy” with the electorate. This presumably included the media, which, like it or not, is the main conduit of information from government offices to the citizenry. But reporters have been stymied by Truden’s actual “closed door” policy.Truden, encountered at a recent social function in Carbondale, would not sit down for an interview with a Valley Journal reporter, noting that she had set up an interview with another reporter at a different newspaper and had promised that reporter an “exclusive.” But she did say that she considered the sudden (some have said precipitous) departures of her staff as “normal.”She also said she had hired one replacement prosecutor, for the Aspen office, who would be starting immediately, and more will follow soon.She also declared, at a meeting before the Pitkin County Commissioners, that her husband is not an employee of her office (contrary to published reports), and that she did not summarily escort departing prosecutors from their offices instantaneously, disregarding their offers to stick around for weeks to help with any transition period (also contrary to published reports).A lot of this, it can only be assumed, will shake out in the wash over the coming weeks, as reporters continue to dig into the operations at the DA’s office, and as Truden (we hope) makes more of an effort to communicate with those who pay her salary.There has been some talk about a recall campaign to boot her out of office, and others have suggested that she should simply resign so a more competent administrator can clean up the mess. We at the VJ feel it is too early for such judgments. But if the questions are not answered soon, and if the office is not opened up and made considerably more transparent in its operations, some such drastic action may be warranted.

DA foresees order in her court (laughable)

Embattled head of 9th Judicial District expects full staffing soon

By Nancy Lofholm
Denver Post Staff Writer

Glenwood Springs - District Attorney Colleen Truden told Garfield County commissioners Monday she soon expects to have a full staff again after five attorneys resigned in the past month in the midst of mounting bedlam in her office.

Truden said she has hired two new attorneys for the 9th Judicial District Attorney's Office and has interviews with three more in the next month.

But Truden's assurances that her office, which serves Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco counties, will soon be at full staff did not quell criticism of her work as district attorney.

Others say she is doing fine.


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"This is nothing more than a new administration working out the kinks. I'm sure it will be resolved," said Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario. Robert Grant, a former Adams County district attorney who heads the Colorado District Attorney's Council, said he thinks Truden is simply going through the typical fallout of a political candidate who defeats an inside candidate.

Truden, a former municipal judge with no prosecution experience, was elected after she defeated former Assistant District Attorney Lawson Wills in a Republican primary and ran unopposed in last fall's general election.

Since taking office in January, she has been accused of lying in a public meeting about her handling of office resignations, hiring her husband but not being honest about his job, micromanaging the cases of more experienced attorneys, hiring an assistant district attorney who was accused of sexual harassment and stalking in a previous job, and being too severe with prosecutions.

"She is legally incompetent to hold the job, and now she has shown she is not trustworthy," said former 9th Judicial District felony prosecutor Jeff Cheney, who resigned two weeks ago.

Cheney was incensed that Truden last week went before the Pitkin County commissioners and said that none of the employees who quit were forced to leave as soon as they gave their notice and escorted out of the office.

Garfield Commissioner Tresi Houpt asked Truden about the hiring of her husband.

Truden said that he had worked as a consultant to take care of computer problems.

Truden was curt with reporters who attempted to ask her about the matter following the commission meeting.

She said she did not know how much her husband was paid or how long he worked in the office. She said she would not answer any questions about her husband or any other matters unless they were submitted in writing.

Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia said she is receiving daily calls from citizens "incensed" about Truden's performance as district attorney. She said citizens have been offering to help with a recall effort, which cannot officially begin until mid-July, when Truden has been in office six months.

Staff writer Nancy Lofholm can be reached at 970-256-1957 or nlofholm@denverpost.com.

DA admits to hiring husband

By Scott CondonMay 3, 2005 District Attorney Colleen Truden publicly acknowledged for the first time yesterday that her husband was paid to work on the computer system for her office, contradicting what she and her husband previously said.Truden told the Garfield County commissioners that she hired her husband, Fred Truden, after she learned that the county's in-house systems manager didn't have time to work on the computers in the D.A.'s office and after she found a private firm's fee too expensive."As a stopgap, Fred provided some immediate service to meet the needs of the computers," said Truden. Her response came after Garfield County Commissioner Tresi Houpt questioned Truden about using public funds to hire her husband. Houpt explained that she thought the question was justified since Garfield County provides a significant part of the D.A.'s budget.Last week, following a meeting with the Pitkin County commissioners, Truden was evasive about hiring her husband."My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney," Truden told reporters on April 26. She added that Fred Truden "does provide some services and does some volunteer work."The district attorney made it clear yesterday that her husband's computer work was not on a volunteer basis. That directly conflicts with what Fred Truden told The Aspen Times Sunday night. He said he did "absolutely nothing" for the D.A.'s office. "I don't know anything about that," he said.Fred Truden didn't return messages left at his home yesterday for comment about the contradiction.Questions remainColleen Truden became agitated yesterday when reporters sought more information about her husband's work for her office. She refused to estimate when her husband worked on her office's computer system, for how long or what he was paid.Truden vehemently denied that her disclosure to the Garfield County commissioners contradicted what she told reporters after meeting with the Pitkin County commissioners.But one of her primary critics said Truden's evolving story creates suspicion among the public and fuels questions about her honesty."I feel it was deliberately deceptive," said Sherry Caloia, an attorney in Glenwood Springs and a Democratic Party activist. She said she is considering mounting a recall effort against Truden in July.Caloia said Truden's hiring of her husband isn't the issue. Her apparent effort to hide the hiring is the problem."I don't think it's illegal to hire Fred," Caloia said. "If she had been upfront about it, it wouldn't be an issue."Caloia contended that Truden's handling of the hiring of her husband combined with other personnel issues indicate something is wrong with her management style."All of her choices are just bad ones," said Caloia. "That's enough for a recall."Five prosecutors have quit since Truden took office in January. Some claim they were ordered to leave their offices immediately after resigning even though they offered to serve for several weeks after giving notice. At the meeting with Pitkin County commissioners, the district attorney said that "not one" deputy district attorney or office worker who resigned in recent weeks was escorted off the premises ahead of the scheduled last day.The shortage of lawyers has left the D.A.'s office scrambling to keep up with its caseload in a district that includes Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties. Truden downplayed the turnover while briefing the Garfield County Commissioners. "We should be up to staff in a very short time here," she said.Commissioners limit their scopeTruden's meeting with the commissioners was mostly low-key. Houpt asked the only question concerning Truden's management style and decisions during a tumultuous first three months in office.Garfield County Commissioner Chairman John Martin said during a break that the meeting was only intended as a general update. He said the board is limited in what it can ask about personnel issues.Martin declined to say whether or not he thought Truden was deceptive about the employment of her husband. "I think you're dealing with an attorney splitting definitions," he said.The public will determine if that is an issue of legitimate concern, he said."The truth always finds you and you'll have to pay the fiddler at the end of the day," Martin said.Houpt said she didn't feel it was her role as an elected official to pass judgment about another elected official's management style. "It's the public's role to do that," she said.That's why she limited her question to spending of public funds rather than personnel or management issues.'Tough' budget session coming Truden and the commissioners scheduled a work session in June to discuss the district attorney's budget. Garfield County contributes about $1.1 million of the office's $1.6 million budget. The formula is based on caseload among Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties. Garfield County has the vast majority of criminal cases.Truden hinted that she will seek more money for 2005 due to unforeseen impacts on the budget, such as severance packages for prosecutors and support staff who have departed. She also blamed her predecessor, Mac Myers, for leaving behind some bills."We found some bills that have not been paid by the prior administration," said Truden. "It will have a major effect on the budget that we're still assessing."Martin said a request for additional funds for the district attorney's office would spur a lot of questions. He said the county takes its budget seriously and doesn't like to spend more than allotted in a specific area."It's going to be a tough meeting," he said.Scott Condon's e-mail address is scondon@aspentimes.com

GPI POSTS
Re: Is the media overplaying the Colleen Truden story? by Anonymous on Friday, April 29 @ 15:35:38 PDT
Why did Fred Truden have a Garfield County Employee Identification if he was not an employee?


Re: Is the media overplaying the Colleen Truden story? by Lawyer on Saturday, April 30 @ 10:21:23 PDT
The media is NOT overplaying the story because we deserve honesty, integrity, and competence in our elected officals. This is particularly true in a position as powerful as the district attorney. Truden has shown us in many ways that she is not the person.

Re: Is the media overplaying the Colleen Truden story? by Anonymous on Saturday, April 30 @ 10:43:07 PDT
If any of the accusations are true, our DA isn't being honest. We can't have a dishonest DA prosecuting. The Daily News is giving us much better information. Come guys pick up the pace. It is your responsibility to be the watchdogs for all of us living in

Re: Is the media overplaying the Colleen Truden story? by Anonymous on Sunday, May 01 @ 07:49:00 PDT
NO. This a great story of involving deception and thievery of the public trust. Just make sure you get it right.

Re: Is the media overplaying the Colleen Truden story? by Anonymous on Monday, May 02 @ 09:01:59 PDT
We should be thankful that the media let the peopel know what is going on!

Aspen Times Poll: Should District Attorney Colleen Truden be the focus of a recall petition?

97.5% Yes
2.5% No


The Time is now to fire the DA!

DA skates through meeting with Republican BOCC - - Martin Mckoward accept lies - - so does GPI - -

Embattled District Attorney Colleen Truden emerged relatively unscathed from a meeting with the Garfield County Commissioners on Monday. Truden updated the commission on budget items and answered a question about employing her husband, Fred Truden.Commissioner Trési Houpt asked if Truden's husband was on the county payroll, as has been alleged in recent newspaper stories. Truden said that when she took office in January she needed the computers serviced and was told no one in the county was available until April."As a stopgap, Fred provided limited services to meet our immediate needs. That was it," Truden said, adding that he was not on the county payroll but was paid and was issued a badge to get into the county courthouse after hours.The Pitkin County Commissioners questioned about her husband April 26, when she told them he was not on the payroll but was hired to provide some computer services and also did volunteer work.Commissioner John Martin said the allegations about Truden's employment of her husband is a question of semantics."I think we're dealing with split definitions. On the payroll is different from paying as a consultant," he said.Martin declined to say more about ex-employees' allegations that Truden had them escorted out of the office when they resigned and would not let them work out their period of notice. That period in some cases amounted to a few weeks to finish up court cases."I won't call anyone a liar or a cheat. Let the facts speak for themselves," Martin said.Most of the half hour Truden was with the commissioners was devoted to discussion about her budget.Truden said when she took office in early January she found a number of unpaid bills left over from the previous administration under then-DA Mac Myers."Sheriff's subpoenas were not paid," but have been taken care of, as well as payments to special prosecutors, she said. "It appears that the 2004 workman's compensation was not paid to the tune of about $8,500," nor were termination packages for staff who left the DA's office.To date, five prosecutors have resigned from the office.Truden also detailed the status of her hiring efforts. As of this week, she has hired one attorney for the Aspen office who will prosecute felony cases in district court. Another attorney for the Glenwood Springs office is expected to come on board in the next three weeks, and she is interviewing three more attorneys who she said should be in position by the end of the month.She also expressed concern that one attorney in Rio Blanco County is handling 219 felony and misdemeanor cases, compared to 293 cases in Pitkin County, and another attorney may be needed in that office.Houpt defended the commission's lack of searching questions to Truden Monday."Our work with Colleen is strictly budgetary. We would walk a really fine line to challenge another elected official's personnel decisions," she said.Garfield County pays $1.1 million to the DA's office out of an approximately $1.6 million budget for the 9th Judicial District that covers Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties.Martin said he intends to question Truden more closely about the issues in her office at a workshop on June 15.Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario, who was also at the commissioners' meeting Monday, said that despite the concerns surrounding Truden's tenure as DA, his court cases are running smoothly."We've had no disruption so far, and the cases are flowing well," he said.Contact Donna Gray: 945-8515, ext. 510


Add Lou Vallario to the recall!!!!

(The Lies Continue from the Truden Nightmare Office _ Recall Now!)

Truden pulls about face
By Rick Carroll/Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

GLENWOOD SPRINGS - District Attorney Colleen Truden conceded Monday to Garfield County commissioners that her husband received compensation for working at her office, a stark contrast to what she told Piktin County commissioners last week.

"Yes," Truden said, in reply to Garfield County Commissioner Trési Houpt's question if Fred Truden had been paid for computer work he had done at the Glenwood Springs DA's office.

In a related development, Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia said that Truden's office has failed to meet the 72-hour requirement to provide records of all of her office's financial information, including payroll information from January, February and March.

Caloia attended Monday's meeting, and said that Truden's remarks about her husband conflicted with her statements made last week to Pitkin officials.

"I think what she said is so contrary to what she said last week," Caloia said. "Her husband was obviously paid, and I think that was a deliberate deception. Last week she called him a volunteer, and today she said he was paid."

Truden's appearance in front of Garfield commissioners came as pressure continues to mount regarding her management of office finances and employees, which has sparked a buzz in the legal community about staging a recall election in July.

Truden, who took office Jan. 11 for the 9th Judicial District, which is comprised of Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties, has been accused by former employees of not giving them a cost-of-living raise, all the while using funds to remodel her office.

But the biggest criticism levied against her has regarded her husband's controversial alliance with the DA's Office and the rash of departures of deputy prosecutors since Truden took office.

Five deputy prosecutors have quit on Truden, and three of them have said they were escorted out of their offices in a degrading manner. At last week's Pitkin County commissioners meeting, Truden said that "not one" had been escorted out, prompting three of the former deputy prosecutors to accuse Truden of lying.

When asked yesterday by a reporter if she was standing by her "not one" comment made to Pitkin commissioners on Tuesday, April 26, Truden replied: "I said what I said and that's all there is to it."

At the April 26 meeting, Pitkin County Commissioner Mick Ireland grilled Truden about the well-politicized developments at the District Attorney's Office. Ireland asked Truden if Mr. Truden had been paid, prompting the district attorney to offer that her husband performed "some volunteer work" and provided "some services."

"My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney," Truden told Pitkin commissioners.

But at yesterday's briefing with the Garfield commission, Truden said her husband was brought on board as a "stop gap" in order to "meet our immediate needs. That was it."

Ireland said Monday that Truden's conflicting remarks about her husband are "exactly the kind of thing that gets defendants in trouble on the witness stand."

He added: "I find that she is making a distinction without a difference. It is not worthy of the dignity of her office to try that explanation. I would hope that we would have a more straightforward relationship."

After the meeting, Truden, when asked by a reporter why she told Pitkin commissioners that her husband was an office volunteer, Truden replied: "I said last week he was not on the payroll."

rcarroll@aspendailynews.com

By Chad AbrahamSpecial to the Free PressEmbattled 9th District Attorney Colleen Truden denied a newspaper report that her top assistant stalked female prosecutors when he was a deputy district attorney in Mesa County.In a wide-ranging meeting with the Pitkin County commissioners, Truden also said the wave of resignations her office has seen since she took over in January is part of a normal transition. And people who have resigned were not escorted out of the building, she said.“Not one,” was her response to a question from Commissioner Mick Ireland.That contradicts articles in both Aspen newspapers, which reported that former deputy district attorneys Gail Nichols and Jeff Cheney were ordered out a few days after they gave several weeks’ notice. They were not available for comment.Ireland also asked about allegations concerning Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter. An article last week in the Aspen Daily News said he allegedly harassed co-workers in 2001 and was the subject of an internal investigation relating to the Jennifer Blagg murder case in Grand Junction.Those allegations came from a Mesa County sheriff’s report. But Susan McBurney, public information officer with the Mesa County Sheriff’s Department, said the questioning of Felletter wasn’t part of an internal inquiry. Investigators spoke to him as they ruled out suspects in the case, McBurney said. Blagg’s husband was convicted of first-degree murder.Rick Carroll, editor of the Daily News, said the paper would likely run a clarification in today’s edition.“To say there was an internal investigation, I don’t think that’s correct,” he said. “He was a suspect.”At any rate, Truden said the article’s allegations were not true.“You know, you’re getting into areas where I am not going to answer at this point,” she told Ireland.“You certainly have the right to remain silent,” he said. “I would feel uncomfortable that you would hire somebody who has sexually harassed (people). I would feel much better if the chief prosecutor can assure me that that was not the case.”“I did not hire anyone who has those types of issues,” Truden said.Carroll said his paper stands behind the story.“I have the (investigation report) in my hand, unless this is one of those Dan Rather things going on and it’s a forged document,” he said.Truden also denied a report in The Aspen Times last week that her husband worked in the District Attorney’s Office in Glenwood Springs.“My husband is not an employee on the payroll of the office of the district attorney,” she said.But she added that “he does provide some services (in the office) and does some volunteer work.”Truden was also questioned on the suspension of a program that provided an eight-hour anger management course for people suspected of minor domestic violence offenses. Proponents said it was an effective, less draconian method implemented under Truden’s predecessor, Mac Myers. The course spared people from the usual 36-week program that more serious offenders receive and provided information on avoiding domestic violence.As it stands now, everyone convicted of a domestic violence crime, no matter how insignificant, will be ordered to take 36 weeks of treatment. And Tuesday the commissioners wanted to know why.
http://www.gjfreepress.com/home.php?content=article&article=1631

Elements of District Attorney Colleen Truden's controversial management style emerged Sunday as the former legal assistant in the Aspen office joined a chorus of former employees in saying Truden lied to the Pitkin County Commissioners last week.Carol Koris said she was upset when she read about Truden's comments to county officials during a meeting Tuesday. "And I was disappointed in the commissioners that they believed her. For her to sit there and blatantly lie to them that nobody was escorted out and nobody left prematurely is just horrendous."The district attorney told commissioners "not one" deputy district attorney or office employee who resigned in recent weeks was escorted off the premises ahead of their scheduled last day.When former Deputy District Attorney Gail Nichols resigned in early April, she told The Aspen Times she planned on working for the rest of the month. Instead, a few days after Nichols tendered her resignation, Truden, Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter and the office's investigator allegedly told her to clean out her desk.Koris, whom Truden hired in January, turned in her letter of resignation April 19. In it, she wrote that "the views and recent actions of administration in regards to employees has prompted me to re-evaluate my conscience and morals." She said Sunday that the recent actions behind her resignation related to Truden's treatment of Nichols. "A lot of us had heard that she was a micromanager. When I was speaking with her, I said, 'I'm concerned about the micromanaging.' She said, 'I'm not a micromanager. It's been done to me and I would never do that to anyone,' " Koris said, recounting a conversations she says they had after Truden's de facto election in the August primary. There was no Democratic candidate in last year's race.That is exactly what she and Felletter did to Nichols, a former chief prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey, Koris said."They came up (to Aspen), and Vince basically was giving Gail a hard time about cases," she said. "They were her cases, she knew them. And for him to come in and tell her how to run her cases - that sounds like micromanaging to me."She also described Truden's first staff meeting after taking office. Attorneys and staffers from Meeker and Aspen traveled to Glenwood Springs early last month. At the meeting, the staff of the 9th Judicial District were asked to describe how they felt about one another in a manner Koris said was "strange.""I don't know a whole lot about psychology; I took a couple of classes, that's about it. But to me this seemed like it was a psychological test," she said. "She had every employee's name listed on the left-hand side and across the top she had a flower, a dog (and) two characteristic traits. We had to fill it out. For each person, we had to put in a little box what kind of flower they reminded us (of) and what kind of animal. It was real strange."Plus, "She was taking us away from work to do this."Told that a former employee was questioning her management style, Truden's husband, Fred, asked about Koris' work experience."How much management skills does she have?" he said. "That's what you have to evaluate."Asked if his wife wanted to comment for this story, he said, "No, not really. It's just allegations."Fred Truden was also asked the fact that multiple sources have said he has been seen around the district attorney's office in Glenwood Springs, apparently working."I don't know anything about that," he said. "I really can't comment because I am my own person. ... Obviously draw your own conclusions."

Former assistant: Truden lied

Ex-Aspen staffer describes 'strange' staff meeting

By Chad Abraham
May 2, 2005

Elements of District Attorney Colleen Truden's controversial management style emerged Sunday as the ex-legal assistant in the Aspen office joined a chorus of former employees in saying Truden lied to the Pitkin County commissioners last week.

"I was pissed," said Carol Koris of reading Truden's comments to county officials during a meeting Tuesday. "And I was disappointed in the commissioners that they believed her. For her to sit there and blatantly lie to them that nobody was escorted out and nobody left prematurely is just horrendous."

At the meeting, the district attorney said that "not one" deputy district attorney or office worker who resigned in recent weeks was escorted off the premises ahead of the scheduled last day.

When former Deputy District Attorney Gail Nichols resigned in early April, she told The Aspen Times she planned to work for the rest of the month. Instead, a source at the time said a few days after Nichols tendered her resignation, Truden, Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter and the office's investigator told her to clean out her desk.

Koris, who was hired by Truden in January, turned in her letter of resignation April 19. In it, she writes that "the views and recent actions of administration in regards to employees has prompted me to re-evaluate my conscience and morals."

She said yesterday that the recent actions behind her resignation related to Truden's treatment of Nichols and other employees.

"A lot of us had heard that she was a micro-manager. When I was speaking with her, I said, 'I'm concerned about the micro-managing.' She said, 'I'm not a micro-manager. It's been done to me and I would never do that to anyone,'" said Koris, recounting a conversation she says they had after Truden's de facto election in the August primary. There was no Democratic candidate in last year's race.

But that is exactly what she and Felletter did to Nichols, a former chief prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey, Koris said.

"They came up [to Aspen], and Vince basically was giving Gail a hard time about cases," she said. "They were her cases, she knew them. And for him to come in and tell her how to run her cases - that sounds like micro-managing to me."

She also described Truden's first staff meeting after taking office. Attorneys and staffers from Meeker and Aspen traveled to Glenwood Springs early last month. At the meeting, the staff of the 9th Judicial District was asked to describe how they felt about one another in a manner Koris said was "strange."

"I don't know a whole lot about psychology, I took a couple of classes, that's about it. But to me this seemed like it was a psychological test," she said. "She had every employee's name listed on the left-hand side and across the top she had a flower, a dog [and] two characteristic traits. We had to fill it out. For each person, we had to put in a little box what kind of flower they reminded us [of] and what kind of animal. It was real strange."

Plus, "She was taking us away from work to do this."

Told that a former employee was questioning her management style, Colleen Truden's husband, Fred, asked about Koris' work experience.

"How much management skill does she have?" he said last night. "That's what you have to evaluate."

Asked if his wife wanted to comment for this story, he said, "No, not really. It's just allegations."

A source who requested anonymity said he was familiar with the meeting.

"[Employees] go up one at a time and put an animal or a color next to his name to see how you felt about him," the source said. "Attorneys aren't going to put up with that juvenile, administrative garbage. It's laughable."

Truden was also asked about the fact that multiple sources have said he has been seen around the district attorney's office in Glenwood Springs, apparently working.

"I don't know anything about that," he said. "I really can't comment because I am my own person ... obviously draw your own conclusions."

Chad Abraham's e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

Truden faces Garfield County after lying to Pitkin County

By Donna Gray
Post Independent Staff
May 1, 2005

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The Garfield County Commissioners will meet the new supervisor of the White River National Forest, Maribeth Gustafson, on Monday, May 2. Gustafson is the former forest supervisor of the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and replaces former WRNF supervisor Martha Ketelle.
The commissioners will also receive a quarterly update from newly elected 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden. Truden has come under fire in recent weeks for the resignation of four deputy district attorneys and a legal assistant since she took office.
The commissioners will also consider the appointment of a new chairman and vice chair of the Energy Advisory Board, which reviews oil and gas matters for the commissioners.
A public meeting is scheduled at 1:15 p.m. regarding a special use permit for an access route for the Petroleum Development Corp. and an update from EnCana Oil & Gas (USA) on the West Divide Gas Seep. The meeting will be followed by a public hearing on a conditional use permit for a helicopter landing area five miles north of Carbondale at the intersection of county roads 113 and 115.
The commissioners meeting begins at 8 a.m. with an opportunity for comments from the public who are not on the day�s agenda. The commissioners break for lunch from noon to 1 p.m., after which the public can again address them.
The meeting is held in Courthouse Plaza, Room 100, 108 Eighth St., Glenwood Springs.

Contact Donna Gray: 945-8515, ext. 510"

District Attorney Truden's ADA's Call Her a Liar! Demand a change. Attorneys in the Bar Demand an immediate change!

"They said it ... We printed it

Aspen Daily News

'I think it's a potential train wreck.'
Former Deputy District Attorney Jim Leuthauser, commenting on the dwindling number of prosecutors working under District Attorney Colleen Truden.
'(Truden) was in front of four (Pitkin County) commissioners of one of the counties of her judicial district, and on the record she did not tell the truth to them.'
Former Deputy District Attorney Jeff Cheney, commenting on DA Colleen Truden's statements to the Pitkin County Commissioners.
'Reading these denials and knowing them to be false, I believe Colleen Truden has shown to the good people of this district that she is not trustworthy to hold the office of district attorney.'
Former Deputy District Attorney Martin Beeson, commenting on DA Colleen Truden's statements to the Pitkin County Commissioners.
'I think the records need to be reviewed.'
Attorney Sherry Caloia, commenting about her request for records from DA Colleen Truden, in regard to questions on whether Truden's husband is on the office payroll."

Glenwood Post Independent Takes Down Online Website after a "Peoples Poll" demands a recall based on ethical violations of D.A. Truden and Truden Objects to newspaper poll.

In a related story, the Glenwood Post Independent, pulled it's online website down, on April 30, 2005, after Truden and her supporters threatened to take "legal action" against the paper for publishing online a citizen poll. In Colorado it is a felony for a District Attorney to threaten a Criminal Prosecution in a civil matter. The results of the poll were overwhelmingly opposed to the ethical violations of the Truden Office. "Truth is an absolute defense to defamation or libel of any kind but were were just not willing to make waves. We are not about the news! If they want news they can watch TV or read the Aspen Daily!" an insider at the post was heard saying to the pulisher. The Aspen Daily News website has not been effected yet by Truden's illegal and unethical behavior. You can still read about the truth at www.aspendailynews.com. Expect more deletions and news black outs from the Glenwood Post Independent. Glenwood needs a paper that has the balls to print something less stupid than idiot pictures of body parts tattooed with disgusting images. Glenwood needs a "newspaper."

BAR SEEKS RECALL OF COLLEEN TRUDEN DA -- DISHONESTY GROUNDS - -

Attorney mounts effort to recall DA

Glenwood’s Sherry Caloia believes Truden is not fit for the office

By Donna Gray
April 29, 2005

Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia is, so far, a one-woman recall campaign. As the time gets closer to July 11 she hopes to expand her efforts. This week she did her homework and discovered what it will take to mount a successful campaign to recall newly elected 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden, who has come under fire recently for poor management of her office, among other allegations.

The number of signatures needed will be 25 percent of the number of votes cast in the district attorney election, Garfield County Clerk and Recorder Mildred Alsdorf said. Because the 9th Judicial District covers three counties — Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco — all three counties would hold elections, but the petition will be certified by the secretary of state, Alsdorf said.

Caloia said the recall petition will need 5,455 signatures of registered voters. After the petition is certified, the election could be held from 45 to 90 days from that date.

“We can’t circulate a petition until July. The state is very clear on that, but we can do the preliminary work and get a committee together and soldiers together. And we’ll see if we have good candidate to run,” Caloia said.

Although there is no formal recall group as yet, “There is a bunch of us who talk, mostly attorneys. I’ve gotten a number of calls from people who said they’ll help, who believe the system’s integrity is compromised. Some are Democrats, some aren’t. It’s not a Democratic movement. I anticipate a person who runs probably be a Republican.”

Caloia strongly believes Truden is not fit for the office.

“I think that Colleen has proven to the community that she is more interested in furthering her own goals rather than the goals of the district attorney: her hiring of Vince Felletter as deputy district attorney, her summary termination of qualified people, her charging decisions,” Caloia said.

In charging someone with a crime, Caloia said, Truden and Felletter “have a policy of charging defendants with as many felonies as they can think up in order to have bargaining chips for plea bargaining. I don’t think that’s appropriate.”

She also strongly disagrees with Truden’s move to discontinue a program for first-time domestic-violence offenders.

“I believed very strongly in the domestic-violence diversion program before she decimated it. I’m familiar with the penny-ante domestic-violence cases where a husband and wife get into pushing and shoving. … (To have those offenders) sent to an eight-hour domestic violence class has been a tremendously effective tool to help families stay together. To force someone into 36 weeks of treatment at $40-$50 a pop, it’s uncalled-for. It’s not justice.”
In an earlier interview, Truden said she dropped the eight-hour program because the Domestic Violence Management Board, which is part of the state justice department, is re-evaluating such programs. It will make a recommendation for new programs, which she said she will adopt.

Caloia said Truden asked the county commissioners for a raise but did not give a cost of living increase, which was approved by the commissioners, to her employees.

Truden also said in the Post Independent interview that the commissioners approved a 4 percent increase for raises as appropriate. “I believe in merit raises.”

Truden said she will reorganize her office “and I will present the employees with a new classification system. They knew this. I need to evaluate the work people are doing.”

“I think there is a need to restore dignity in that office,” Caloia said.

Truden's problems mounting


Potential recall effort 'crosses party lines'

By Chad Abraham
April 29, 2005
If a recall effort of District Attorney Colleen Truden is launched in July, it will have support from both Republicans and Democrats, Glenwood Springs attorney Sherry Caloia said Thursday.

And a Pitkin County commissioner expressed dismay yesterday that Truden may have lied to the board during a meeting Tuesday. She told the four commissioners present that "not one" deputy district attorney was escorted off the premises after they resigned, despite statements to the contrary from the former employees.

"I have to say, as a county commissioner, I am always gravely concerned about allegations that misrepresentations have been made to the board of county commissioners," Commissioner Mick Ireland said. "Without judging the veracity of the statements made at this time, I am always upset that somebody would think that our board of county commissioners is a forum to manipulate facts or misrepresent reality. That's pretty serious."

Commissioner Michael Owsley was also at that meeting.

"I wouldn't expect the DA to be lying," he said. "If she is, I'm disappointed. But I don't expect her to be lying. There seems to be a conflict and I'm sure it'll be resolved. That doesn't necessarily mean that one person is lying and the other person is telling the truth. It's not that black and white. I'm perfectly willing to give the DA the benefit of the doubt."

Sources also said Truden recently lied to her staff, saying she was going to Denver for a conference when she actually went to California.

"She lied to the people in the office [about] where she was going," one source said. "That's the kind of stuff that she does."

Truden has not returned messages seeking comment.

Linda McCausland, chairwoman of the Pitkin County Republican Party, said the issue has been blown out of proportion.

"I think the newspapers are creating hysteria," she said. Those who resigned "all signed on to support her style or her vision, and evidently they haven't been doing that. I think it'll all settle down."

McCausland predicted any recall petition would be challenged.

The controversy surrounding Truden, a Republican, has grown by leaps and bounds during the past several weeks. Since she took office, five deputy district attorneys and numerous legal staff have resigned across the large 9th Judicial District, which covers Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco counties. Additionally, it was revealed that Truden hired her husband, Fred, to work in the district's office in Glenwood Springs. She said Tuesday that he is not on the district's payroll but does provide "some services [in the office] and does some volunteer work."

And allegations have surfaced against Truden's assistant district attorney, Vince Felletter, her second in command. He allegedly harassed co-workers while working in the Mesa County district attorney's office and was questioned by investigators in a murder case in Grand Junction.

All of this has led to talk of a recall. A recall proceeding would have to wait until Truden, who took office in January, has been in her job for six months.

"She's not an honest person, obviously," the source said. "You can't have a dishonest person as a district attorney. Plus, look at the actions she has made in pulling somebody from their chair and escorting them out. That's just pure vindictiveness. If you have somebody that reacts [with] a flash of emotion like that, then you've got a real problem. She has the ability to screw up people's lives."

Phil Palmer is a former deputy district attorney in Rio Blanco County. He quit when Truden took over and is now a deputy district attorney in La Junta, east of Pueblo.

"I was comfortable in the community I was in and my wife really liked it," Palmer said. "From that standpoint, I didn't want to particularly move.

"I guess I moved on because she didn't want me there. My last day was her first day. She's made her own mess, so good luck to her."

Caloia said "absolutely" people are interested in a recall. "We need 5,455 signatures in the [three-county district]," she said. "I believe they can come from any one of the three or all three [counties].

"There's a great deal of interest. This is not a Democratic Party-driven thing at all. People are talking about it and it has nothing to do with a [political] party," she said. "Because most likely the person who would run would probably be a Republican.

"It crosses party lines."

Caloia told the Glenwood Springs Post Independent this week that she will run for district attorney if Truden is recalled. Truden took office on Jan. 11 so a recall effort could begin on July 11.

Although she said she would consider being a candidate, "I am so busy in my life, if someone else stepped up to the plate and I felt it was a good choice" she'd be for it, the Post Independent reported. She also mentioned that Jeff Cheney has been approached as a candidate. "I think he's willing to consider it, and I think he'd be a good choice."

Yesterday she outlined the person she and other recall proponents are seeking to replace Truden.

"We want somebody in there who has integrity, experience and some credibility with the community," Caloia said. "I think that's been lost."

She filed an open records request Wednesday in an attempt to find out whether Fred Truden is employed at the district attorney's office. The Aspen Times filed two similar motions yesterday.

"I called there this morning and asked when I could expect [an answer]," she said Thursday. "They didn't know, they were going to get back to me and I haven't heard."

Ireland said recall supporters should weigh the consequences of launching an effort to unseat Truden.

"It's a very divisive, contentious process no matter who prevails, and you have to weigh the harm you do to the community and the district before you employ a tool like that," he said. "The recall is the 'nuclear option.' It's voiding an election and expectations that people have surrounding an election. That being said, the district attorney's office needs the public's confidence that it is always dealing in truth because it has an awesome amount of power."

Dana Barker, chairman of the Garfield County Democratic Party, said politicos in his neck of the woods may discuss the issue at an upcoming meeting.

The Democratic Party's executive board and then a central committee in Garfield County will start discussing Truden's issues "if enough furor comes about and it seems to [have] a rationale behind it," Barker said.

"I've heard a number of people comment on this in a variety of situations, Republicans, independents and Democrats. They're surprised by the sustained news coverage that this story has involved. You've had front-page articles [several] days in a row. That's very unusual for this area, and that catches people's attention.

"The fact that experienced prosecutors are leaving puts the office in a bind."

The source contacted for this story agreed that "she's taken a huge hit in experience levels. She won't even acknowledge that."

John Sims, the temporary chairman of the Rio Blanco County Democratic Party, said he was not familiar with the firestorm of criticism Truden has faced.

"I'll definitely look into it a little bit and do some investigating down here and see what the problem is," he said.

Mitch Bettis, publisher and editor of the Rio Blanco Herald Times, said he was aware of the controversies. He said his paper has not run any stories, but that will likely change.

"We will probably pick [the stories] up just to let people know," said Bettis, a former publisher of The Aspen Times. "Our voters need to know, from a district standpoint, what's going on. Even though it may be quiet over here like it usually is, they need to know just to be educated."

Chad Abraham's e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

The Judicial Branch Condemns Truden's Office

"Judge blasts DA office 'fiascoes'
By David Frey/Aspen Daily News Correspondent

RIFLE - Disarray in the district attorney's office has prompted several cases to be tossed out of court, a Garfield County Court judge said as he issued a scathing rebuke to the office from his bench last week for what he called multiple 'fiascoes' in his courtroom.
Judge Jason Jovanovich sharply criticized the DA's office as he dismissed a misdemeanor harassment case due to the DA's failure to provide part of the victim's testimony to the defense, as required. Because the case had already been through one mistrial, under previous District Attorney Mac Myers, it couldn't be extended further without violating the defendant's right to a speedy trial, he ruled, allowing the defendant, who was charged in connection with a domestic dispute, to walk away.
'Justice is usually obtained when everyone is doing the best job possible. That includes the defense attorney, witnesses, law enforcement, the DA, the judge,' said Judge Jason Jovanovich, dismissing the case last week. 'Frankly, that hasn't been occurring. At some point, it's going to come back and bite the District Attorney's office if it isn't already.'
Jovanovich's harsh criticism from his county court bench in Rifle joins a chorus of defense attorneys and former prosecutors who have complained about the office's procedures. Five deputy district attorneys have quit since DA Colleen Truden took office in January, expressing concerns about management style and the office's approach to prosecution.
Critics fear that if an understaffed DA's office is forced to juggle a mounting caseload while taking a hard line on plea bargaining as promised, more and more cases will be tossed out due to speedy trial rules, which typically require a trial within six months of a plea."

DA's financial records requested

By Rick Carroll/Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

A Glenwood Springs attorney filed an open records request Wednesday seeking payroll records from the 9th Judicial District Attorney's Office, a legal move made to determine if District Attorney Colleen Truden's husband is under her employ.
Sherry A. Caloia said the request was given to the District Attorney's Office in response to Truden's statements Tuesday to Pitkin County Commissioners during an informal meeting held in Aspen. When asked by a reporter if her husband Frederick was on the 9th Judicial District Attorney's Office payroll, Truden replied that he wasn't.
Caloia said she hopes the request clears up the matter.
"I think the records need to be reviewed," Caloia said.
Truden said Tuesday that her husband helps out around the office with the computers, but he doesn't get paid. However, former employees of Truden said that Mr. Truden wears a Garfield County employee badge, and is a mainstay at the office.
"When a guy has an employee identification badge and is in the office everyday, the only inference is that he is an employee," said former Deputy District Attorney Jeff Cheney.
Caloia said, "The response I'm getting is she's not being truthful and that she's using semantics and Clinton-esque type responses to these questions being asked."
In the same meeting with commissioners, Truden refuted an article published last week in the Aspen Daily News concerning harassment allegations against Vince Felletter, who Truden hired as her assistant district attorney. Truden took office on Jan. 11.
In the article, the Daily News said Felletter was the subject of an internal investigation at the Mesa County Sheriff's Office. The article also said that Felletter was questioned by authorities in relation to the Jennifer Blagg murder case in Grand Junction, which ultimately led to the first-degree murder conviction of Michael Blagg.
According to documents obtained by the Daily News, Felletter was questioned because of his alleged harassment of female employees at the Mesa County District Attorney's Office.
But further investigation shows Felletter was not the subject of an investigation by the sheriff's office, but instead an internal investigation by the Mesa County District Attorney's Office in Grand Junction.

Truden Labled a "liar" by her fellow prosecutors after she lied to the Aspen County Commissioners in an open meeting.


Truden or consequencesBy Rick Carroll/Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

Three former deputy prosecutors said Wednesday that District Attorney Colleen Truden lied to Pitkin County Commissioners on Tuesday when she said that "not one" prosecutor left prematurely or was escorted from work in the wake of their resignation announcements. They said her comments reflected a pattern of deception that makes her unqualified to run the 9th Judicial District Attorney's Office.
The former prosecutors said that if Truden's questionable management style and approach toward criminal justice was not enough evidence that she is not suited for the job, her alleged misstatements have eroded any notion of professionalism on her behalf.
"I was going to remain quiet, and I was not going to get into the fray until I heard about her statements," said former Deputy District Attorney Jeff Cheney. "(Truden) was in front of four commissioners of one of the counties of her judicial district, and on the record she did not tell the truth to them. Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco (counties) deserve better, and I cannot sit on the sidelines anymore and allow this mistruth to stand on the record. The commissioners of Pitkin County deserve better."
Said former Deputy District Attorney Martin Beeson: "Reading these denials and knowing them to be false, I believe that Colleen Truden has shown to the good people of this district that she is not trustworthy to hold the office of district attorney."
Truden's disputed comments Tuesday helped add momentum to informal discussions of staging a recall election to unseat her. Recall elections cannot take place until six months after an elected official has been sworn into office.
Cheney has been rumored to be a recall candidate, but he said that notion is "premature."
"Perhaps a change is appropriate in light of the pattern that I have seen of an inability to tell the truth," Cheney said. "I believe (Truden) is compromising her ability to do a good job because of her misstatements. Her finger is the sole finger that points to every accused person in this district. And if she cannot tell the truth, she does not belong in office."
Truden did not return a telephone message Wednesday, the day after she appeared before Pitkin County Commissioners in an informal meeting in Aspen. There, Truden, under questioning from Commissioner Mick Ireland, insisted that none of the prosecutors who have recently resigned were escorted off the premises, nor did they leave prematurely.
"Not one," she said.
Truden's remarks were printed in the Wednesday editions of three valley newspapers, prompting three former district attorneys - Jeff Cheney, Martin Beeson and Gretchen Larson - to give detailed accounts of their departures.
Ever since Truden took office Jan. 11, five felony prosecutors have resigned, citing stark differences with Truden's approach toward criminal justice. They have said that Truden did not involve them in discussions about how to handle criminal cases, and employee morale had sunken to new lows because of Truden's right-hand man, Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter.
According to the former prosecutors' accounts, only Beeson and Christopher Gaddis, who offered his resignation Monday, were not escorted off their work premises after they told Truden they were quitting.
Cheney had remained quiet about the events surrounding his resignation until Wednesday's reports about Truden's comments to the Pitkin commissioners.
"I have no cheeks left to turn," he said, before giving a detailed account about his final days as deputy district attorney.
According to Cheney, on Friday, April 15, he met with Truden at the New Castle Diner to tell her he was resigning. Over a glass of lemonade, Cheney informed Truden he had labored over the decision, but said he felt he had no choice to quit because of the "unapproachable" style of Felletter.
"I was very blunt with her," Cheney said. "I told her that I felt that Vince's leadership style clashed with everyone in the office. The office is an environment of terror. Everyone felt that someone was going to walk in and fire them. I told Colleen that Vince's leadership style is conducive to fear, and she said that Vince is a good guy and has been doing a good job."
Cheney said that Truden agreed to keep him on board until May 12, the day Cheney had requested.
"I had a lot of victims (involved in criminal cases) that needed a smooth transition," he said. "I did not want to be escorted out like Gail, and I said I wanted to leave on a positive note. I said I've spent many years investing my time and energy being a prosecutor, and she said I would leave on a positive note. I teared up when I told her this, that 'I'm asking not be walked out of this office like Gail Nichols.'
"She was looking in the whites, blues and blacks of my eyes, saying 'you will leave on a positive note.'"
Cheney said he believed the discussion with Truden to be in confidence. But on the morning of Monday, April 18, Felletter visited Cheney and tried to convince him to stay, Cheney said.
The first 10 minutes of the conversation was heated, Cheney recalled. But he said it simmered down, with Felletter echoing what Truden had told Cheney on April 15: that he was in line to be promoted to chief district attorney.
As the conversation progressed, Cheney said he felt headway was being made, but then Felletter's mood turned sour, further solidifying Cheney's decision to quit.
On April 19, Truden, Felletter and investigator Phil Walter met with Cheney, and told him it was his last day on the job, Cheney said. Walter then escorted Cheney out of the meeting room, and Cheney gathered his personal belongings and left, flanked by Walter the entire time, Cheney said.
Incidentally, that same day Cheney had type written a letter to Truden outlining how long of a period he would be available as prosecutor.
"I was saddened, shocked and humiliated because I didn't think I deserved it," he said.
Beeson said he witnessed firsthand Walter supervise Cheney's exit from a job he had been on since July 2000.
"If Colleen is saying he was not escorted out of the office, that statement was completely false," Beeson said. "I'm not in the business of calling anyone a liar, but he was escorted out of the building."
Beeson, who quit the 9th Judicial District Attorney's Office last Friday, said he made his resignation effective immediately because "I did not want to be escorted out and be humiliated like they had done Gail, Jeff and Gretchen."
Nichols claims she was escorted out of the Aspen prosecutor's office on April 6, 24 days before she was set to leave.
Gretchen Larson, in an interview Wednesday, said her exit "wasn't as egregious as what happened to Gail or Jeff," but it was degrading nonetheless.
On Feb. 16, Larson, who was pregnant at the time, informed Truden that she had taken a job as a prosecutor in Mesa County. Larson said Truden agreed to keep her on board until Feb. 28.
But on the morning of Feb. 25, Truden told Larson her services wouldn't be needed on Feb. 28 because "it would disrupt the office," Larson recalled.
An office baby shower was held for Larson that afternoon, during which time Truden announced that she "was giving me the day off."
"But she had previously told me not to come to work," Larson said.
Truden's alleged heavy-handed style became even more pronounced when the locks to the DA's office were changed in the middle of Larson's last day, resulting in some staffers being unable to access the building.
rcarroll@aspendailynews.com

The trouble with Truden Aspen Daily News Editorial Board

The resignation of three prosecutors in the last three months signals a troubling trend at the 9th Judicial District Attorney's Office.
On three separate occasions, deputy attorneys Gretchen Larson, Gail Nichols and Jeff Cheney exited the office headed by the new DA, Colleen Truden. The trio offered to stay on for at least two weeks. Instead, Truden told them to leave the building immediately, and they were escorted out by one of the DA's investigators.
The prosecutors aren't the only ones jumping ship. Frustrated by Truden's micromanagement style, members of the administrative staff have been splitting ways, including Carol Koris, a legal assistant who worked at the DA's office in Pitkin County. Koris also offered to stay aboard until a replacement was found.
Instead, she got the same, sterile treatment the prosecutors were given by Truden.
"It's all been very unprofessional," Koris was quoted as saying. "I would have even stayed longer because I didn't want to leave them in a bind. But (Truden) just said, 'That won't be necessary. Hand over your keys.'"
None of these employees were slouches. The 9th Judicial District, comprised of Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco counties, named Nichols Prosecutor of the Year for 2004. As a federal prosecutor in New Jersey, Nichols oversaw a staff of more than 100. Cheney was a decorated soldier who made headlines when he returned to the DA's office in 2004 after being deployed to Iraq. Cheney and Larson played key roles in many of the district's biggest criminal cases under DA Mac Myers, whose term ended last year after he was term limited out of office.
Truden had not one day of criminal prosecution experience in the courtroom before she was elected. And apparently the last straw for the departing prosecutors came when Truden told each of them that every disposition they reached in their criminal cases had to be approved by the new DA.
Meanwhile, Truden's most recent recruit, her husband, has raised more than a few eyebrows. Mr. Truden, apparently, is on board to help with computer and administrative support in his wife's Glenwood Springs office.
By avoiding press inquiries about her management styles, Truden hasn't helped her cause. But we shouldn't be surprised by her shadowy nature. Truden's aloofness was foreshadowed in last fall's election, when she appointed a "spokesman" to handle media calls, rather than speak directly with the press.
Add all of this up, and the election of Truden is starting to confirm our worst fears: She is an elected official who is clearly out of her element, and she is someone who was only elected because she gained support from downvalley law-enforcement agencies more focused on the letter, rather than the spirit, of criminal-law enforcement.
Truden's dodgy style also leaves us to surmise that her approach to management is rooted in control and power. As we write this, three solid, respectable prosecutors, whose trial experience outweighs Truden's exponentially, have left because of philosophical differences with the current administration.
It is important to remember that these prosecutors quit, and this exodus wasn't a symptom of Truden cleaning house as the new DA. It was only until the resignations were announced did Truden order the prosecutors to leave immediately.
We believe Truden owes the public an explanation about the rash and nature of departures on her watch. The more Truden shies away from legitimate questions and concerns, the more we question her competence as the district attorney.
Truden should also be reminded that the same voters who got her into office can get her out. And if the current trend continues, voters may not have the patience to wait until the next election.

The fifth deputy district attorney resigned Monday, continuing a recent flight of employees from embattled 9th Judicial District Attorney Colleen Truden's administration.Chris Gaddis, who handled juvenile cases in Aspen, resigned Monday. He joined a swelling rank of attorneys who have left Truden's office in recent weeks including Gail Nichols, Jeff Cheney, Martin Beeson, Gretchen Larson and legal assistant Carol Koris.Although severely short-handed, the DA's office will have to handle its full load of criminal cases, said local attorney Sherry Caloia."They will have to do the dockets as normal. The fact that she doesn't have the deputies doesn't relieve her of the responsibility," Caloia said. Whomever Truden sends in to handle the caseload, whether it's juvenile or criminal cases in district court, the prosecuting attorneys could ask for a continuance in cases with which they are not familiar."There is a speedy trial requirement of six months, and I don't believe that can be waived because the prosecutors have all quit," Caloia added. "I think defense attorneys will take advantage of that and set their cases for trial to force her hand." In Glenwood Springs, Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter is the only attorney remaining with experience prosecuting cases in district or felony court. Deputy district attorneys Tony Hershey in Glenwood Springs and Billy Birchfield in Rifle cover county, or misdemeanor, court. "It's not a good idea to send a baby attorney to do the big cases," Caloia said.Caloia also said she was concerned about the way Truden discharged her deputies, some of whom gave a few weeks' notice when they resigned but were escorted out of the office the day they quit."I feel Jeff Cheney has tremendous credibility in the community, is well liked and honest and open, a war hero and a Republican," she said. "It says a lot for the office when a guy like that walks out. For her to do that (have them escorted out) I thought was extremely uncalled-for and insulting."Recall is on the lips of many attorneys in town, she added. "People are talking about it. ... Every attorney I've come in contact with is talking about it, not just defense attorneys."Caloia, who said she will run for DA if Truden is recalled, said Truden must be in office for six months before a recall can be mounted. Truden took office on Jan. 11 so a recall could begin on June 11. Although she said she would consider being a candidate, "I am so busy in my life, if someone else stepped up to the plate and I felt it was a good choice" she'd be for it. She also mentioned that Jeff Cheney has been approached as a candidate. "I think he's willing to consider it, and I think he'd be a good choice."Once a petition is circulated and approved a special election would be called with two ballot questions, to recall Truden and to elect a DA from one person or a slate of candidates.Coming up with enough signatures could be a challenge because the 9th Judicial District covers three counties, Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco.Both Caloia and Glenwood Springs attorney Walt Brown said Truden will have a hard time filling the vacant positions."It's the largest number of people I've seen" leave the DA's office, Brown said, in his 30-year tenure as an attorney here. "To have this many people go means something is wrong in Denmark. ... If that (work) environment doesn't improve it will be difficult to get people to work (there)."Brown also pointed out that Garfield County has had a district attorney removed from office. In 1977 then-DA Frank Tucker was convicted of using county money to pay for a medical procedure for his girlfriend, Brown said. In fact, DA law clerk and former Congressman Scott McInnis found out about the indiscretion and blew the whistle. Tucker received a sentence of 90 days in jail. The state attorney general stepped in and appointed Chuck Leitner interim DA, Brown said. Tucker now owns a funeral home in Montrose.Brown said he believes if handling cases becomes difficult for Truden's office, the attorney general could step in with help.Contact Donna Gray: 945-8515, ext. 510

Gaddis fifth prosecutor to leave DA office this monthBy David Frey/Aspen Daily News Correspondent

Deputy District Attorney Chris Gaddis resigned on Monday, becoming the fifth deputy DA to quit this month.
Gaddis, who was on a temporary assignment in the Aspen office after handling juvenile cases in Glenwood Springs, gave two weeks' notice to allow the office time to replace him.
Three other attorneys and a legal assistant gave advance notice but were terminated immediately, including two prosecutors who were escorted out. Gaddis said he believed District Attorney Colleen Truden would let him stay.
"She was very gracious, very nice about it. Very polite," he said. "I have no indication that (being terminated immediately) will be the case with me."
Gaddis, 34, said he was leaving to work with a law firm in the valley, but wouldn't say with whom.
"It's just a fantastic opportunity for me that I'm going to take," he said. "Regardless of what is alleged to be going on in this office, I still would be taking this offer. It's a great opportunity."
Truden declined requests for comment on Monday and hasn't responded to previous requests left Wednesday, Thursday or Friday.
Gaddis' departure marks a deepening loss of experienced staffers in the District Attorney's Office. He is one of a few remaining staffers with experience handling felony cases.
"Chris was yet another loss of an experienced person who was working his way building on his experience and getting to have more and more responsibility," said former Deputy District Attorney Jim Leuthauser, who left prior to Truden's term to work as a defense attorney.
Former Deputy District Attorneys Gail Nichols, Gretchen Larson, Jeff Cheney and Martin Beeson have all quit in recent weeks over frustrations with Truden's leadership. According to voter records, all, like Truden, were Republicans.
"I think it's a potential train wreck," Leuthauser said. "I mean to have an office so understaffed and so inexperienced is a potential train wreck. Every one of those people had a reasonable degree of experience and they've been replaced with nobody."
Glenwood Springs defense attorney Jonathan Shamis said he is asking local members of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar if they want to take a position on the issue. He expects members to discuss it this week.
"Here you have an office where there are usually eight deputies assigned to felonies in the district. Now they have one. That has to have a radical impact," said Shamis, who said he is not advocating for any particular position.
"Obviously, the situation to me is one that affects clearly the defense bar, but the entire community, too. But because the defense bar is going to be impacted it seems like they should say something and do something constructive to address the problems that are going on."
While the Aspen court clerk said he's seen some problems with cases not being properly filed with the court, District Court Clerk Jim Bradford said he hasn't seen any backup in caseloads.
"I think it's a little too early to see any effects," he said. ".... I don't know what's going to happen, if anything."
Attracting district attorneys to the region can be difficult due to the high cost of living and difficulty getting the kind of criminal experience an attorney can get in a metropolitan area.
Leuthauser said he worried the office's current problems will make it even more difficult to attract qualified deputies to replace those who left.
"How are you going to get somebody to come to this office under these circumstances?" he asked. "And to be so grotesquely understaffed and under-experienced, it's frightening."
Gaddis said court dockets may get backed up initially, but he believed the staff could handle the caseload and attract new deputies from other areas.
"I can understand why it would be a concern," he said. "We're losing a lot of experienced attorneys. The attorneys we have now in the office are an excellent group of people."
Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario, a vocal Truden supporter in her campaign, said he believed the problems would pass.
"Sure, it's a story, and sure, there are internal issues that are going on that are not uncommon with a new administration, but I think once she gets fresh faces in there that agree with her method of operation, it will be yesterday's story. Everything's going to get settled," he said.
Leuthauser said these problems are worse than any he's seen in a district attorney's office.
"A certain amount of turnover and a certain amount of loss of experience I can understand, but this is wholesale. The lack of experience, that's the critical thing," he said.
Truden took office in January after defeating then Assistant District Attorney Lawson Wills in a Republican primary battle, pledging to be tougher on criminals and less flexible in reaching plea bargains.
She's come under fire for a management style that drove out experienced deputies, and for hiring an assistant district attorney who was accused of stalking and harassing female prosecutors at his former post in Mesa County. Employees have complained she didn't give them a 4 percent cost of living raise approved by Garfield County commissioners. She also reportedly hired her husband Frederick to work in the office, although it's not clear if he was paid.
Some attorneys have talked about launching a recall effort, but that couldn't happen until after she's been in office six months.
Truden's 9th Judicial District covers Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco counties.
dfrey@aspendailynews.com

Right Wing Republican Racist Marty Lich Nut Job Calls for the End of Truden Train Wreck!

Cheney was a fine deputy district attorneyDear Editor,I read “Truden hires husband, raises eyebrows” and want to tell you how much I appreciated your county Deputy District Attorney Jeff Cheney. I read with sadness and regret for all the Garfield County residents that he had resigned. And then to be escorted out of the building before his resignation date was completed — that is uncalled for. You have lost a very fine attorney as well as a very fine man; in fact, I had written a letter of appreciation to District Attorney Colleen Truden saying the same thing and more. I wish you the best, Mr. Cheney, in all your endeavors from this date forward. And Mr. Cheney, if a letter of recommendation is needed, please do contact me.Sincerely, Marty LichGypsum

Coward Crooked Politicians sell out the people for Polluters again!

Wishes for Rose and Penry Dear Editor,Since Representatives Ray Rose and Josh Penry voted against Curry’s bill for property rights and landowners throughout Colorado, I hope that they will soon have gas wells in their yards. Let them know what air, water, noise, light and ground pollution is 24 hours a day for 25 to 30 years. Let their land values go down. They deserve it. They have let us down. I’d like to know why they always “give in” to the gas industry.Janice SchwenerRifle

District Attorney Colleen Truden:

1. Payed herself from her own campaign funds instead of paying back her supporters.
2. Lied to the Republican Party to get the nomintation then pocketed Republican monies to pay herself through her husband.
3. Fired an American Hero Jeff Cheney. Jeff served his nation in Iraq. Dodge bullets bombs and even Saddam but he was executed by Colleen.
4. Fired every attorney in the office.
5. Is over budget and under performing.
6. Hires her husband, the felon, to do nothing, on the public tit.
7. Can not prosecute those charged with crimes but Lou Vallario, Terry Wilson are still in bed with her.
8. In four short months, five deputy district attorneys and scores of administrative staff members across three counties have resigned due to her inability to do her job.

Great Job Lou Vallario. the most ineffective sheriff in Garfield County is not satisfied not being able to staff his own jail, he must promote a train wreck at the D.A.'s office as well. It is time for a recall for Colleen Truden and lacky Lou Vallario before more criminals go free because the criminal justice system in Garfield County is impotent.

Deputy DA ushered out
Nichols tendered resignation last week, asked to leave Wednesday

Colleen must resign or the people must recall her. She is a train wreck created by Terry Wilson and Lou Vallario and there lackys. She is a puppet not a puppet master and is hurting the people with her bad behavior!

By Naomi Havlen April 8, 2005
Deputy District Attorney Gail Nichols reportedly was escorted from the Pitkin County Courthouse on Wednesday evening by the new district attorney of the 9th Judicial District.A source told The Aspen Times that Nichols was confronted by District Attorney Colleen Truden, Assistant District Attorney Vincent Felletter and the office's chief investigator, Phil Walters, around 6 p.m. and asked to clean out her desk.Nichols announced her resignation late last week; she told The Aspen Times she planned to work through the end of April."Gail had tendered her resignation, and we chose to accept that effective yesterday, and she left," Truden said Thursday. She said she had heard "rumors, stories and characterizations" about the incident, and said "it's someone's characterization of what happened yesterday - but it was her last day, and she left."When asked whether Nichols was aware Wednesday was to be her last day in the Pitkin County Courthouse, Truden replied, "I don't know what Gail thought or expected."Nichols could not be reached for comment Thursday. She had been with the 9th Judicial District since 2003, when she was hired to handle misdemeanors. Nichols took over felony cases when former Assistant District Attorney Lawson Wills lost his campaign for district attorney last fall.Nichols told The Aspen Times last week that she planned to take the summer off before deciding what to do next. She would not comment on why she decided to leave her post. Before coming to Pitkin County, Nichols worked at a Denver law firm. She is also a past chief of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's office in New Jersey.Soon after Nichols announced her resignation, Truden said, "We are extremely appreciative of Gail's service and commitment to our Aspen office and the 9th Judicial District. We wish her the very best as she moves on to other endeavors."Truden said the district attorney's office is actively seeking someone to fill the vacancy.

Truden to pay back campaign money- -

By Chad AbrahamApril 23, 2005
District Attorney Colleen Truden will have to pay back nearly $5,000 to her election committee because it wrote a check to her husband after last sum-mer's campaign.Colorado secretary of state officials said Truden didn't break campaign finance rules, but what "she did she did in the wrong way," said the office's spokeswoman, Dana Williams.The campaign's treasurer, Stephanie Templon, wrote a check to Truden's husband, Fred, for $4,825.19 on Jan. 6 to pay back the candidate, who contributed to her own campaign. State law allows excess campaign revenues to be returned to donors after an election, but Fred Truden was not listed as a contributor."You can donate to your own committee and what she meant to do was reimburse herself," Williams said. "Her husband, who shares the banking account with Truden, was on the way to the bank anyway, and so [Templon] just wrote him the check and it was deposited into their account. In effect, it was deposited back to her, but in the reporting scheme of things, [Templon] needed to have written that check to Colleen Truden and not to her husband."Bill Compton, director of elections at the secretary of state's office, said he has recommended steps to fix the problem."They thought it would be OK because he has a joint bank account with her. We [told] them that number one, no, he was not the one who made the contribution so the check cannot be made out to him," Compton said. "Furthermore, even if he was the contributor, that amount of money would have went over the [donation] limit by a lot. But she is not limited because she was the candidate."What we're going to suggest that they do is to write a check from their joint, personal account back to the candidate committee and then have the candidate committee issue another check to Ms. Truden and then everything is fine."Asked if this has ever happened before, he said, "I'm sure it has. These kinds of mistakes happen and they're easily corrected."Chad Abraham's e-mail address is chad@aspentimes.com

Colleen Truden hires husband, raises eyebrows - Breaks the Law - - Unethical Bad Nepotisim!

ASPEN - Since Colleen Truden took over as district attorney four months ago, three deputy district attorneys and scores of administrative staff members across three counties have resigned due to philosophical differences.Additionally, Truden hired her husband to work in the Glenwood Springs office of the 9th Judicial District, an office that she has had workers expand. Defense attorneys contacted for this story said more cases are being prosecuted and that leniency in plea offers has declined.But one downvalley police chief said his department has never functioned as smoothly with the district attorney's office as it has under Truden's administrationTruden was in Aspen Wednesday interviewing a candidate to replace former Deputy District Attorney Gail Nichols, who resigned in late March. Her last day was to be April 30, but Truden, Assistant District Attorney Vince Felletter and an investigator from the district attorney's office escorted Nichols out of the building April 8. Nichols is a former chief of the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey.Jeff Cheney, a deputy district attorney in Glenwood Springs, received similar treatment. He resigned last week and was let go Monday, said Walt Brown, a veteran defense attorney in Glenwood Springs. He also said a deputy district attorney in Rio Blanco County recently resigned, as well.As it stands now there's just "not enough bodies" to handle the district caseload, Nichols said during her going-away party at the Cantina Wednesday night. The office manager at the Aspen branch also recently resigned.Asked if new administrations often see so many employees leaving, Brown said, "No. This is very abnormal to see this many people go. There's this large exodus of people that in my 27 years of practice I've never seen here."A lack of experience could now be problematic. He said that Chris Gaddis, the temporary deputy district attorney in Aspen, was previously handling juvenile cases. A deputy district attorney appointed in Glenwood Springs has only four or five months of district court experience, Brown said."The office is losing all of its experience. The lack of deputies with experience is going to be a problem," he said. "What you lose is a reason to be there if you're a younger deputy. You don't have any experience to gain because there's nobody in the office with experience to learn from."When you have the caseload increasing, as I think it will with this influx of oil-field workers in Rio Blanco County and Garfield County, you're going to need somebody who has got the experience to run a larger caseload."In Pitkin County District Court on Monday, five felony cases were continued. Truden's lack of prosecutorial experience was an issue in the campaign for district attorney in which she defeated Lawson Wills. She was a municipal court judge in Glenwood Springs who had never handled a felony-level case before being elected district attorney.Snowmass Village lawyer Arnie Mordkin, a former councilman, said he has also seen a difference in how minor cases are handled."Clearly there's been a change," he said.He referred to Truden's recent ending of an effective domestic violence diversion program for first-time, minor offenders in the 9th Judicial District. He called the program "extremely significant."Alcohol-related driving offenses are also handled differently. "It's more difficult to negotiate lesser offenses than it was," Mordkin said.Asked if the district attorney's office was taking a harder line, he said, "I hate to put it in those terms because that would suggest to some people that the prior DA was lax, which is not true. It is more difficult to obtain a satisfactory negotiation from the defendant's point of view."Nichols said she left because "We have different approaches to how to run the office and treat people. She's the DA, she has the right to run it as she sees fit."But hiring her husband is unusual, Brown said."You usually don't hire family members. I was surprised to see him working there because I thought when you work for the government, that's not what you do," he said. "I haven't seen other elected officials in the county hiring their husbands or their wives."Truden did not return messages left at her office and home.Carbondale Police Chief Gene Schilling said that under Truden's administration, his department has seen "a lot more cooperation and a lot more input from the DA's office" in cases.The district attorney's office usually handles a case from the department in one of three ways, Schilling said. Sometimes cases need more work and will be remanded back to the police; or they are accepted or rejected. "We seem to be getting a lot more cooperation in that area. We're able to call someone and get input into things they might want when we're working on a case, before we submit it to them."Overall, the district attorney's office now is "a little more aggressive than it needs to be," Brown said. "We're not really running a series of murder (cases) here or anything like that."And the wave of resignations and the subsequent muffling of Truden's staff - deputy district attorneys are now strictly prohibited from speaking to the media about policy - are not good for the pursuit of justice, Brown said."I've never seen such a large group of people go, and then there's this silence coming out of the office. It's very disorienting to the system.""I've never seen such a large group of people go, and then there's this silence coming out of the office. It's very disorienting to the system." GPI

Colleen Truden destroys the DA's Office in Glenwood. Criminals will run free now!
Four deputy district attorneys quit Pitkin County
ASPEN (AP) - There could soon be a help wanted sign in the window at the Pitkin County district attorney's office.
On Friday, Deputy District Attorney Martin Beeson resigned, the fourth deputy to quit since District Attorney Colleen Truden took office in January.
The sprawling judicial district, which includes Pitkin, Garfield and Rio Blanco counties, now has only two prosecutors with experience handling felony cases. Under Truden's predecessor there were eight.
After finishing his docket on Friday, Beeson walked into Truden's office and resigned, effective immediately.
He and the others who have quit said they were frustrated with what they call Truden's suffocating management style, office procedures and definition of justice.
Deputy district attorneys Jeff Cheney, Gail Nichols and Gretchen Larson also decided they could not work under Truden's rule.
"I made my decision Tuesday night after the way they dealt with Jeff Cheney. I wanted to do my Thursday and Friday dockets. I saw no point in giving notice. I wanted to go out on my own terms and I did. I did not want to give her the opportunity to humiliate me like she did the others," Beeson said.
Truden and her staff did not return messages seeking comment.
Cheney gave up his job Monday and Carol Koris, a legal assistant in the Aspen office, departed Tuesday.
Larson, Nichols, Cheney and Koris all offered to stay on until replacements could be found, but Truden terminated their jobs immediately and had her chief investigator supervise their exits.

Garfield County Colorado Jerk of the Month Stan Matsunaka (D)

Stan Matsunaka (D) Former Hero of the Demcoratic Party has become a lobbyist for the big oil gas polluters. The one time hero of the Democratic Party, Stan Matsunaka, has sold out to the Oil & Gas Polluters and is lobbying to injure surface estate owners. He once introduced legislation to protect the people of Colorado. He lost an election and has now turned on the people. Two thumbs down to the man no longer welcomed by the citizens of Garfield County, Colorado. Shame on you Stan! Shame Shame Shame! Our Jerk of the Month

www.garfieldcountydemocrats.com

Garfield County Colorado Democratic Party P.O. Box 2637, Glenwood Springs, Colorado 81602

"Representative McKinley & Stan Matsunaka whore themselves out to the Gas Industry and sell out the people of Colorado again."

GPI - - Committee kills Curry's bill

More From Valley News

Dennis WebbMarch 31, 2005

Advocates of natural-gas drilling reforms may pursue a state ballot initiative after the defeat of a bill in a Colorado House of Representatives committee Wednesday."If the legislature is not going to do their jobs and stick up for the surface owners and the citizens of Colorado, then the citizens will do it themselves," said Duke Cox, president of the Grand Valley Citizens Alliance, based in the drilling hot spot of western Garfield County.State Rep. Kathleen Curry's legislation to protect surface owners when oil and gas development occur was defeated 6-5 by the House Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources Committee. Several committee members said changes are needed to protect property owners, but House Bill 1219 isn't the solution."We certainly don't want to see our citizens abused. Nor do we want to abuse other property rights in the state," said committee member Diane Hoppe, a Republican.The energy industry had contended Curry's bill would have slowed drilling in the state, at the expense of owners of mineral rights, and would have driven up natural-gas prices. Bill supporters in the committee said reform is needed now because of how much drilling is taking place, and how much impact that is having on landowners. Democrat Judy Solano said lawmakers need to heed the concerns that were raised by surface owners when the committee held a hearing on the bill in Glenwood Springs."I think we need to move forward on this this year. I don't think we can afford to wait till next year," she said."We need to do something today - 'ahora' - now," agreed committee member Rafael Gallegos, a fellow Democrat.Curry told committee members her bill represents the third legislative attempt in five years to provide just compensation for losses and damages suffered by surface owners - something she believes is guaranteed to landowners under the state Constitution."The General Assembly has a job to do, and they're not doing it," she said.But the committee was unswayed. All five Republicans voted against the measure, and they were joined by Democrat Wes McKinley. McKinley questioned Curry Thursday about what kinds of delays in drilling the bill could create and whether it could hurt the value of mineral owners' holdings.Curry's bill would have required energy developers to try to negotiate surface-use agreements with property owners regarding issues such as where to locate facilities and how much compensation should be provided. If those negotiations failed, an appraiser would have been brought in to decide how much in surface damages had occurred. If the disagreement persisted, the matter would have gone to arbitration. The bill was aimed at changing law that lets companies post a bond of as little as $2,000 and proceed with drilling if an agreement can't be reached.Curry later considered amending the bill so drilling could proceed with a $10,000 bond, but bill proponents objected. Last week, they sought to expand the bill's scope. Amendments Curry tentatively agreed to would have changed the mission of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to say gas must be developed in a way that protects property values of surface owners, forced future COGCC members to meet new conflict-of-interest standards, and clarified that state law does not limit local governments from enacting land-use regulations regarding oil and gas development. However, Curry backed off those changes when she feared they wouldn't win committee approval.She felt badly for residents in Garfield County that the bill failed."They hired me to come down here to get something done for them, and I'm just real disappointed that I didn't get it done," said Curry, who was elected in November and whose District 61 extends west to Silt."The people don't feel let down by Kathleen Curry," Cox said.Rather, he said, they're disappointed by committee members who voted against the measure, and by the industry for opposing reforms. He said a number of people have been talking about pursuing a ballot initiative if the bill failed. Cox expects the GVCA to get behind that effort, while continuing to pursue a legislative remedy.Greg Schnacke, of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association, said that while an initiative would concern the industry, polls show energy prices to be a top public concern. He believes a surface-use initiative would further drive up the price of natural gas.McKinley said it's possible a surface-use bill could be reintroduced late in the current legislative session in an attempt to iron out differences between opposing sides. Schnacke welcomed that idea."We've pledged our willingness to sit down with committee members and talk about legitimate issues of concern that might lead to improvements in the oil and gas regulatory structure," he said.He said several issues discussed by the committee have merit, including increasing the COGCC's staff so it can adequately monitor the industry, and providing more information to landowners.But after six weeks of trying to reach agreement among committee members, Curry isn't hopeful that a compromise can come from a late-session effort to revive the bill."Even if there is such a thing I won't be the one taking the lead on that. We've beaten that horse to death," she said.She said she may carry a similar bill next year. For now, her spirits are sagging after Wednesday's vote."It was my most important bill, and we got close, but we didn't get there," she said.Contact Dennis Webb: 945-8515, ext. 516dwebb@postindependent.com

Coward John Martin (R) Garfield County sells out to the Gas Industry.

Counties disagree on key issues
Donna GrayApril 13, 2005
A meeting Tuesday among the Pitkin and Garfield county commissioners began cordially, but ended in a wrangle over water.The two groups talked about a wide array of issues, from trails to transit, and mineral to water rights. Their discussion pointed out differences of outlook, not only between the two commissions, but within the Garfield County Commissioners themselves.Garfield County Commissioner John Martin applauded a new rule of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission that gives surface owners an opportunity to ask for a site inspection if they can't reach a surface-use agreement with a gas development company. He said such a rule is a better way to protect surface owners and the mineral rights of developers than a bill state Rep. Kathleen Curry, D-Gunnison proposed. That bill would have mandated surface-use agreements, and provided for arbitration if an agreement could not be reached. The bill recently failed to pass committee review.Martin said Curry's bill "was doomed from the start."But Garfield County Commissioner Trési Houpt, who has been a vocal supporter of Curry's bill, couldn't have disagreed more."There are those of us who don't think (the COGCC rule) went far enough" to protect surface owners, Houpt said.Martin also said that rather than forging surface-use agreements, developers should pay surface owners to lease their land."People are concerned about the protection of their property rather than money in their pockets," said Pitkin County Commissioner Patty Clapper.Talk also revolved around $6.5 million in funding for a bridge over the Roaring Fork River south of Glenwood Springs, as well as a study of realignment scenarios for Highway 82.Glenwood Springs Mayor Larry Emery told the commissioners the city's paramount issue is traffic on 82 and the need for the south bridge. "We see (the bridge) as a health and safety concern," he said.However, Pitkin County Commissioner Mick Ireland pointed out that the bridge must take its proper place in the overall Colorado Department of Transportation plans for improvements and not knock out other projects that have been given higher priority.If the bridge is built, it could be "a bridge to nowhere," said Garfield County Commissioner Larry McCown, if an alternate route to 82 is not constructed on the west side of the river.Differences of opinion and philosophy also surfaced in a discussion about public transit. Pitkin County Commissioner Jack Hatfield urges his counterparts to support public transportation.Voters soundly defeated a ballot question about Garfield County joining the Roaring Fork Transit Authority board last November, Martin said."We didn't support it the way we needed to," Houpt countered. "If it's not a priority for the county leaders, then it won't be for the constituents."With the county's population growing every year, "it's going to be a critical need," she said of mass transit.But Martin pointed out that Glenwood Springs recently cut its bus service because of a lack of ridership.Garfield County does support transit when its rural citizens who live in unincorporated areas come to town and spend their money, which in turn translates to sales tax revenues that the cities contribute to RFTA, McCown said.Hatfield said people may be more inclined to ride transit as gas prices continue to soar. Martin disagreed, saying people would skimp on almost any other expense "to stay in their cars."Ireland asked the Garfield commissioners what their stand is on the idea of recreational water rights. Martin expressed strong feelings that water rights for recreational use such as whitewater parks should always remain junior to any other use. According to Colorado water law, water use follows an old maxim, "first in time, first in right."Martin said recreational rights shouldn't take priority over those needed "for human existence."Houpt said she supports the idea of recreational rights because of the importance of recreation to the state's economy. (Shame on McKowen McCoward and John "sellout" Martin!)

Gov. Owens to decide on habitat stamp for DOW
K.C. MASONDENVER - It's now up to Gov. Bill Owens to decide whether the Colorado Division of Wildlife should get an estimated $6.7 million in additional revenue for the next five years to spend on game and fish habitat and management.
The House of Representative on Friday voted 38-25 to concur with Senate amendments to House Bill 1266 and send the bill on to the governor. Less than 24 hours earlier, the House voted to send the bill to a conference committee with the Senate, but majority Democrats quickly changed their collective mind."They weren't paying attention (on Thursday)," said Rep. Joe Stengel, R-Littleton, who sponsored the bill along with Sen. Jim Isgar, D-Hesperus. "A number of them came to me afterward and said 'We voted wrong and don't want to go to conference committee' so I said 'OK, I'll reconsider.'"A comparison of the two roll-call votes showed at least 17 Democrats who voted on Thursday to send the bill to a conference committee voted on Friday to approve the Senate version of the bill.Remaining opposed to the end was Rep. Ray Rose, R-Montrose, a gun enthusiast and strong advocate for the Colorado State Shooting Association, an affiliate of the National Rifle Association that led the fight against the bill."My vote is very reflective of how my constituents feel," Rose said. "I've only had one call in support of that bill and that was from a Division of Wildlife biologist."Isgar, however, argued the DOW needs the additional revenue because of the increasing demands on the agency to control wildlife diseases, manage game herds, and protect wildlife habitat and migratory corridors in the face of encroaching human population.The bill would increase resident hunting and fishing license fees by an estimated $3.5 million a year; create a new $10 per year habitat stamp for use of the state's 200 wildlife areas, and impose a 75-cent surcharge on every license sold for an education fund.The DOW estimates the habitat stamp will generate about $2.3 million in additional revenue per year, while the education fund surcharge will raise about $900,000.It now appears state lawmakers will not get a chance this year to solve the growing conflict between surface landowners and mineral rights owners who are drilling for natural gas on the Western Slope.House Majority Leader Alice Madden, D-Boulder, said Friday that she will not give fellow Democrat Rep. Wes McKinley of Walsh permission to introduce a late bill, even though McKinley announced earlier this month that he had been given late-bill status."I haven't seen his request and I wouldn't grant it," Madden said. "We're almost done with the session and this is a huge issue. He could have offered amendments to (Rep. Kathleen) Curry's bill and he didn't so I'm not inclined to give him a late bill on something that he hasn't talked to me about yet."Curry, D-Gunnison, tried for several weeks to build consensus around her bill that would have given surface landowners more protection from oil and gas development on their property. McKinley cast the deciding vote that killed Curry's House Bill 1219 in the House Agriculture Committee on March 30.Rose, who also opposed Curry's bill, said he still planned to attend a meeting at the Capitol on Tuesday that McKinley has organized to bring all the stakeholders to the table."I want to bring everyone together, have them exchange phone numbers, look each other in the eye and come to some kind of consensus," McKinley said. "If we don't get started visiting and talking, then nothing for sure is going to happen."Isgar, who was the Senate sponsor of Curry's bill, said the agricultural groups have decided they want to work on the drilling dispute over the summer months."They've concluded there is still too much to do and don't want to rush this," Isgar said. "At this point, it looks like there isn't going to be anything (in the legislature) this year."One of the biggest water bills of the 2005 legislation session took a big leap forward last week when the Senate Agriculture Committee gave its unanimous blessing to House Bill 1177, which proponents call a "bold new process" for ending more than 50 years of water wars in Colorado.The bill, co-sponsored by Isgar and Rep. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction, creates roundtable groups in each of Colorado's eight river basin roundtables plus one more for the metropolitan Denver area. They each would send two representatives to a statewide interbasin compact committee headed by a governor-appointed executive director, which will then write a charter for negotiating interbasin water compacts.Isgar said a key provision in the bill is that basin roundtables can opt out of the process at any time."Every water community out there has been supportive of the concept," Isgar said. "Once everyone gets assurance that this won't hurt them, they are starting to see how it could benefit them."The bill has one more stop in the Senate Appropriations Committee before it reaches the full Senate for debate. The $247,044 cost of setting up the roundtables would come from the severance tax trust fund administered by the Colorado Water Conservation Board.Rose ended his legislative workweek trying to explain why he was named in the Denver Post as one of the top-10 truant members from of the House of Representatives this session.Rose, who was excused for four days after his father died in Iowa, was one of six House Republicans with four absences each. Rep. Lynn Hefley, R-Colorado Springs, led the list with 12 missed days.Isgar was excused for two days to attend an energy conference in Washington D.C. The Post said the top three senators in absenteeism were Republicans who have missed five days each.K.C. Mason is a free-lance journalist who reports on the Colorado Legislature in Denver.

Beyond The Echo Chamber. Stay On Message, The GOP Talking Points Network In Action.
By Anthony Wade
www.OpEdNews.com

Sean “The Media Whore” Hannity has an exclusive interview with Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice tonight. This is how low media has fallen to in latter day America. Thirty years ago, the press was interested in the truth. They were concerned about the interests of the American people. Fast forward to today and all we see are whores lined up to pimp you their version of fact and fiction. It is not your interests but the interest of the party, the Grand Ole Party.

The GOP is in the business of propaganda. It has been for some time, setting up a backdrop of “media” outlets that pretend to have some sliver of objectivity but in reality, they are there just to support the party line. They realized decades ago, that in order to break the seeming strangle hold the liberals had on the media, they had to recreate the media from the ground up. They realized that if enough sources said the same thing; over and over again two very important things would happen. First, people would start assuming there was some truth to it and second, that the alleged “mainstream” media would have to pay attention and thus give the false story, legs.

You need to seriously understand the network, and how the GOP masterfully works it. There are talking points generated almost daily, about how issues will be framed and dealt with by the network. You saw this recently when Tom Delay met with Congressional GOP members and instructed them to respond to any allegations of ethics charges by claiming the democrats were pointing fingers because they had no vision. You can see the network more clearly on major issues. These are the issues which stay in the public eye for longer periods of time. Two such recent issues were the social security scam and the Terri Schiavo debacle. You can see the network by simply listening. Listen to what is being said and pick up on the similarities. When the GOP needs to activate the network it primarily dispenses the talking points to three major segments, which work together, to create opinion in this country. Those three segments are:

Talk Radio
Cable News Networks
Contributors to Cable News

Talk radio should be obvious, but for the unaware, nearly all talk radio is dominated by the right. You have people like Limbaugh, Hannity and Savage who have made quite a living on being as vile as they want to be against anyone who does not toe the party line. What they really do though, is set the table. They put it in the minds of people during the day that Social Security will be bankrupt by 2017, even though that is a complete fallacy. They plant the seed that two of five doctors disagreed about the persistive vegetative state that Teri Schiavo was in without saying the two in question never actually examined her.

Cable news is completely overridden by GOP operatives and others who simply go with the flow. Fox News is all too obvious and as I have said before, the real damage Fox News does, is to make other cable news networks appear mainstream, when they are actually right-leaning as well. Proof? Just look at who hosts the shows and what stories get air time. How much did we hear about the Swift Boat veterans for Truth last summer, AFTER they had been debunked as liars compared to stories about how horrific Bush was in the first debate? That is what tells you where their priorities lie. The President of the United States gave one of the worst performances in history at a debate, yet the stories were still remarkably about the Swift Liars. You even had people on cable saying Bush won the debate!

Fox is again, obvious, with such demagogues as Brit Hume, Sean Hannity, and Bill O’Reilly. Then you look at MSNBC who thinks nothing of giving an entire hour to a former GOP Congressman in Joe Scarborough. Chris Matthews is the king of softball, touting the stories the administration wants covered while ignoring those that may expose them. CNN has Wolf Blitzer who gave the softest interview in recent memory to Jeff “I’m a Real Whore” Gannon, accepting lies from him that had already been debunked. Their primetime lineup also does not instill balance at all. Let’s face it folks, when the only “left” voices with prime time slots are named Olbermann and Colmes, there is trouble in truth city. What cable news does is it decides which stories are covered. By doing that, they decide what are the topics on everyone’s minds. With their talking points in hand, you see the Hannity-O’Reilly-Scarborough team go into action and reiterate what their talk radio brethren have already started. Using the same skewed statistics, they to say that social security will be bankrupt by 2017 and that 2 of 5 doctors say Terri is not in a vegetative state at all. Suddenly, the thoughts start to take root in you mind. They are finished off though with the guests that accompany the cable news circuit.

They call them “contributors” to the cable networks. Fox sets the standard by lining up the shrillest, loudest, most boisterous guests they can manage from the right. Then from the left, they get the most moderate, fair, or meek guests they can find. Proof? Just look at who the contributors are. From the GOP on Fox you get people like Oliver North, Newt Gingrich, Bill Bennett, and JC Watts. From the left to provide “balance” you will hear from such notables as Ellen Ratner and Susan Estrich. Over on MSNBC the panels have such known right-wingers as Pat Buchanan, Ben Gisnberg (GOP lawyer) and Anne Coulter. The balance there is no better on MSNBC with people like Ron Reagan Jr. and Mike Barnicle to offset them. You must understand that the Mike Barnicles and Ellen Ratners of the world are not bad people, they are fair. They will comment, fairly. They have no agenda. Their “opponents” in these exercises are there for a purpose. They are there to continue the GOP talking points drumbeat. They are there to say as many times as possible, even if in passing, that social security will be bankrupt in 2017 and 2 out of 5 doctors disagree about the state of Terri Schiavo. You must realize it does not matter if it eventually is proven to be wrong, they get the point out, to reinforce the message. The snippets are in 3-5 minute segments, usually breaking for commercials when the moderate milquetoast “lefty” is trying to respond how social security will not be bankrupt in 2017. The truth gets drowned out in the echo chamber, as it was designed to be all along.

This same script is used every day, every week, of every year. It is used with crisp effectiveness. You do not know where exactly you heard it first, but everyone says social security will be bankrupt by 2017, right? Recently, there was a leaked internal GOP talking points memo about Terri Schiavo and how it was a great “political issue” for the GOP. It was a glimpse into the daily way the Grand Ole Party operates. It was potentially dangerous to them, as an article such as this is. The machine went into action; the network received its talking points. The story was going to be turned around on the democrats and actually blame them for the memo. Remember the truth does not have to be on your side as long as enough people say your lie, over and over again, it begins to take root. The talking points included saying that the memo was not signed, had many inaccuracies, and that not one Senator admits they ever saw it. You saw the GOP blogs, talking radio heads, and cable news anchors and contributors go full out to smear the democrats with a memo that was written by the GOP. Media matters does a brilliant dissection of this issue here:

http://mediamatters.org/items/200504070005

Pay particular attention to the “Timeline of a Smear”. Note the streaming thought processes from one form of media to the next. Note the same exact points being made at each stop along the GOP media network. This kind of pattern can be seen in nearly every major issue. Turn on the cable news and watch for the similarities and more importantly, what stories are being chosen to be covered and how objective do the contributors appear to be? This is what media has become today. Sadly, these tactics often work so well, that mainstream media, such as local news and print media eventually pick up the story as well. Look at the Rathergate nonsense. Everyone jumped on the talking points in this case and strung up a man with 30 years of REAL journalistic experience. What got lost in the translation is that the story was true. The documents were apparently fake, but the story was true. The White House never denied it, because they could not. The very same secretary they used to debunk the documents stated the sentiments were accurate and the documents were forgeries of REAL documents stating the same thing. These facts got buried though in the echo chamber. All you heard was the nonsense about a liberal media bias being told to you by people who are so compromised by the GOP they have no credibility to say anything about objectivity.

Beyond the echo chamber is the vilest tool that the Bush administration uses. That is the “exclusive” interview. These exclusive interviews are not fluff pieces, because that is insulting to fluff pieces. Last month, it was Karl Rove who was granted 20 straight minutes to chat with Sean Hannity about the social security scam. There were no real journalistic questions and no questioning of the lies contained in the Rove address. Just 20 minutes of free air time for the administration to sell you on the social security scam, without being questioned about the lies. It was not news, it was an infomercial. The same thing occurred tonight. Sean Hannity got an “exclusive” interview with Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice. There was nothing journalistic about watching Sean set up the ball on the tee for Condi, question after question. There was no follow ups, nothing surprised either one of them, why should it, when you are all one happy family? This is taking the echo chamber straight to you. Instead of talking points being filtered down to you, they are brought to you directly by the administration in the guise of a journalistic interview. We learned tonight that Iran will not be allowed to pursue nuclear capabilities, even for energy purposes. We learned that Condi will not hesitate to go to the UN Security Council if Iran does not play ball. Condi got to talk about how great Iraq is going and how President Bush has opened up the chances of freedom throughout the region. This was all nonsense of course, but Sean’s job was not to question Condi, but to shake his head in agreement and understanding. Nothing about the deaths of untold thousands. Nothing about how the Human Rights Commission has reported that life for children under Saddam was better than under the coalition. Nothing about how outside of the Kurdish minority, most factions in Iraq are very anti-coalition. Nothing about the rampant abandoning of the coalition by members. Nothing about the gas prices. Nothing about the billions of dollars lost, unaccounted for.

Not in the echo chamber. The echo chamber is there to just filter out the truth and stay on message. There is no more objectivity in journalism. There is no more concern for the interests of the American people. Integrity is a façade, a nostalgic concept from another decade trying desperately to escape the emptiness of the vacuum that modern media has become. Social Security will NOT be bankrupt by 2017. Two out of five doctors did NOT disagree with the diagnosis of Terri Schiavo. Sean Hannity is NOT a journalist; he just plays one on TV.

Anthony Wade, a contributing writer to opednews.com, is dedicated to educating the populace to the lies and abuses of the government. He is a 37-year-old independent writer from New York with political commentary articles seen on multiple websites. A Christian progressive and professional Rehabilitation Counselor working with the poor and disabled, Mr. Wade believes that you can have faith and hold elected officials accountable for lies and excess.
Anthony Wade’s Archive: http://www.opednews.com/archiveswadeanthony.htm
Email Anthony: takebacktheus@yahoo.com

12.06.2003 GarCo election to be reviewed
By MIKE McKIBBIN The Daily Sentinel
GLENWOOD SPRINGS — A federal elections official will review the procedures used by the Garfield County Clerk and Recorder's office in the Nov. 4 general election after a former Glenwood Springs City Council candidate said he learned of several questionable actions.

Clerk and Recorder Mildred Alsdorf said Friday she was confident the process followed on election night was legal.

Rick Davis said Drew Durham, the director of the Help America Vote Act program for Colorado, stated he would conduct an investigation. The federal program was created after the 2000 presidential voting fiasco in Florida.

Durham could not be reached for comment Friday.

Davis said the investigation would not result in an overturned election. Davis lost his re-election bid in Ward 1 by a 192-189 count. That margin was not close enough to require a recount under state statutes.

"I'm not going to post the money for a recount, and I don't want to litigate anything," Davis said. "I'll be content with whatever actions Mr. Durham comes up with."

The investigation comes after a recount of the results in a failed School District 16 mill levy ballot question. That recount, paid for by the district, reduced the margin of defeat from eight to four votes when 23 uncounted ballots were discovered.

Davis said he learned a few days after the election that two neighbors who supported his re-election bid were given ballots that did not include his race against Larry Beckwith.

"They said they had registered since they moved, and when they went to the clerk's office they were denied the correct ballots," Davis said. "If they had been given the right ballots, and they voted for me, that would have put the results within the margin" for an automatic recount.

Alsdorf accepted responsibility for the wrong ballots.

"A mistake was made," she said. "I've apologized for it. I relied on my staff at the time, but I'm still the one responsible."

Another of Davis' concerns had to do with the envelopes sent out with the mail-in ballots, instructing voters to mark their ballots with pens. The ballots themselves said to use pencils.

"We should have caught that," Alsdorf said. "That happened when a committee of clerks from around the state and the Secretary of State approved a form for the envelopes that said to use pens. Our ballots have always said to use pencils."

The county's ballot-counting machine can read lead from pencils and some ink if enough lead is included, Alsdorf said. Some ballots filled out with ink had to be turned over to restitution judges who covered the ink marks with lead so the machine would count them, she said.

"When you consider there were at least two cases of wrong ballots, 23 others weren't counted and the pen and pencil mistake, I just think it needs to be looked into," Davis said. "My concern with this is not to overturn the results; I've accepted that. My concern is that citizens were screwed out of their votes. That would still be my concern if I had lost by 303 instead of three."

Davis said he wanted to ensure the election judges and Alsdorf's staff are better trained by the next election.

Alsdorf said she would take those steps.

"I will say that I have real good judges, and I'm sorry for the human errors," she said. "This has not been the most simple election."

{M4 Mike McKibbin can be reached via e-mail at mmckibbin@gjds. com.

Secretary of State requests all ballots

By Greg Massé
Post Independent Staff
December 9, 2003

The Colorado Secretary of State’s office sent a certified letter Monday to Garfield County Clerk Mildred Alsdorf requesting all Glenwood Springs Ward 1 ballots and election records from the Nov. 4 election.
The letter was sent in response to a formal complaint by former Ward 1 City Councilman Rick Davis, who lost his re-election bid by just three votes. In the complaint, which was lodged on Nov. 26, Davis alleges improprieties in the election process.
He is not seeking to overturn the results of the Ward 1 race, which he lost to challenger Larry Beckwith.
Drew Durham, director of the Colorado Department of State’s Help America Vote Act program, wrote the letter. In it, he requests that Alsdorf “segregate and secure all election records.” Durham also requested that Alsdorf make available staff members who were involved in the election.
“When these records have been segregated and secured, you are requested to contact the undersigned immediately so that these records can be taken into custody by this office,” Durham’s letter stated.
Once the records are at the Department of State, officials will investigate Davis’ allegations of noncompliance of the state elections code.
Department of State spokeswoman Lisa Doran said it’s

difficult to say for sure how long the investigation will take.
The process includes looking at the ballots and other documentation, talking to people involved in the election and performing a hand count, Doran said.
“It could take a couple of months,” she guessed.
Alsdorf said Monday she had not yet received the letter so she couldn’t comment on it.
No matter what the investigation turns up, Doran said Davis won’t be able to reclaim his seat as Ward 1 City Councilman.
And while the Garfield County Clerk and Recorder’s Office won’t receive any sanctions based on the investigation’s findings, Doran said it could impact the way elections are handled in the county.
“Obviously we’re all interested in having a fair election,” Doran said.

Contact Greg Massé: 945-8515, ext. 511
gmasse@postindependent.com

District 16 files own complaint over ballot count (Garfield County, Colorado)

Staff Report Glenwood Post Indpendent
December 11, 2003

Garfield School District 16 has joined former Glenwood Springs City Councilman Rick Davis in filing a formal complaint over the Nov. 4 election process in Garfield County.
Like Davis, the Parachute and Battlement Mesa school district was on the losing end of an election contest. The district backed a mill levy override tax increase that lost by a narrow margin. Davis lost his bid to be re-elected to City Council by three votes.
The Colorado Secretary of State’s office has already said it will investigate the election, and will conduct a hand count of ballots. Even if the vote counts flip-flop on the District 16 and Davis contests, the results will not be reversed.
“Our decision was not based on the outcome of the election, but rather on our concerns as voters,” said Steve McKee, District 16 superintendent.
“If there are problems with the system, then they need to be addressed. If the state comes in and does their audit and finds that there are no problems, great, then we know the system is working,” McKee said.
“On the other hand, if problems are discovered, we can then rest assured that they would be taken care of before the next election.
“In either case, it is the voters of Garfield County who are the real winners,” McKee added.
District 16’s concerns focus on 84 under-votes, which are ballots where voters did not mark either the “yes” or “no” box for the tax question.
Conflicting instructions on the mail-in ballots advised voters in one place to use pen and in another place to use pencil.
Garfield County Clerk Mildred Alsdorf has said the vote counting machine kicked out ballots marked with ink, and a resolution board marked over the ink with pencil so the votes could be counted.
But District 16 officials wonder if the machine caught all the ink votes, or may have registered some as an under-vote without kicking the ballot out for re-marking.
Alsdorf’s office already conducted a recount for District 16’s tax question. The original vote count of 622 yes, 630 no, changed to 629 yes, 633 no.
“Logic tells you that if one side gains in numbers, the other side should lose numbers,” district spokeswoman Sandy Hanson wrote in a press release issued Wednesday.
www.coloradoattorney.com www.coloradodemocrat.com