Controversy surrounds District Attorney Linda Stanley.
Her term as DA began when she beat incumbent Kaitlin Turner, a Polis appointee, in November 2020. Linda ran as a Republican though her politics are similar to those of Liz Cheney.
Her 11th district covers Fremont, Chaffee, Custer, and Park counties.
Here’s a timeline:
May 2020: Suzanne Morphew goes missing.
November 2020: Linda Stanley elected district attorney.
May 2021: Barry Morphew arrested for the murder of his wife Suzanne.
March 2022: Barry Morphew asks for case against him to be dismissed. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation says arresting Morphew was premature.
I had three interactions with Linda Stanley’s office, which I would like to recount:
Firstly, following the 2020 election, I submitted an affidavit to the District Attorney’s (DA) office detailing election improprieties. Unfortunately, the DA’s office misplaced my affidavit initially. Eventually, they located it and assigned it to an Assistant District Attorney (ADA). However, the ADA confessed to lacking expertise in election law and needed time to study it. Subsequently, the ADA acknowledged that according to the law, the DA’s office was responsible for investigating the matter and mentioned assigning an investigator. After a few months, I inquired about the progress, to which the ADA replied that it was an ongoing investigation and withheld further details. Several months later, the ADA I had been working with left the DA’s office, and at that point, I decided to discontinue my pursuit.
In around October of 2022, a group of us voiced our concerns about election improprieties to the DA. The DA then dispatched an investigator named Andrew Corey to meet with us. While Corey expressed sympathy for our situation, no concrete actions were taken. Consequently, we reached the conclusion that Corey was actually investigating us instead of the Clerk’s office, which was concerning.
In February of 2023, I shared a link with Linda Stanley to a body camera footage capturing the arrest of Salida City Attorney Nina Williams for driving under the influence (DUI). The video clearly depicts that Nina never opted between a breathalyzer test and a blood test, which should have automatically led to a one-year revocation of her driver’s license. I informed Linda about this, but she claimed that it couldn’t be proven.
Chaffee County commissioner agenda item for today.
Consider Moving into Executive Session Under §24-6-402(4)(b), C.R.S. For Purposes of Receiving Legal Advice on Specific Legal Questions Pertaining to the Office of the District Attorney, County Attorney Daniel Tom, Assistant County Attorney Lynda Knowles,County Administrator Don Riemer, County Deputy Director of Administration Beth Helmke, and Finance Director Dan Short May Attend
Media outlets previously reported that the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel (OARC) initiated an investigation into Stanley related to, among other things, her office’s handling of evidence. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court elected to review whether District Court Judge Kaitlin B. Turner properly imposed sanctions on Stanley’s office for failing to disclose evidence in a murder case. Other trial judges have also found Stanley’s staff neglected to follow discovery rules.
Judge Lama goes public with the accusation, interviewed on 9news.
“I don’t think she’s competent for that position,” said Lama, who is now a lawyer in Cañon City. “I say that based on my experience being a judge here.”
More trouble in the 11th district. Assistant District Attorney Wendy Owens has been charged with disorderly conduct and harassment from an incident in a Safeway parking lot in Canon City.
Mark Hurlbert and Robert Weiner each are accused of failing to disclose evidence and an “abuse of power” in a scheme to investigate the trial judge, according to complaints filed Thursday by the state Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel.
