News & Commentary

Tim Hoover writes about HB 1274, which, if passed, would repeal the death penalty. Read the article here.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday that the Stolen Valor Act is unconstitutional because of the limits it places on free speech. The case, U.S. vs. Alvarez, involved a  defendant’s false claim that he had won a Congressional Medal of Honor. Under the Stolen Valor Act, which makes it a crime for a person to falsely claim to have been awarded military decorations, his lie is a crime punishable by up to a year in prison.The ACLU of Colorado applauds the ruling. Judge Milan D. Smith’s opinion echoes that of Judge Robert E. Blackburn, who also found the Stolen Valor Act to be unconstitutional in an almost-identical case here in Colorado, U.S. vs. Strandlof. The ACLU of Colorado filed an amicus brief asking Judge Blackburn to throw out the SVA on First Amendment grounds. Judge Blackburn agreed, finding that the Act “is justified by a desire to curb speech about a specific topic,” which, unless serving a very compelling government interest, is unconstitutional.

Read the Denver Post article.

Read the article by Jessica Fender and Lynn Bartels in the Denver Post.

Tim Hoover writes about HB 1274, which, if passed, would repeal the death penalty. Read the article here.

Read the article, "Hold onto your assets," about HB 1238, Civil Forfeiture, here.

Read the editorial here.

The Denver Post covers ACLU case, United States v. Strandlof. Read the story by Felisa Cardona here.

Mary Dodge writes an editorial in the Denver Post arguing for the repeal of the death penalty. Read it here.