Legal observers say Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers may not be as fortunate this time around.
Chambers, who received public censure in December for using her office to help a fellow Republican, is being investigated for an e-mail she sent that one attorney called a “veiled threat.”
If she is found to have violated rules of conduct again, she may receive more than the slap on the wrist she got last time, some said.
Chambers did not return phone calls Wednesday, although she told 9News earlier that she hadn’t threatened anyone.
“Just like the people Carol prosecutes, those with bad records get treated more harshly,” said Denver attorney Phil Cherner, who defends lawyers with grievances against them.
Chambers’ legal-defense bills for the last case amounted to about $100,000, she told 9News, with about 10 percent paid by insurance and the rest by tax money.
The Colorado Supreme Court’s Attorney Regulation Counsel is investigating the complaint against Chambers.
9News first obtained the e-mail from Chambers to Chief Judge William Sylvester and other district officials. She wrote about the stormy relationship between the DA’s office and judges and public defenders in the 18th Judicial District.
The e-mail said, in part: “Preventing problems is much better than trying to clean up the mess after the fact. Since we tend to get the blame when things go wrong, I want to be on the record as saying that if a judge shows overt hostility toward the People, any given attorney, or makes inappropriate comments concerning the cases, the victims, trial loads, etc., there absolutely will be docket control problems in that division.”
That “docket control problems” could be read as Chambers’ planning not to plea bargain cases and bring more to trial, some observers said.
“In its worst interpretation, it could be seen as threatening to shut down the system or clog the system,” said Denver lawyer Alec Rothrock, who specializes in ethical issues.
If the state pursues the case, it will probably focus on two rules, Rothrock said. One requires lawyers to expedite litigation consistent with the interests of the client. The other pertains to conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice.
The e-mail was copied to Jim O’Connor, head of the public defender’s office in Arapahoe County.
He sent a letter to Sylvester, saying the e-mail was a “blatant attempt to intimidate this judge and any other judge now and in the future, who issues rulings unfavorable to the district attorney or admonishes one of the attorneys.”
“The letter speaks for itself,” O’Connor told The Denver Post.
Staff writer Carlos Illescas can be reached at 303-954-1175 or cillescas@denverpost.com.
