Centennial – The state has dropped an investigation into whether Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers violated rules of conduct by sending an e-mail that a complaint claimed was a threat to clog the court system.
The complaint was made to the Colorado Supreme Court’s Attorney Regulation Counsel this year. It said Chambers was threatening to slow down the legal process and tie up court cases after two of her assistant district attorneys were admonished by a judge.
Chambers, who received public censure in December for using her office to help a fellow Republican, said Thursday that she didn’t threaten anyone in the e-mail. She said she was merely trying to make clear how the legal process works in Arapahoe County.
“It wasn’t a situation that I was saying we were going to clog up everything by going to court,” Chambers said. “I’m very pleased the investigation was dropped. I think it was the appropriate result.”
John Gleason, head of the ARC, said he could not release a copy of a letter his office sent to Chambers last week informing her the probe was dismissed, citing privacy issues. He did say Chambers could release it, but Chambers said she could not by law.
“We don’t clear people of misconduct,” Gleason said. “We decide whether we can prove or not prove a case, and we have an extremely high burden of proof.”
The e-mail in question, first obtained by 9News, was sent 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, which also covers Douglas, Elbert and Lincoln counties.
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.”
Some believed that “docket control problems” was a threat to not plea bargain and bring more cases to trial.
The e-mail was copied to Jim O’Connor, head of the public defender’s office in Arapahoe County.
O’Connor, who said he did not make the complaint to the state, 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.”
O’Connor said Thursday that he did not want to comment about the dismissal.
Through a spokeswoman, Sylvester declined to comment.
Carlos Illescas: 303-954-1175 or cillescas@denverpost.com
