On October 30, 2023, we filed an amicus brief calling for the Colorado Supreme Court to recognize that a person held at a police station for two hours, restrained with bags over her hands, interrogated, and not permitted to leave, is in police custody, no matter how police characterize the situation. Officers from the City of Craig, Colorado Police Department found Rachel Niemeyer, sobbing and highly intoxicated, in a motel room with her husband, who had suffered a gunshot wound.  Police officers took Ms. Niemeyer to the police station, zip-tied bags over her hands, and interrogated her for two hours without Miranda warnings. Ms. Niemeyer pleaded at least a dozen times to be taken to the hospital to see her husband, but police refused to do so. At some point, an officer told her a single time that she was not under arrest, but the police continued to detain her, refused her repeated requests to remove the zip-ties, and questioned her in an interrogation room with a closed door. Despite these facts of obvious police detention, the Court of Appeals concluded that she was not in custody and police were not required inform her of her Miranda rights before interrogating her.

In a context where police routinely deceive people as part of interrogation, overweighting officers’ description of events is dangerous to our civil liberties. We’re urging the court to consider the totality of Ms. Niemeyer’s circumstances, find that she was entitled to Miranda warnings, and overturn her conviction.

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• Read more about Niemeyer v. Colorado

It has been one year since the launch of our three-year strategic framework, The Road Ahead. Since our launch, the ACLU of Colorado has worked diligently within our three core issue areas to make sure that Colorado can be the most just and equitable state in the country. In this newsletter, you will learn more about how we protected Coloradans’ right to freedom of expression after holding the Woodland Park School District accountable for violating the Constitutional rights of a resident whose speech district leadership didn’t agree with, how we are fighting to protect the First Amendment rights of activists who were unlawfully targeted by police in Colorado Springs in our Armendariz v. City of Colorado Springs case and how we put an end racial gerrymandering in El Paso County as part of our efforts for systemic equality in Colorado. This is only the beginning of our work on The Road Ahead.

In this edition:

As I look ahead to my third year serving as Executive Director of the ACLU of Colorado, I reflect on our many accomplishments during my tenure.

Privacy and Liberty:

Colorado’s school boards’ decisions on policy, curriculum and budget have crucial impacts on students’ abilities to learn, grow, and flourish. With this power comes the ability to cause students harm.

Look Ahead: FIGHTING FOR OUR RIGHTS TO PRIVACY

Biometric data is our most personal — and vulnerable — data. We use it to open our phones, pay for our groceries, monitor our heart rates and learn more about our ancestry and familial connections. This technology has made our lives easier, but without proper regulation, this convenience comes at a severe cost.

Smart Justice:

In August 2023, the ACLU of Colorado sued the CSPD and the FBI on behalf of the Chinook Center, a non-profit organization that serves as a hub for progressive activism in Colorado Springs, and Jacqueline “Jax” Armendariz Unzueta, an activist and Chinook Center volunteer.

Look Ahead: Efforts in Durango

Building on our Expanding the Table for Justice listening tour, we are diligently working to build connections with and increase our presence in Durango and La Plata County.

Systemic Equality:

Ending Racial Gerrymandering in El Paso County

Colorado’s reputation as having some of the strongest voting laws in the country is well-deserved. However, this reputation can obscure the barriers and threats that historically disenfranchised voters continue to face.

Look Ahead: PEAK Week

As the 2024 legislative session draws near, we are gearing up for our biggest community event of the year: PEAK Week.

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• Read more about 2023 Fall/Winter Newsletter