Courtroom Victories (last 5 years)
2025 Victories
People v. Deven Dobbins, Arapahoe County. Black man accused of a double murder. After arguing it was self-defense and defense of others, the jury acquitted him on all charges at trial.
People v. Donna Farrow, Denver County. Black woman accused of first degree murder and three counts of attempted first degree murder. The case was negotiated down to one count of manslaughter with a sentence to six years of prison.
U.S. v. Jesse Montanez, U.S. Dist. W. Louisiana. Latino man charged with first degree murder and facing a possible death sentence. The case was negotiated down to voluntary manslaughter with a sentence to 15 years of prison.
People v. [*Redacted], Arapahoe County. Black woman entered a plea bargain after the judge gave her a deficient advisement of her rights. She was facing up to three years of prison on new charges triggered by the plea. After arguing the judge violated her rights at the plea hearing, both cases closed with no additional jail time.
City of Edgewater v. Cyr, Edgewater Municipal Court. 911 caller charged with obstructing a police officer when police had no reasonable suspicion to stop him. The defense argued the police violated the client’s Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights. The judge agreed and suppressed the evidence. The case was dismissed.
City of Denver v. [Redacted], Denver Municipal Court. Trans student arrested and charged for protesting her college’s complicity in the genocide in Gaza. The jury acquitted her of all charges at trial.
City of Denver v. [Redacted], Denver Municipal Court. Unhoused neighbor was charged with violating court orders for sleeping near a homeless services provider. Court orders were reversed to prevent future charges when accessing services.
City of Denver v. Harthcock, Denver Municipal Court. Witness trying to render aid after a shooting was arrested for obstructing a police officer. The case was dismissed.
2024 Victories
People v. J.B-M, Weld County. Salvadoran man charged with felony menacing. If convicted of any charges, he would have faced deportation and life imprisonment or death in El Salvador. After defense motions were filed, the prosecution dismissed all charges.
People v. [Redacted], Arapahoe County. Black man accused of first degree murder and attempted murder of bystanders. He pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Despite two psychiatrists testifying that he was not insane, three jurors were persuaded that he was not guilty by reason of insanity, and the jury hung.
People v. [Redacted], Arapahoe County. Black man and community activist charged with felon in possession of a firearm, obstructing a police officer, and possessing a firearm while intoxicated. After arguing he had no choice but to carry a gun because his white neighbors were intimidating him, the jury acquitted him on all charges at trial.
People v. Frank Morgan, Arapahoe County. Man charged with first degree assault and impersonating a police officer. He was facing 10-32 years of prison. The case was negotiated down to a lesser charge with a sentence to probation.
People v. Collin Coble, Arapahoe County. Man charged with felony assault as an act of domestic violence and misdemeanor property damage. The jury acquitted him of the felony at trial.
Denver v. Douglas, Denver Municipal Court. Queer student charged in a mass protest. The case was dismissed after multiple discovery violations.
2023 Victories
People v. C’Vontae Smith, Arapahoe County. Black man charged with first degree murder after shooting an unarmed man. The case was negotiated down to manslaughter with a sentence to three years of prison.
U.S. v. Artur Bednarz, 2023, U.S. District Court, Colorado. Polish/Canadian dual citizen accused in the international distribution of 250 kilos of 100% pure cocaine from Mexico, through Colorado and to Canada. He was facing a life sentence. The case was negotiated down to a sentence of 8 years of prison.
People v. [Redacted], Arapahoe County. Man charged with eight felony counts in two separate cases. He lived in and out of jail for four years while the cases were pending. After arguing that he was so mentally ill that he would never be legally competent to proceed to trial, both cases were dismissed.
People v. [Redacted], Arapahoe County. 19 year-old Black woman charged with felony assault on a police officer. The case was dismissed.
2022 Victories
U.S. v. [Redacted], Eastern District Oklahoma. Indigenous man charged with first degree murder after shooting an unarmed man 13 times. After trial in federal court before an all white jury, he was acquitted of the major charges and found guilty of only voluntary manslaughter. He was sentenced to 8 years in prison.
People v. Elijah Massey, Arapahoe County. Man charged with child abuse for disciplining his stepson. The jury acquitted him of all charges at trial.
People v. Candice Henderson, Arapahoe County. Black woman charged with child abuse and possession of drugs. The case was negotiated down to a non-drug, non-child abuse plea with a sentence to probation.
2021 Victories
People v. David Jacobs, Adams County. Man accused of first degree murder and three counts of attempted first degree murder in two separate shootings. The jury acquitted him of all charges at trial.
People v. [Redacted], Arapahoe County. Woman charged with DUI and careless driving after crashing her car and admitting to drinking. The jury acquitted her of all charges at trial.
2020 Victories
People v. [Redacted], Saguache County. Man charged with first degree murder. The jury acquitted him of all charges at trial.
People v. Sammie Lawrence, Denver County. Black man charged with failure to obey a lawful order arising from the George Floyd protests. The jury hung at trial. As a result, the case was dismissed.
People v. Sir Mario Owens, one of three men on Colorado’s death row, all are Black. Appointed as postconviction counsel. After 12 years of fighting in the courts and the legislature, the governor commuted his sentence to life.
*Some former clients’ names above are redacted, or withheld from public view, to comply with Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct 1.8 and 1.9. Additionally, American Bar Association Opinion 480 indicates it is unauthorized to disclose a client’s name without their informed consent.
**Del Pueblo Law, LLC shares these victories to illustrate that we always fight for our clients, but we cannot guarantee a certain result to any client due to the unique nature of each case, jurisdiction, etc.
Legislative & Policy Victories
2025, The Kelly Loving Act: Campaigned and testified for a bill that expands legal protections for transgender people in Colorado. The law makes it illegal to intentionally misgender or use someone’s deadname, requires schools to adopt trans-inclusive policies about dress code and chosen names, and makes it less burdensome to change a gender marker on an ID or marriage license. The bill was signed into law on May 16, 2025.
2024, Workload Standards for Office of the State Public Defender: The Defenders Union of Colorado wrote and introduced a bill to the state legislature that would require the Colorado State Public Defender to conduct the first state-wide workload study since 2017. The goal was to address excessive caseloads and adjust staffing needs accordingly. Although the bill did not pass the House Appropriations Committee, the Colorado State Public Defender’s Office is making plans to implement a workload study in the near future.
2023, Colorado Supreme Court, Criminal Jury Instruction Committee: Sent the only memorandum to the Committee from defense counsel regarding inadequacy of instruction on reasonable doubt, as it excluded language concerning the “lack of evidence” being the basis for an acquittal. In 2024, the “lack of evidence” language was restored to the jury instruction.
2022, Defenders Union of Colorado: Successfully organized the Colorado State Public Defender’s Office and launched the wall-to-wall Defenders Union of Colorado. First campaign resulted in significant raises for Colorado public defender attorneys for the first time in five years. Our union remains active and is hundreds of members strong.
2020, Lobbied and testified in support of legislation ending Colorado’s death penalty: After much organizing and hard work, the legislation was passed and the Governor signed the bill into law, ending 47 years of the death penalty in Colorado.
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