HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017CV01 - Hoffman & Hunt V. City Of Fort Collins, Et Al - 024 - Plaintiffs' Special Notice Regarding The Status Of The Present CaseFORT COLLINS MUNICIPAL COURT
215 N. Mason
Fort Collins, CO 80521
Phone (970) 2216800
Plaintiffs: Colleen Hoffman, Rick Hoffman, Ann Hunt
V.
Defendant: THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT
COLLINS, the governing body of a Colorado municipal
corporation; and THE ADMINISTRATION BRANCH OF THE
CITY OF FORT COLLINS, by and through its City Manager,
♦ COURT USE ONLY
Darin Atteberry.
Case Number:
Parties without attorney
Colleen Hoffman, pro se
2017 c[v[L 01
1804 Wallenberg Drive
Fort Collins, CO 80526
(970) 484 8723
cohoff@comcast.net
Rick Hoffman, pro se
1804 Wallenberg
Fort Collins, CO 80526
(970) 484 5154
rick-hoffman@comcast.net
Ann Hunt, pro se
1800 Wallenberg Drive
Fort Collins, CO 80526
(970) 484 5242
ARH4@C0MCAST.NET
PLAINTIFFS' SPECIAL NOTICE REGARDING THE STATUS OF THE PRESENT CASE
Plaintiffs, Colleen Hoffman, Rick Hoffman and Ann Hunt submit this Special Notice
Regarding the Status of the Present Case as an extra -procedural filing made
necessary by extraordinary circumstances.
As pro se litigants in this matter, the Plaintiffs herein use the plural pronouns (we, us,
our) to refer to themselves. Unless otherwise noted, all references to the Plaintiffs
in this pleading where a statement of position on any matter is made or inferred
indicate a jointly adopted position agreed to by all 3 individual plaintiffs.
This case is still suspended. No action of City Council has properly
appointed a person for the exercise of judicial authority over the present matter.
The facts pertaining to the current circumstances are clear and
unquestionable.
The previous judge presiding over this case, Theresa Ablao, has granted our
previous motion made pursuant to Rule 97 of the Colorado Rules of Civil
Procedure adopted with substitutions by the Fort Collins City Council. The current
Municipal Court Judge), Kathleen Lane, may be presumed to be similarly
disqualified for reasons similar to those presented in our Rule 97 Motion, however,
even if that were not the case, no order or other pronouncement has been made
indicating that Kathleen Lane is now presiding over this case.
No other person has been duly appointed by the City of Fort Collins to
exercise judicial authority. Appointment of a person to exercise judicial authority
may not be made indirectly through an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA), and,
even if this were not true, no IGA has been duly approved by the City Council of
the City of Fort Collins to effectuate such an appointment.
The parties to this case and this court may wish to take notice of the form and
content of authorizations made by the City Council of the City of Loveland
pertaining to the appointment of two judges and the execution of an
Intergovernmental Agreement with the City of Fort Collins and the City of
Greeley'. (See attachment). Language in the authorizing Resolution can clearly
be seen to authorize the execution of an IGA, which had been prepared and
published for review of the Loveland City Council in advance of any action taken.
Language in the authorizing Resolution also can be clearly seen to have appointed
two people, Kathleen Lane and Brandi Nieto, to exercise the judicial authority of
the City of Loveland.
An excerpt from this AIS is included below for clarity.
I No Chief Municipal Court Judge has been named by City Council in the aftermath of a Charter
Amendment adopted by the electors in a municipal election held on April 8 h, 2017.
2 The Agenda Item Summary (AIS) of this authorization is attached to this Special Notice. This
AIS is not signed. We have not verified that the either the IGA or the Resolution found in this
AIS has been signed. This attachment has been provided solely for the purposes of
demonstrating what is believed to be a greatly improved and perhaps even meaningful process
for appointing persons to exercise judicial authority in a municipal court.
2
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF LOVELAND, COLORADO, THAT:
Section 1. The "Intergovernmental Agreement Between The City Of Loveland. City
of Greeley, and City of Fort Collins and Larimer County for Judicial and Administrative Services"
attached hereto as Exhibit A and incorporated herein by reference ("Intergovernmental
Agreement"), is hereby approved.
Section 2. The Mayor is hereby authorized and directed to execute the Intergovernmental
Agreement, in consultation with the City Attorney, and subject to any modifications in form or
substance as deemed necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Resolution or to protect the
interests of the City.
Section 3. Judge Lane and Judge Nieto are hereby appointed as deputy municipal
judges serving pursuant to the Intergovernmental Agreement herewith approved.
Section 4. This Resolution shall be effective as of the date of its adoption.
It can not be questioned that no analogous or similar authorizations for the
appointment of any person to the bench of the Fort Collins Municipal Court or the
authorization for the execution of an IGA has ever been made by the City Council
of the City of Fort Collins pursuant to the authority granted by Article VII section
1 of the Fort Collins City Charter.' In the absence of such authorizations that are,
at the minimum, equivalent in meaning and legal effect as those found in the
Loveland AIS, we state here our complete trust and belief in the facts we are
presenting to this Court in this Special Notice.
We state here our firm belief that it would be better for the interests of our
entire community not to validate or in any way legitimize the exercise of judicial
authority in a manner that is wholly inconsistent with due process. We have
steadfastly pursued the public interest in this case and are compelled to continue in
this pursuit.
MrFMREFOR, we respectfully request that this court take notice of the special
circumstances noted in this extra -procedural Special Notice made necessary by the
3 This statement is true, in particular, of Resolutions 028 — 2016 and 024 — 2017 of the Fort
Collins City Council.
4 We reserve our right to question the practical effects of the IGA and the actions of the
Municipal Court Judge in any process of naming a judge to this case. In particular, the use of a
descriptor "assistant judge" and the authority of Kathleen Lane to appoint any person to any
case merit further scrutiny, although the other deficiencies noted in this Special Notice eliminate
the necessity of such review at this time.
extraordinary circumstances created by lack of due process in appointments made
to the bench.
Respectfully submitted this 181 day of August, 2017.
Colleen Hoffman Rick Hoffman Ann Hunt
rlfer ilo roar, Rzo/e f-fOTTl2LG1liL �{ititor �fiptL`
1804 Wallenberg Dr.
Ft. Collins, CO 80526
Address of Lead Plaintiff
4