DENVER -- A woman was falsely arrested because of false information and even when police admitted their mistakes, she and other victims in similar situations are left high and dry trying to clear their names, 7NEWS reported.

The Colorado Bureau of Investigation admitted that hundreds of people over the past few years have tried to clear their records but it won't say what jurisdictions are involved. That protects police departments and hurts victims who have done nothing wrong, 7NEWS Investigator John Ferrugia said.

One of the victins is Valerie Rodriguez. She has never been in trouble before and works in a local financial firm.

"I mean, I don't think you can put a price on everything I've been going through," Rodriguez said. "I've been just stressed out. It's just very embarrassing when I have to go to work, and some of my coworkers that I work with, they're like, 'What happened? Did you do that?'" Rodriguez said.

It has been more than a year since Rodriguez was falsely arrested after a Denver police officer swore out a warrant for her without ever investigating an assault case.

Rodriguez was fingerprinted, photographed, and jailed. She then had to get a lawyer, post bond, and try to clear her name.

She was recently sent a letter stating a complaint that she filed against the Denver Police Department was upheld.

"The investigation disclosed certain violations of Denver Police Department rules and regulations were committed ... the Denver Police Department is taking appropriate disciplinary actions concerning this matter. Thank you for bringing your concerns to our attention," the letter said.

"It doesn't tell me nothing. It leaves out everything, I mean, how did he come up with issuing the warrant for my name?" Rodriguez said. "It's just like, 'Thanks for bringing it to their attention and that's that.'"

The Denver Police Department and the city of Denver offers victims neither an explanation nor help in clearing their names. Nor does the city cover victim's costs of police mistakes.

7NEWS' investigation found that more than 950 misidentified victims have been cleared by the CBI through fingerprint check since 2002.

But CBI refused to say what the errors include or which agencies are responsible. Denver Police Department records show that of almost 4,200 citizen complaints received between 1997 and August 2006, 469 of them, or 11 percent, have been sustained.

But Denver police won't say how many were false arrests due to negligence or sloppy police work and they certainly won't tell victims.

"Under civil rights law, mere negligence is not actionable. It has to rise to a higher level," said civil rights lawyer David Lane.

Lane said that to prove gross negligence or reckless conduct by police, victims have to show a pattern of abuse.

"The only way you can prove that is to get access to all the other records of people that have had this happen to them and they keep those under lock and key," Lane said. "No agency will give out these records because they know if they give out these records, it's going to result in a lot of lawsuits being filed against a lot of municipalities."

For Rodriguez, who is working her way up in the world of financial management, it has been a nightmare.

"I mean, I'm still here dealing with it a year later, practically, just still going through everything, just wondering if it's going, if people are going to be able to view it on my record," Rodriguez said.

"In light of allegedly false arrests, you know. We've had conversations since you brought this to my attention and we're going to continue to have conversations in the city attorney's office and also the manager of safety's office about those records," said Denver city attorney Cole Finegan.

He said 7NEWS' investigation has caused the city to examine how it handles mistaken arrests because it is clearly unfair to the victim.

"I don't think the responsibility should be on you. And what I think we should do is try to figure out a system that treats you fairly and puts you in a place where you feel like you have been treated with justice by the system. We clearly aren't there yet and we need to figure out a way to get there," Finegan said.

"I have to take time off work to go to court. I've had to take off time to meet with certain people," Rodriguez said. "It just basically turned your whole world upside down."

CBI records make it clear this is not just a Denver issue but they will not release what jurisdictions have had mistaken arrests.

Rodriguez believes CBI is simply protecting cops who made mistakes or who are guilty of sloppy work.

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