Witness Protection Bill In Ritter's Hands
Bill Proposes To Keep Crime Witness Records Sealed
POSTED: 4:21 pm MST February 14, 2007
UPDATED: 7:22 pm MST February 14, 2007
DENVER -- A proposal that would keep the records of crime witnesses sealed is on its way to Gov. Bill Ritter after being backed by the Senate Wednesday. The measure (House Bill 1147) requires that documents related to someone in the witness protection program be kept sealed and bars their use in trials unless a judge approves it after a closed-door hearing. Anyone who releases such information could be jailed up to 18 months and fined up to $5,000.
It's a follow-up on a law passed last year in response to the slaying of Javad Marshall-Fields, a murder witness, and his fiancee, Vivian Wolfe, in Aurora in June 2005. That law requires prosecutors to undergo annual training to recognize when witnesses may be in danger and reach out to threatened witnesses. It was backed by the parents of Marshall-Fields and Wolfe.September 16, 2005: Police Make Arrest In Case Of Slain Sweethearts July 21, 2005: Families Of Gunned-Down Couple Take Case To Bus Benches June 24, 2005: Mothers Of Murdered Sweethearts Ask For Help
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Previous Stories:
- February 9, 2007: Man Charged In Witness Slayings Sentenced In Park Shooting
- January 30, 2007: Jury Finds Owens Guilty Of Murder In 4th Of July Shooting
- January 26, 2007: Jurors Deliberate 4th Of July Murder Case
- October 31, 2006: Trial Comes To Close In 2004 Killing
- July 9, 2006: Trial Of Man Police Say Connected To Couple's Murder Begins Monday
- September 16, 2005: Police Make Arrest In Case Of Slain Sweethearts
- July 21, 2005: Families Of Gunned-Down Couple Take Case To Bus Benches
- June 24, 2005: Mothers Of Murdered Sweethearts Ask For Help
Copyright 2007 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
