Colorado whistleblower’s suit against state judicial system falls flat

An attorney who formerly led Colorado's Commission on Judicial Discipline claims Supreme Court justices covered up a $2.7 million bribery scheme and fired him in retaliation.DENVER (CN) — Citing sovereign and qualified immunity, a federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a complaint against the Colorado government and judicial officials accused by a watchdog of coordinated efforts to cover up a 2019 bribery scheme.“The Colorado Supreme Court, [Colorado Commission on Judicial Discipline] and [Colorado Judicial Discipline Rulemaking Committee] are arms of the State of Colorado. They are therefore entitled to sovereign immunity," wrote Senior U.S. Judge Kathryn Vratil in a 29-page opinion.Since leaving his job as executive director of the Colorado Commission on Judicial Discipline, Christopher Gregory, has filed two state lawsuits and two federal complaints looking to hold state court actors accountable for conduct he says erodes trust in the courts.Gregory traced the trouble back to 2019 when Mindy Masias, a former chief of staff at the State Court Administrator’s Office, was facing termination over financial problems. Gregory asserts state auditors found Masias and another official collecting speaking and consulting fees while on state time.Then, state auditors found officials attempting to ensure Masias would be granted a five-year $2.66 million to $2.75 million contract for training services as she departed her job — reportedly to prevent a discrimination lawsuit. The contract was later cancelled after media reporting, and no payment was made to Masias.In the lawsuit, Gregory said he was removed from his position after trying to hold the Supreme Court justices accountable for hiding the scheme from the public and misusing millions of dollars of public funds. In litigating the lawsuit, Gregory has questioned several federal judges’ impartiality and asked that the state attorney general’s office be disqualified from defending the state defendants.Now on its fifth federal judge, the case is currently assigned to George H.W. Bush-appointed Vratil, from the nearby U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas.Shortly after taking on the case, Vratil found Tuesday she lacked jurisdiction to preside over the case and dismissed it.“Where executive officials serve in quasi-judicial roles, they are entitled to the absolute immunity afforded to judges, prosecutors and jurors,” Vratil wrote.Although immunity doesn’t extend to judicial staff in non-judicial rolls, Vratil found the judge and agency conduct all related to the judiciary, and were therefore entitled to immunity.“The position of CCRD director in the state administrative process is similar to that of a judge, hearing officer or prosecutor," Vratil wrote. “Therefore, she is entitled to absolute immunity.”When it came to Gregory’s First Amdendment claims, Vratil found the state judicial actors didn’t restrain Gregory’s free speech, so much as they ignored it.“By his own admission, plaintiff has freely expressed his opinions to the CJDRC, orally and in writing,” Vratil wrote. “Plaintiff’s true grievance is that defendants have not complied with his requests.”In state court, Gregory is seeking an independent investigation to be conducted out by another state’s attorney general, and is requesting that judicial misconduct be made publicly available.On Aug. 4, a state judge denied Gregory’s motion for a restraining order that would have prevented the state from publishing judicial evaluations to voters that left out missing financial disclosures and ethics evaluations.On the phone, Gregory criticized the dismissal and said he will continue to fight to bring the matter of corruption to light.“This is the most serious judicial misconduct I have ever seen and we’re letting them get away with it,” Gregory said. “All of the Colorado Supreme Court justices agreed to pay the bribe, but only one person was disciplined, and one person resigned over it.”Spokespeople for the attorney general’s office and state court administrator declined to comment on the development.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads