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Pulling us out of the mainstream grandcountyuncensored.com January 20, 2012 || Volume 2, Number 2 || Free
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(Above) Giving guns to ninetime convicted felons (who also happen to be on the lamb) since at least 2009; your illustrious Grand County Sheriff. (Image Courtesy: In Fear of Retaliation)
In January 2008, three snowmobilers went missing in Eagle County only two would make it out alive. What began as an overnight camping trip turned into something else entirely. Hypothermia was listed as the official cause of death for the snowmobiler, a Kremmling resident, and the Summit County Sheriff commended the men's families for their help with rescue efforts. One of the snowmobilers, in particular, sticks out. Over the next year he would be charged, first with fraud and then with assault with a deadly weapon. The first charge was made and dropped in Grand County the second charge came while visiting his home in Florida in May of 2009, accompanied by an order not to leave the state of Florida until the trial. One month later, he was back in Colorado. After he stopped payment on a $14,000 check for back rent on his Grand County residence, his landlord had had enough and kicked him out. On June 17, 2009, the landlord went over to the house to check on the progress of the move. Finding a full moving trailer and an open duffel bag on the porch but no one around, the landlord made a lawful entry into his own property to check on the condition of the home. Noticing a few high dollar items missing, he proceeded to take three guns that had been left in a closet and headed home to call the sheriff. Unfortunately for our hapless landlord, he got beat to the punch. Craig Morris is no stranger to law enforcement. His record spans 30 years, with convictions ranging from battery on a law enforcement officer to grand theft and uttering a forged instrument.(Source: naplesnews.com) In Grand County, he was charged with fraud in late April. The charges were dropped. [Go figure!] Eight days later, in Collier County, Florida, he was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The charges stemmed from an incident where Morris attacked a man trying to reposses three ATV's that he hadn't been making payments on. That's when he was orderd not to leave the state until trial. Back in Colorado one month later [where was Dog the Bounty Hunter?], Morris called the sheriff to report three guns, a gold Rolex and nearly $1,000 in cash had been "stolen" by his landlord this is where the story runs off the rails. The FBI maintains the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). According to them, "The
(Above) Craig Morris, 46, will serve five years probation and have to take an anger management course as part of his no contest plea Thursday. Morris was charged with aggravated battery using a deadly weapon for hitting Robert Knapp with a baseball bat once outside Morris' Naples home in 2009. He faced up to 15 years in prison on the charge. (Source: naplesnews.com) National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or NICS, is all about saving lives and protecting people from harmby not letting guns and explosives fall into the wrong hands. It also ensures the timely transfer of firearms to eligible gun buyers." That's interesting. I remember something about fraud charges being filed against the complainent. Our sheriff has 24 hour access to the NICS database, and his office may have run a check when charges were filed against Morris in April, 2009. That means you could assume that he was duly informed of Morris's impressive criminal history. So why in God's name did he not send a deputy to retrieve the weapons from Morris? Did he run the serial numbers to check if the guns had been used in the commission of a crime? Who knows. But what about the Rolex? Apparently, the watch wasn't really stolen but it was fun to add it in there just for the heck of it to make things a bit more difficult for the landlord. A landlord who, apparently, was a much more brazen criminal in the first place. I mean, what's the use of due process in a backwater county like ours? On page 500 of the 6th edition of Black's Law Dictionary, "Due Process of law implies the right of the person affected thereby to be present before the tribunal which pronounces judgement upon the question of life, liberty, or property, in its most comprehensive sense to be heard, by testimony or otherwise, and to have the right of controverting, by proof, every material fact which bears on the question of right in the matter involved. If any question of fact or liability be conclusively presumed against him, this is not due process of law." Blacks Law Dictionary, 6th Edition, page 500." Continued...
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We have a sheriff who uses his position of authority to play around with people's lives as he sees fit. Deputies have literally been told to "F@&$" with people the sheriff dislikes. It's called harassment, and if you or I do it, we get to spend time reflecting by ourselves in a publiclyfunded hotel called a jail. When the sheriff or his deputies do it, people either suffer in silence or pack up and leave the county. But the sheriff only gets away with it because others turn a blind eye. Our district attorney (DA) is the top law enforcement official in the county. Today, DA's with integrity are rare birds indeed. You got to read about our DA in last week's paper. Do you really think she's going to bring a case against the Grand County Sheriff's Department given her history? Nope. So what recourse do we, as citizens, have? It's called jury duty.
With so few people, Grand County's votingage citizens probably receive one or two jury summons per year. When you first lay eyes on that light pink and blue summons, your reaction might be to groan. From now on, you could see it as a potential opportunity to let the law enforcement leadership in Grand County know what you think about their complete lack of integrity. A single juror holds the entire force of our nation's law in their hands. The case they hear must be proved beyond even a shadow of doubt, and that is a very difficult thing to overcome if you truly think about it. A single juror, with the simple act of a 'nay' vote, will hang an entire jury nullifiying the trial and making dismissal of all charges probable. Beyond that, there's no legal obligation for a juror to convict even if the evidence is overwhelming. If you've ever seen the movie 12 Angry Men, you've seen a portrayal where one dissenting voice took an openandshut murder case and eventually lead to acquittal. When you're presented evidence by a prejudiced police force, backed up by a prejudiced district attorney, how could doubt not cloud your mind? Over the last few weeks, I've presented clear evidence that the rotting, stinking edifice that is the sheriff's department needs a complete overhaul. If you're tired of the corruption and think three more years is too much, you have a completely legal means at your disposal to protest. It's painless, costs nothing and allows you to send a clear message to those who think they hold all the cards NOT GUILTY!
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