District Attorney Todd Risberg is accused of knowingly making false statements, failing to notify defense attorneys of deals offered to co-defendants and meeting with a defendant without her attorney present.
The allegations are laid out in an eight-page complaint filed Feb. 5 by the Attorney Regulation Counsel in the Colorado Supreme Court.
During a brief phone interview Thursday, Risberg said the complaint makes false claims and amount to “political distractions.”
“It’s false allegations that we’ll deal with in court,” Risberg said while vacationing in Tucson, Ariz. “It’s political nonsense, and I’m not going to let it distract us.”
The Attorney Regulation Counsel investigates conduct on the part of attorneys that may be in violation of the law or professional standards and ethics.
The complaints stem from a 2012 murder case involving six defendants who were charged with various crimes related to the death of Joey Benavidez of Ignacio.
Interestingly, Risberg used a local grand jury to indict Durango defense lawyer Brian Schowalter as part of the same case. He accused Schowalter of refusing to turn over evidence in the case, making it unavailable for use in a criminal proceeding, a violation of the law. Schowalter was cleared by the regulatory counsel.
Schowalter declined to comment Thursday about the complaint against Risberg.
According to the complaint, Risberg told two judges and defense attorneys that sealed bags containing physical evidence couldn’t be opened, otherwise, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation wouldn’t test the evidence as a mater of policy.
But during a court hearing, a CBI investigator testified on record that there was no such policy.
Yet Risberg continued to represent that the CBI had a policy against testing evidence if the sealed bag had been opened, according to the complaint.
In the second claim, Risberg is accused of failing to notify defense attorneys that plea agreements offered to co-defendants had been changed to make them more favorable.
Prosecutors are required to disclose such information to defense attorneys representing co-defendants, especially if the defendant received a favorable deal that might affect their testimony against co-defendants.
Finally, Risberg is accused of communicating with a defendant without obtaining her attorney’s permission and outside the presence of her attorney.
Risberg is expected to file a response to the complaint.
He is being represented by Colorado Springs lawyer Gordon Vaughan, who is in a trial this week and did not return a phone call.
shane@durangoherald.com
