August 26, 2004

Contact: Lynn Kimbrough, 720-913-9025

DENVER DA WILL PRESENT SHOOTING

INVESTIGATION TO A DENVER GRAND JURY

Denver District Attorney Bill Ritter, Jr. announced today that the officer-involved shooting death of Frank Lobato will be presented to a Denver Grand Jury next week.

Ritter and other members of the Denver DA’s Office have been involved in the ongoing investigation since the shooting occurred on July 11, 2004.  Ritter said today that the completed investigative file has been turned over to the DA’s Office.  In announcing his decision to present the case to the Grand Jury, he noted that there has been full cooperation by all of the law enforcement officers and lay witnesses. 

Ritter explained that the facts developed in this investigation make it appropriate to take this case to the Grand Jury where a panel of 12 citizens could review the facts, evaluate the evidence, assess credibility, and then apply the law to determine whether to return an indictment.   Legal and ethical standards prohibit discussion of the specific facts at this time to protect the integrity of the Grand Jury process.

Ritter explained that Denver currently utilizes two sitting Grand Juries who meet once every other week throughout the year and work on a variety of cases.  The first step of the process is the presentation of this case which will occur next Wednesday.  The Grand Jury then decides if it will accept the case.  If it is accepted, the Grand Jury can issue subpoenas.  As with all cases in the Grand Jury, there is no way to predict the length of time it will take to complete their work, especially because Denver Grand Juries are working on multiple cases throughout their year of service.

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