Opinion ID: 2599821
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Special Circumstances for Disqualification

Text: The special circumstances provision of section 20-1-107(2) requires a showing by the party moving for the disqualification that facts exist rendering it unlikely that the defendant would receive a fair trial. Although the legislature did not define what constitutes special circumstances, several cases, decided both before and after the statutory amendment, discuss what type of circumstances would render a prosecution so unfair as to require the disqualification of the district attorney. See N.R., 139 P.3d at 677 ( citing C.V., 64 P.3d at 275-76 (noting that the defendant must present sufficient evidence to support a conclusion that he or she will be denied a fair trial if the district attorney is not disqualified); Wheeler v. Dist. Court, 180 Colo. 275, 278-79, 504 P.2d 1094, 1096 (1973) (holding that the defendant seeking to disqualify the district attorney must establish facts sufficient for the trial court to reasonably conclude that the defendant will probably not receive a fair trial) ). [2] In Chavez, we concluded that the special circumstances justifying disqualification exist when the prosecuting attorney had a previous attorney-client relationship with the defendant in a case that was substantially related to the case in which the defendant is currently being prosecuted. 139 P.3d at 653 (relying on two consolidated cases, Farina v. Dist. Court, Osborn v. Dist. Court, 619 P.2d 41, 48 (Colo.1980)). In Lincoln's cases the trial court focused on what it deemed to be an irresolvable ethical dilemma requiring disqualification. We conclude that no such irresolvable dilemma exists.