• Front page
• Receive letters on your RSS reader

Kathie Reinhardt of Englewood writes:

Nice job, Scott Storey and the Jeffco DA’s Office. It isn’t every day that we are allowed to see a character assination displayed before our very eyes. While it may be that Larry Manzanares did, in fact, have illegal possession of a laptop belonging to the City of Denver, the charges brought upon him by the Jeffco DA’s office are excessive to say the least. Furthermore, it is NONE of the public’s business what lays in the 80 page indictment, nor is it anyone’s business if Mr. Manzanares had downloaded ADULT porn.
And THREE felonies? What were the other people who had illegal possession of missing laptops charged with? With the onslaught of these charges, the public humiliation of the excessive information and the medIa’s neverending quest for an extra dime, a fine man now lies dead.
Is everyone surprised at the outcome? You shouldn’t be.
Larry Manzanares was a man who did a lot of good work in this community. He will be remembered by his last few months headlines by those who didn’t know of his excellent reputation…. Thanks, Jeffco DA Storey and the media.

This letter has not been edited.

READER COMMENTS

Yes a BIG thank you to Scott Storey and the Jeffco DA for a job well done!!

Manzanares threw his family under the bus again with this last cowardly act. Guilty or not actions speak louder than words!!

Manzanares CHOSE to steal the computer.
Manzanares CHOSE to download porn on a STOLEN computer. (Adult or not!!!!!!)
Did he think he was above the law?

Let's knock off pointing fingers and blaming the Jeffco DA and the media for Manzanares' bad choices!!!!! Barf!!!

Boy, there sure are a lot of people trying to defend this guy's actions by blaming other people. I didn't know that many middle schoolers read these forums. But here, in grown-up land, we take responsibility for our own actions and choices. What Larry did, he did because he chose to do it. I know that sounds obvious, but apparently some people need that explained to them very slowly, and in small words.

Wow! Do we sense a tone of anger and bitterness.? .directed to the wrong people?
Everyone involved only did their job.
It's not fair to start 'blaming". He had alot of friends in the "hispanic" community..Where
were They??? He needed moral support.
Everyone knew that.

He chose to end his life because he was embarrassed by what he did. He had porn on a stolen city owned laptop. Several custodians were fired from a school district a few months ago for dirty jokes on school computers. It was a GOVERNMENT computer. I don't want my money going to pay for people doing things like that at work.
This is not the DA's fault. Once again He Chose.

DA's amd the like to bring as many charges as they find...sort of like a shot gun effect. Meaning simply if you cannot get a person on certain charges you are sure to nail that person on at least one. Justice has nothing to do with the court system...number of convictions(the more high profile, the better) equals either re-election or a post as a judge.

It seems folks are forgetting that he pulled the trigger. Yes, he was in the negative limelight of the press which is usually unreasonable and behaves like a wolf pack in a feeding frenzy, but Manzaneres decided to end it this way. While there is possibly a degree of depression involved, how do we know that the reason for his choice was because there was worse yet to be discovered as the investigation progressed. We will likely never know. I do not want to know actually and I was not following the story in fact to begin with. Nevertheless, I do not like to see him be made into a martyred saint when he was actually a person that made a possibly serious mistake and took an out that was permanent. Note that our system of justice is not supposed to make prosecutorial decisions based on a persons past behavior. That comes into play at the time of sentencing.

If $1,500 is what it takes to have a prosecutor take such extreme actions and instead of trying to preserve the system of justice he has now shows us there is no justice in the system. Mr. Storey, your business card can now say "Let me show you how I can destroy anyone who makes a mistake"!

Mr. Manzanares was a public employee. A Judge and a City Attorney.
He has himself only to blame for his criminal actions.
When public figures commit crimes they know they will be held to a higher standard.If we can't hold Judges and City Attorney's to a high standard than our justice system is more screwed up than I thought.

He was a public employee caught in a theft of a computer and tried to cover it up by saying he bought it from some mysterious guy in a parking lot.

Was he so naive to think the computer wasn't stolen?If he believed that someone selling a laptop in a parking lot was not selling stolen merchandise then he shouldn't been a judge or an attorney.That's just SOS , stuck on stupid.

May he rest in peace now that he decided he didn't want his day in court. He certainly was entitled to one. I guess he'll miss his court date.

Mr. Manzanares decided to use a selfish and permanent solution to a temporary problem. Unfortunately, his supporters are blaming everyone but him. They are also claiming that he deserved "special treatment" because of his position. The media and DA treated him, especially a person in public office, like anybody else indicted and arrested. People are routinely "judged in the court of public opinion." If you want to change that then go ahead but don't claim privacy and discretion for a privileged few. It should be for all or none.

While I don't know if he was guilty or not, an innocent person doesn't usually end their life before the fight has even begun. It makes one wonder.

Wow, Juanita, it must be hard to sleep at night knowing that so many evil people are out there trying to ruin innocent peoples' lives. That Mr. Storey is one terribly bad guy--what with doing his job and all. And he probably made LM do the whole thing in the first place! Yep. it was totally his fault. Or the systems' fault. Yep--it was the systems' fault, as you say, because if the system proves a thief to be a thief, then it's totally at fault.

Do you live your life the same way? Blaming everything else you can for your choices and actions? You, lady, are scary. You probably drive a car and have kids too...double yikes!!

Try being an adult.

What has happened to "innocent until proven guilty" ? As soon as anyone is accused of a crime, the media frenzy begins. Things are reported often with no corroboration -just speculation. The whole point seems to be -who can be the first to break the most sensational story; then everyone else jumps on the same bandwagon. Heaven forbid that it's an important person. This is done in the guise of "the public has a right to know.

He was a person that spent his life in the judicial system and really knew how it actually works rather than how it's supposed to work. Public opinion plays a bigger role than facts most of the time. People are tried and convicted in the media even before a trial has started.

If he took and passed a polygraph test that substantiated his claim of where he got the computer, why was it not going to be accepted.

As to the fact that porn sites had been visited,
was it during the time frame that he had the computer? Even so how many of the media that reported that fact have visited those sites if for no other reason than to see what's on them.

None of us are perfect, but most of us act like we are. What's in your closet that you wouldn't want someone else to know.

Last but not least it is IMPOSSIBLE to get a fair trial in this day and time of sensationalism because everybody has seen too many news reports in the paper and on television and formed an opinion before it even goes to court. Where then do you find unbiased jurors?

$2000 for a computer; $1500 for a laptop; I heard $500; oh well, it is still theft; however, the Rocky was justified in its coverage needing to justify its existence though it be steeped in hypocrisy; it is the prosecutors, who are handed a case Denver doesn't want, that go overboard. I recycle my letter from elsewhere, supra:

Prosecutorial misconduct caused Manzanares' death. He stole a computer and even if he bought it, it was hot and he had to have known it; however, he should have been cited with possession or theft, or receiving stolen goods: One charge. In my solitude, I say he is guilty; however, as a juror hearing all the evidence, I may reach a different conclusion. Yesterday, a cop in L.A. was found “not guilty” of shooting an MP three times just back from Iraq while he was on the ground in total submission shown by the video because the totality of the evidence was shown to the jury.

I am reminded of my fray with prosecutors whose thrust in life is to do justice as opposed to convicting.

Cosmetology inspector Hope Hindman came into my beauty shop and threatened the safety of my customer receiving a permanent (I was written up in Westword: The Permanent Solution). I opened the door and told her to get out, quick! I was charged with disturbing the peace; later the prosecutor added assault. The State charged me with unprofessional conduct.
Single-handedly I beat the State (Judge) and Denver (Jury) grateful I'd taken basic litigation at DU law School.

I was charged thrice and the offender was Hindman who was in violation of the Board Rule that governs her conduct. The prosecutors frothed at the mouth. I kicked their collective asses .The asst. Atty. Gen'l was my classmate at DU and after losing he had the Board suspend my shop license for one day and didn't bother to tell me.

Bankruptcy Judge Brooks found me in contempt and fined me $1000 by violating the rule that governs his conduct. Judge Nottingham kicked his butt on appeal. The prosecutors in the case that never went to bar: May they rest in hell.

You damn Nifong type prosecutors remember your oath; but for you, Larry would be alive today. So many good prosecutors and then comes the Nifongos. Those without sin go ahead and cast the first stone and a woman picks up a stone and casts it and Jesus Christ shouts: "Mother!"

Larry was a compassionate man with far far more genuine friends than I could claim having lived far longer than he lived.

Holly Bjornsen goes on with her life never having committed wrongdoing and like Jesus' mother casts the first stone, along with Larry De Cicco, and Leroy Martinez.

Posted by Richard Grimes, a deicide: Risen Ape r22037@yahoo.com (ffrf.org on June 27, 2007 09:46 AM

Accept my apolgy for posting back to back; however, Brian Stuckey who writes 50 letters per month to the dailies had the following letter printed in the other daily. I know your day is not complete without a Stucky letter:

The passing of Judge Lawrence Manzanares is a sad chapter in Denver history. Having become acquainted with the judge as a jurist, I found him to be a praiseworthy gentleman in many respects. He was hardly the "criminal" that the local press and prosecution made him out to be. Our thoughts are with the Manzanares family in their sorrow. Brian Stuckey, Denver

Wow! Grimes and Stuckey together: Pride Fest comes around and the "hunt" goes on.

RG, you can do no wrong. Double post all you want.

POST A COMMENT

• 'Kid Nation' reality show a new low
• Rivers a shameful hire
• Too little news
• ‘Diesel’ fumes
• Unlocalized story a disservice to readers
• Riled up by Christian music
• Darling of the left
• Solutions too costly