U.S. Senate candidate John Hickenlooper cannot block a subpoena to testify about his alleged violations of a gift ban, a Denver judge ruled late Wednesday.
Hickenlooper, a Democrat, is scheduled to testify before the state’s Independent Ethics Commission on Thursday morning about private jet flights he accepted from wealthy friends and businesses while governor. Earlier this week, his attorney sought to quash a subpoena from the IEC, claiming it was a violation of due process rights for the commission to force Hickenlooper to testify virtually.
Late Wednesday night, Denver District Court Judge Christopher J. Baumann disagreed in a short written ruling. He declined to block the IEC’s subpoena of Hickenlooper and declined to stop Thursday morning’s hearing.
“For better or worse,” the judge wrote, “remote legal proceedings are the norm right now and the IEC has made an informed decision to proceed by video conference in order to avoid any additional delays in (Hickenlooper’s) case. The court will not second-guess that decision.”
Whether Hickenlooper will abide by the subpoena remains unclear. Around 10 p.m. Wednesday night — 11 hours before the 9 a.m. hearing was set to begin — the Hickenlooper campaign said it was weighing its options.
“Governor Hickenlooper has said for months he wants to testify, but even the Republicans behind this politically motivated complaint agreed an unreliable and glitchy virtual hearing would not protect his due process rights,” said Melissa Miller, a spokeswoman for the Hickenlooper campaign.
“The IEC asked for dates in August, which Governor Hickenlooper provided. We are reviewing this decision and our next steps,” she added.
The IEC, which was represented by the Attorney General’s Office, told Baumann in a legal filing Wednesday afternoon that Hickenlooper’s claims were meritless.
“Multiple federal and state courts have rejected constitutional challenges to hearings that are conducted in whole or in part by video conference, and for good reason,” wrote Assistant Attorney General Gina M. Cannan.
Hickenlooper will face Andrew Romanoff in a Democratic primary June 30. The winner will take on Sen. Cory Gardner, a Yuma Republican, in early November.
A link to watch Thursday’s 9 a.m. hearing can be found here.
