Attorneys for Boulder have appealed a judge’s finding that the city cannot charge fees for police video footage requested under a 2020 Colorado law passed in the wake of George Floyd’s murder.

The appeal, which was expected, may take months to work its way through the Colorado Court of Appeals. But it could have implications for when, if, and how the city can charge fees for future police footage requests.

Last April, local publication Yellow Scene Magazine sued the city for not promptly releasing unedited police video footage from a Dec. 17, 2023, police shooting. On that day, officers shot and killed Jeanette Alatorre, 51, near the North Boulder Recreation Center, 3170 Broadway, after an interaction where she pulled out a replica BB gun and pointed it at a bystander.

The district attorney determined the officers at the scene had reason to believe Alatorre was armed and she might pose a danger to others, so the officers were not charged. But still, Colorado’s Law Enforcement Integrity Act requires police agencies to promptly release unedited video and audio recordings of an incident where there has been a complaint of officer misconduct.

According to the lawsuit, city officials not only delayed releasing the unedited video footage but also attempted to charge the magazine nearly $3,000 in fees for the footage. Alatorre’s daughter, Jeannette Orozco, later joined the lawsuit as a plaintiff.

In August, Boulder District Court Judge Robert Gunning ruled that, because Yellow Scene had requested the footage under the Law Enforcement Integrity Act, Boulder could not charge fees for publicly releasing the unedited video footage.

Gunning’s ruling resolved one of two claims in the original lawsuit. The judge never ruled on the magazine’s request for a court order to compel Boulder officials to release the footage from Alatorre’s shooting. Boulder officials finally released the unedited video footage to Yellow Scene and Orozco, so their attorneys dropped the case late last year.

Dan Williams, an attorney for Yellow Scene, said while he’s not surprised by the appeal, he believes it runs counter to the city’s stated values.

“it just feels like at every turn the city resists actual transparency. (City officials) say over and over they believe in transparency, but when push comes to shove, they do things like putting excessive costs to make it impossible for media organizations like Yellow Scene to get access to body cam footage,” Williams said.

“We keep hoping that they’ll turn a new page in transparency, and filing this appeal is just yet another signal that they’re not willing to do that.”