Oct 17, 2008 10:43 am US/Mountain
Nottingham A No-Show For Cases
Reports Indicate Judge Edward Nottingham Will Be Stepping Down
DENVER (CBS4) ―
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Judge Edward Nottingham (File)
CBS
Cases that U.S. District Court Chief Judge Edward Nottingham was scheduled to deal with Friday morning in his courtroom were handled by another judge.
Some news outlets reported Thursday that Nottingham plans to resign. He has been the target for about a year of an investigation into complaints of alleged misconduct.
Cases that Nottingham is scheduled to handle next week, starting on Thursday, in his courtroom are included on a calendar of cases that was issued Friday morning by the court staff.
"They are posted because I've not been given notice to the contrary," the judge's secretary told CBS4. "He's still chief judge. He's not resigned."
Nottingham's courtroom clerk told CBS4Denver the judge's Friday morning's cases were handled by another judge because Nottingham "is not here today; he's still ill."
The court's top administrator, Clerk of the Court Greg Langham, told CBS4 early Friday morning, "I'm assuming he and his attorneys are discussing what his status (on the court) is."
Langham said there has been no change in Nottingham's status as a judge of the court. When Langham was asked if he has reason to think there will be a new development later today about Nottingham, he said, "I don't know."
The judge's courtroom clerk said she did not know which judge will handle the two cases Nottingham is scheduled to handle this afternoon in his courtroom.
His three morning cases were being handled by the court's newest judge, Philip Brimmer, who took office Tuesday evening when Nottingham administered the oath of office to him. Brimmer, who had been a federal supervisory prosecutor for Colorado, filled one of three judge vacancies on the court.
Nottingham, who had started a trial earlier on Tuesday, called in sick on Wednesday and Thursday.
At the end of the first courtroom hearing Friday morning, Brimmer directed the attorneys in the case to report to Nottingham's secretary to schedule future hearings in the case. However, no special significance should be read into that development because Nottingham remains in charge of the case as long as he is a judge and it could be reassigned to another judge if he resigns.
Nottingham and an attorney representing him in the investigation are not commenting on the judge's intentions.
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