Manzanares resigns as Denver's attorney

He cites 'untenable distraction' in case of stolen computer

Daniel J. Chacon, Rocky Mountain News

Published February 28, 2007 at midnight

Text size

More Local News

More stories »

Denver City Attorney Larry Manzanares resigned Tuesday, less than two months after he was sworn in, amid an embarrassing criminal investigation over a stolen laptop found in his home.

City officials said Manzanares did the right thing by stepping down and taking the negative publicity generated by the case away from the city.

"As long as he held on to the very important position of city attorney, the distractions would continue and more of the questions would continue," City Council President Michael Hancock said.

"I just don't think it would have been fair to the city or the administration to carry it on," he said.

Mayor John Hickenlooper called Manzanares, 50, a "stand-up guy."

"He had won over the 100 or so attorneys in the city attorney's office, and it's a tough group to win over," the mayor said in a meeting with Rocky Mountain News editors.

Hickenlooper had placed Manzanares on investigatory leave Friday after learning from Denver's 7 that a laptop stolen from the City and County Building was found in Manzanares' home.

Manzanares, a former District Court judge who lectures on ethics at the University of Denver law school, told police he bought the laptop, valued at $1,579, from a man he met last month in a parking lot one block south of City Hall.

It's unclear what Manzanares was doing in the parking lot. Some judges park in a lot on Cherokee Street between 13th and 14th avenues, but the city attorney's designated parking space is on the west side of the City and County Building.

"I asked him, 'What were you thinking?' " Hickenlooper said. "He said, 'I don't know, I wasn't thinking. I don't know why I bought it.' "

The State Court Administrator's Office, which reported the laptop stolen Jan. 26, declined to say who had access to a room where it was stored.

"This is part of the ongoing investigation," a spokesman said in an e-mail.

Manzanares did not return calls for comment. A woman who answered the door of his University Park home said Manzanares wasn't there Tuesday afternoon.

In a statement released by the mayor's office, Manzanares said "current events which have been highlighted by the media have created an untenable distraction."

"The position of City Attorney should be uncompromised by such distractions, and it would be unfair to the city and to the many fine attorneys in the City Attorney's Office to allow such a situation to continue," he said.

Manzanares, who earned $125,473 annually, also said that "many well-wishers and supporters" had encouraged him "to ride out the storm."

But city officials said his career at City Hall was already over.

"There are certain levels of behavior that the city attorney must live up to, and that didn't happen in this case," said Councilman Charlie Brown, who lives near Manzanares and calls him a "good friend."

"It was a poor decision he made, and now it's cost him the job he would have been great at," Brown said. "That's unfortunate for everybody. But he has to move on with his life."

Attorney's rise and fall

• Nov. 11 Appointed Denver city attorney

• Jan. 4 Sworn in as city attorney

• Jan. 26 Laptop later found in Manzanares' home reported stolen

• Friday Manzanares placed on investigatory leave after Denver's 7 reports the stolen-computer investigation

• Tuesday Manzanares resigns

From Manzanares' statement

Released by the mayor's office

chacond@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5099

Subscribe to the Rocky Mountain News