ICE Agent Charged With Exceeding Authority Claims Discrimination

Argues DA Employee Accessed Federal Database With No Prosecution

By Tom Burke and Tony Kovaleski , 7NEWS Investigators
November 7, 2007

CALL7 Investigators have learned an agent with Immigration and Customs Enforcement argued that federal prosecutors violated his rights and discriminated against him when they charged him with three misdemeanor counts in the wake of political commercials aimed at now Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter.

Agent Cory Voorhis is accused of leaking confidential information to the gubernatorial campaign of Republican Bob Beauprez and overstepping his authority to access the National Crime Information Center database, or NCIC.

Voorhis allegedly gave the Beauprez campaign information that was used in a television ad against the Democrats candidate for governor, Bill Ritter.

The information Voorhis is accused of illegally accessing involved the arrest and plea bargain of an illegal immigrant who was later accused of committing crimes under another name, instead of being deported or prosecuted by Ritter's office, for his previous crimes in Colorado.

Ritter was, at one time, the district attorney for Denver.

In a federal court filing on Tuesday, defense attorneys claimed government prosecutors "isolated and singled out" Voorhis in contrast to others "accused of NCIC misuse."

The "others" were not named in the federal filing, but are described as an employee of the Denver District Attorney's Office and an investigator with the Harris County, Texas, district attorneys' office.

Voorhis' defense offers evidence that both people accessed the exact same information, for political reasons, in the days following Voorhis' initial query but neither was charged by government prosecutors.

Voorhis also contends that his access of the NCIC database was for legitimate law enforcement purposes and that Voorhis was "concerned that individuals on the list might flee to evade arrest or deportation."

Voorhis claims his prosecution violated his "First Amendment right to speak about political elections and other matters of public concern without being punished."

The federal court filing goes on to say, "The provision of information was consistent with agency guidance Voorhis had received from his supervisors and others, including written guidance reciting that unlawful foreign nationals do not enjoy Privacy Act protections and that a foreign national's immigration status, nationality and entry/departure information are exempt from Privacy Act protections and available for release to the general public and media."

... In a statement to 7NEWS, supporters of Voorhis called "Cory Legal Defense" claim "Gov. Bill Ritter and some of his key associates in the Denver DA’s office may themselves have violated the same laws Voorhis is charged violating is evidence of a double standard."

The group is calling for a federal grand jury to investigate the allegations....

Read the complete article.

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