An October 3 Associated Press article by reporter Steven K. Paulson mischaracterized a statement Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter made during an October 3 debate in response to attacks on his record as Denver district attorney by Republican opponent Bob Beauprez. In an apparent reference to the case of a woman who agreed to a felony plea bargain after stabbing her husband, the AP incorrectly reported that Ritter said he “released” the defendant because “she was getting married to a U.S. citizen and would no longer be considered an illegal immigrant.” But Ritter's actual remarks during the debate, reporting by the Rocky Mountain News, and records released by the Beauprez campaign make it clear that the woman in question was a legal immigrant, not an illegal immigrant as the AP claimed.

During the debate on KMGH 7News, moderator George Stephanopoulos raised the subject of immigration. In response, Beauprez echoed a recent attack ad in which he criticized Ritter's plea-bargaining of legal and illegal immigrants' cases while he was Denver district attorney. One of the cases highlighted in the ad involved a woman named Alexandra Norma Nunez, who, according to a Denver “cold case” file released by the Beauprez campaign October 3, was charged with “stabbing her fiancé with a large kitchen knife” in 2002. The file stated Nunez “was allowed back on the streets after being plea bargained by Bill Ritter, only receiving two years probation.”

Without mentioning Nunez by name, Ritter apparently addressed her case and Beauprez's negative characterization of his record as Denver DA during the debate. The AP, however, failed to accurately report his statements.

According to Paulson's AP article:

Beauprez unleashed a new attack [on Ritter] on Tuesday, releasing records he said showed illegal immigrants were turned back on the streets. Ritter said one of those cases involved a woman who was released because she was getting married to a U.S. citizen and would no longer be considered an illegal immigrant. He said other cases cited by Beauprez involved extenuating circumstances not included in the records.

In fact, Ritter said something very different about the case that apparently was referenced in Paulson's article. During the debate, Ritter made it clear that the woman in question was not an illegal immigrant at the time of the crime. According to Ritter:

RITTER: There's another case where the woman was here legally, she stabs a guy and then they get married, in the middle of the case. The victim is no longer really going to help us on the case. Prosecutor decides to allow her to plead guilty to a felony, get domestic-violence treatment instead of seeing the case go away altogether.

The “cold case” file released by the Beauprez campaign October 3 also identifies Nunez as a “resident alien,” not an illegal immigrant.

Likewise, a September 30 Rocky Mountain News article about Beauprez's anti-Ritter ad reported: “Alexandra Norma Nunez, 35, an Ecuador-born legal resident charged with first-degree assault in 2002 after stabbing her husband. She pleaded guilty to felony trespassing and received two years of probation, and a judge recommended she attend domestic-violence counseling.”

From the October 4 Associated Press article by Steven K. Paulson, “Ritter, Beauprez Disagree On Foley”:

In a debate televised on KMGH-TV, the two men also clashed over illegal immigration, which has been the subject of an attack ad from Beauprez's campaign. Beauprez said it was inexcusable for Ritter to allow illegal and legal immigrants to strike plea bargains and not be deported.

Ritter defended his record as Denver district attorney, saying he tried to make sure illegal immigrants spent time in jail and were turned over to the federal government. Ritter said Beauprez failed to deal with the issue and provide more money for federal enforcement as a Colorado congressman.

Beauprez unleashed a new attack on Tuesday, releasing records he said showed illegal immigrants were turned back on the streets. Ritter said one of those cases involved a woman who was released because she was getting married to a U.S. citizen and would no longer be considered an illegal immigrant. He said other cases cited by Beauprez involved extenuating circumstances not included in the records.