Colorado Media Matters noted on October 6 that a print article in The Denver Post and an online article by the Rocky Mountain News reporting that charges of official misconduct have been leveled against Carol Chambers did not note that Chambers is an elected Republican official and that her husband, Nathan Chambers, who allegedly was involved in the incidents described in the complaint, is chairman of the Arapahoe County Republican Party. Following Colorado Media Matters' item, the News published a print article on October 7 that included information about Carol and Nathan Chambers' Republican Party affiliations. In an October 8 editorial, the Post also mentioned that Carol Chambers is a Republican.

Carol Chambers was elected to a four-year term as district attorney for Colorado's 18th Judicial District on November 2, 2004.

In an article written by the same authors of the October 6 online article, Ivan Moreno and Katie Kerwin McCrimmon of the News reported on October 7 that “Chambers, the first-term chief prosecutor for Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert and Lincoln counties, is accused of threatening a lawyer with a criminal probe to help a fellow Republican in a dispute with a collection agency.” Later in the article they identified Nathan Chambers as the “chairman of the Arapahoe County Republicans.”

Similarly, in an October 8 editorial, the Post said “Chambers displayed a serious lack of judgment in her conduct with a bill collector who was pursuing an Englewood City Council member and fellow Republican.” The Post editorial did not identify Nathan Chambers' political affiliation.

According to the October 8 Post editorial, Chambers is under investigation by the “the state's attorney regulation counsel on four possible violations of attorney conduct rules” for “threatening to use a grand jury to investigate an Englewood lawyer representing [a] collection agency” that was pursuing Laurett Barrentine, a member of the Englewood City Council, for allegedly writing bad checks.

Barrentine -- whom the Post identified as “an Englewood City Council member and [Chambers'] fellow Republican” -- allegedly approached Carol Chambers at what the Post reported was a “political function” to complain about the tactics of an attorney, Jonathan Steiner, who represents Central Credit Corporation. Central Credit Corporation reportedly sought payment on two bad checks written on Barrentine's account. According to the October 6 Post article, Barrentine claimed -- but did not prove to Central Credit Corporation's satisfaction -- that she was a victim of identify theft resulting from the 1998 theft of her purse.

According to the Post, Carol Chambers allegedly “referred Barrentine to her husband, Nathan Chambers, for free representation in the collection matter.” The Post reported that although “Chambers said her husband was just giving Barrentine guidance,” according to the complaint against Carol Chambers, “Nathan Chambers made a call to Steiner to talk about a potential civil trial over the checks and questioned him about jury instructions that he had submitted.”

The charges of misconduct directed at Carol Chambers stem from a phone message she left with Steiner on January 23. According to the Post, the message said, “I am calling you because we are getting a lot of complaints from victims of identity theft that you are pressuring them, shall I say, to pay on checks that they did not write, that their banks knew that they did not write, that should be obvious to you that they did not write, and I am looking at investigating this with the grand jury.” The Post also reported that “Steiner contends the DA later told him - in front of witnesses - that there were no other complaints.”

From the October 8 Post editorial, “Bad judgment by Arapahoe DA”:

District Attorney Carol Chambers displayed a serious lack of judgment in her conduct with a bill collector who was pursuing an Englewood City Council member and fellow Republican.

Chambers, whose district includes Arapahoe and Douglas counties, claims she really didn't mean what she said when she left a message threatening to use a grand jury to investigate an Englewood lawyer representing the collection agency.

Chambers' actions are being investigated by the state's attorney regulation counsel on four possible violations of attorney conduct rules.

[...]

Chambers referred Barrentine to her husband, Nathan Chambers, for free representation in the collection matter.

Then, she left a recorded voice-mail message for the Englewood lawyer in which she said: “I am calling you because we are getting a lot of complaints from victims of identity theft that you are pressuring them, shall I say, to pay on checks that they did not write, that their banks knew that they did not write, that should be obvious to you that they did not write, and I am looking at investigating this with the grand jury.”

Lawyer Jonathan Steiner contends the DA later told him - in front of witnesses - that there were no other complaints.

Chambers told The Denver Post last week what she meant is that she was looking at the practice in general. “I wasn't doing this specifically at him,” she said.

Given the powers that DAs have and the trust the public must have in their integrity, we look forward to a full airing of the facts.

From the October 7 News article, “Arapahoe DA facing sanctions,” by Ivan Moreno and Katie Kerwin McCrimmon:

Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers is aggressively fighting the most serious sanctions that any Colorado district attorney has faced in 20 years.

Chambers, the first-term chief prosecutor for Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert and Lincoln counties, is accused of threatening a lawyer with a criminal probe to help a fellow Republican in a dispute with a collection agency.

[...]

According to the complaint filed in June against Chambers, Barrentine approached the DA for help during a political event in November 2005, saying Steiner refused to back off after she told him that an identity thief wrote bad checks in her name.

Chambers referred Barrentine to her husband, Nathan Chambers.

Nathan Chambers also is chairman of the Arapahoe County Republicans. He agreed to represent Barrentine for free.