Zartner v. City and County of Denver, Colorado et al

Filing 43

ORDER granting 42 Motion for Recusal. It is ORDERED that the Judges file be returned to the Clerks office for the case to be reassigned by random draw, by Judge William J. Martinez on 03/08/2016.(cthom, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO
Judge William J. Martínez
Civil Action No. 15-cv-02218-WJM-KLM
KENNETH R. ZARTNER,
Plaintiff,
v.
CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER, COLORADO,
SHAWN L. MILLER,
DAVID PACHECO,
ROBERT MAZOTTI,
MARIO GALLARDO,
CRAIG PENSON,
JEFFREY STEED,
RICHARD GILSTRAP,
APRIL KULHANEK, R.N.,
Defendants.

ORDER OF RECUSAL

This matter comes before the Court on Defendant April Kulhanek’s Unopposed
Motion for Order of Recusal (ECF No. 42). The Court having reviewed the Motion and
being fully advised hereby ORDERS as follows:
The Defendant Kulhanek’s Unopposed Motion is GRANTED.
Section 455(a) of Title 28 of the United States Code states that “Any justice,
judge, or magistrate judge of the United States shall disqualify himself in any
proceeding in which his impartiality might reasonably be questioned.” A United States
judge must recuse himself when there is an appearance of bias, regardless of whether
there is actual bias. Nichols v. Alley, 71 F.3d 347, 350 (10th Cir. 1995). The test is

whether a reasonable person, knowing all the relevant facts, would harbor doubts about
the judge’s impartiality. Hinman v. Rogers, 831 F.2d 937, 939 (10th Cir. 1987).
The Amended Complaint makes allegations regarding violations of the Plaintiff’s
constitutional rights by the Defendants, including April Kulhanke, R.N. Although not
disclosed in either the Complaint or in the Amended Complaint, according to the Motion
Nurse Kulhanek is employed by Denver Health. My wife, Judith C. Shlay, M.D., is
employed by Denver Health in a senior management position. On these facts, I find
that a reasonable person would harbor doubts about my impartiality. As a result,
recusal is required by 28 U.S.C. § 455(a), and I hereby recuse myself from this case. It
is therefore
ORDERED that the Judge’s file be returned to the Clerk’s office for the case to
be reassigned by random draw.
Dated this 8th day of March, 2016.
BY THE COURT:

_______________________
William J. Martínez
United States District Judge

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