Essay by Ed Quillen
Salida legal system – October 1997 – Colorado Central Magazine
Seldom does one see constitutional issues argued in Salida Municipal Court, which generally functions as a Robin-Hood-in-reverse economic machine.
Most defendants are young and many are poor. They plead guilty and are fined and assessed court costs. Their money goes into the city treasury, to be spent on more police to protect us from the young and poor who hang out on street corners rather than at the Elks’ Lodge, or for more safety enforcement to protect us from people who can’t afford to bring everything up to code at once.