A.C. v. Wood
Case Number: 2025CV030009
Court: Ouray County District Court
Client: Ouray County Plaindealer
Motion Filed: Aug. 4, 2025
Background: In May 2025, a woman filed a civil lawsuit against former Ouray County, Colorado, police chief Jeff Wood. According to the Ouray County Plaindealer, the woman previously told police she was sexually assaulted in Wood’s house while he slept upstairs, and there are pending criminal cases against the three men accused of sexually assaulting the woman, who was then 17. But the details of the lawsuit are unknown because the case file has been sealed.
On behalf of the Plaindealer, Rachael Johnson, the Reporters Committee’s Colorado-based attorney, filed a motion to unseal the case file. At a February 2026 hearing on the motion, Johnson argued that the public is entitled to timely access to records in the case to help facilitate oversight of the judicial system, the Plaindealer reported.
On March 11, 2026, Seventh Judicial Chief District Judge Cory Jackson unsealed much of the case file.
“The victim’s privacy and right to remain free of harassment or intimidation remain critical interests,” Judge Jackson wrote in his order. “But at this point, those interests do not outweigh or overcome the presumption in favor of open proceedings.”
Quote: “The public can’t rely on or be confident in the judiciary system if it’s not transparent,” Johnson said during oral arguments at the Feb. 2 hearing, according to the Plaindealer.
Filings:
2025-08-04: Motion to intervene
2026-03-11: Order