With their practice focused on defending the most socially vulnerable and advocating for equitable public policy, the co-founders of Del Pueblo Law, LLC picked a roller-coaster year to launch their firm.
Since January, they have coordinated legal care for political protesters involved in No Kings and Free Palestine demonstrations through the Protest Defense Committee, provided legal support to those impacted by ICE raids, led community trainings and defended clients with limited resources in cases ranging from misdemeanor theft to homicide.
‘Of the People’
In January, Ashley Cordero and Carly Hamilton opened Del Pueblo Law, a holistic indigent defense firm, in Denver. Spanish for “of the people,” Del Pueblo has served more than 100 clients in 2025. The firm welcomed attorneys Laura Jensen and James Castle and paralegal Ana Bradley to the team in October.
Del Pueblo Law is Latina-led, an identity Cordero, Hamilton, and Jensen proudly embrace. Jensen explained, “In my years of practice, it is obvious—and stark—to me that the majority of attorneys are white, and that’s not representative of the population we serve.”
She continued, “As a Latina who grew up in Denver, I can connect with clients and build client trust without the usual hierarchy between attorney and client.” She and a recent client discovered they grew up in adjacent neighborhoods. “With our shared backgrounds, it’s ‘Let’s have a conversation person-to-person,’” she said. “We are not there to tell clients what to do but to give them the resources, to answer their questions, to advise them and to acknowledge their agency to make decisions about their lives.”
Cordero noted that Del Pueblo’s approach to client relationships is driven by personal experience. “I too have been othered,” she said. “As a queer and Latina woman, I ask how to pronounce your name, I ask what are your pronouns because I know your case is not the only thing important to you—you’re thinking about your family, maybe immigration status, often a lack of housing. We aim to be client-centric, seeing our clients as a whole person.”
Holistically Client-Centered
Before founding Del Pueblo Law, Cordero, Hamilton and Jensen served together as public defenders in Arapahoe County, where they experienced the limitations of heavy caseloads. “We could point people to lists for mental health support, but there was little we could do to meet their housing needs and help them access the resources they needed, even with the amazing social workers we had because they were overworked too,” Hamilton said.
Del Pueblo Law is located inside the Blossom House community center, which includes a library, mental health services and early childhood education. “Renting this space was intentional because we could cross-refer,” Cordero said. She often partners with social workers to support clients.
Fierce Criminal Defense
“Del Pueblo Law is rooted in fierce criminal defense for incarcerated and low-income people, protester defense, community organizing and building political power for radical change,” Hamilton said. She represents clients in some of the firm’s most serious cases. As a co-founder of the Defenders Union of Colorado, she also organizes for fairer working conditions for defenders, especially core staff, and for better outcomes for clients.
Jensen has represented clients in complex cases spanning double homicide to drug trafficking, earning full acquittals, including in a double-homicide self-defense trial.
Cordero is known as an ally of the trans community; she campaigned and testified for the Kelly Loving Act, a law passed in May that expanded protections for transgender people in Colorado. The Denver Bar Association’s Access to Justice Committee recognized Cordero for her protester defense work as one of five 2025 Pro Bono Stars.
Because most of Del Pueblo’s clients are incarcerated, pretrial or indigent, the firm operates on a tight budget. “We’re scrappy with a purpose,” Cordero said. “We run with a low overhead so that we can offer pro bono and low bono services.”
Mentoring the Next Generation
Despite their demanding schedules, the attorneys of Del Pueblo set aside time for mentorship. Jensen said, “I had imposter syndrome much of my way through college and law school, and my mentors didn’t look like me. We want to use our privilege as attorneys in this community to create a space to mentor young Latina attorneys through different programming—to uplift those voices and be those mentors that we didn’t have.” The firm contracts with the Alternate Defense Counsel (ADC) and brings in interns and fellows through the ADC Inclusivity Fellowship and the LAW SCHOOL… Yes We Can! program, as well as Cordero and Hamilton’s alma mater, the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.
Upcoming Workshop
Del Pueblo Law, LLC will host a workshop on personal rights and community-based alternatives to traditional law enforcement at 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 10 at Blossom House in Denver.
“As community lawyers, empowering individuals to know their rights and inform their interactions with law enforcement is essential to our work,” said Del Pueblo partner Carly Hamilton. “We acknowledge the systemic targeting of our clients by law enforcement and ICE. This training will cover rights when interacting with law enforcement, victims’ rights and other ways to keep the community safe.”
A separate workshop will be offered at the same time for middle and high school students. This class will teach constitutional rights in a practical, accessible way.
The event will include dinner, childcare and interpretation services. No registration is required, and the event is open to the public. For more information, text 720-681-0313.