Manuel L. Martinez, a trailblazing Latino leader in Denver’s government, died earlier this month.
Martinez was the first Latino manager of safety for the city Denver, as well as the first Latino director of the licensing department. He died Jan. 7 at age 74.
Martinez moved to Colorado from Utah when he was a child. He became one of the first Latinos to graduate from Colorado College in 1974, where he studied history. While in undergrad, he took a leave of absence to work with César Chávez and the United Farm Workers on their campaign for labor rights for agricultural workers. He got his law degree from UCLA in 1978.
Martinez worked as a public defender and later served as manager of safety for the city and county of Denver, overseeing the Denver Police Department, as well as the fire and sheriff departments.
He was also the director of the Department of Excise and Licenses, now known as the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection. He was appointed to both roles by Mayor Federico Peña.
After his time in city government, he became a partner at the law firm Holme Roberts & Owen and eventually Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. He continued to focus on licensing, as well as gaming and land laws.
Martinez was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association in 2013.
He was a board member of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fun, served on the National Board of Directors for the Volunteers of America, was a trustee of The Denver Foundation and was a trustee of the Children’s Hospital Foundation.
Martinez was the chairman of the Denver chapter of the Colorado Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in the ‘90s, a board member of the Denver Chamber of Commerce and senior vice president for the Colorado Bar Association.
He is survived by his wife, Pat Cortez, his children, Leticia Martinez, Manuel E. Martinez, Jovan Muniz, and Devin Muniz — as well as seven grandchildren, one great-grandchild, his brother, Christopher Martinez, and his sisters, Christine Resendez and Marietta Ziobron.
His family held two memorial services on Thursday and requested donations to the Denver Art Museum in lieu of flowers. A press release did not disclose a cause of death but said that he died peacefully.
