LOS ANGELES – MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund) mourns the passing of Manuel L. Martinez, a distinguished Denver attorney, civic leader, and longtime MALDEF board member. He died on January 7, 2026, at 74.
Born in Price, Utah, Martinez grew up in Pueblo, Colorado, and spent formative years working on his grandparents’ land in the San Luis Valley. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Colorado College in 1974, becoming one of the institution’s first Latino graduates, and received his law degree from UCLA in 1978.
A fierce believer in justice and guided by a conviction that every person deserved fair representation, Martinez began his legal career as an attorney with Legal Aid in Pueblo, Colorado, before serving as a public defender in Denver. While a student at Colorado College, he took a leave of absence to organize farmworkers alongside César Chávez and the United Farm Workers.
In the 1980s, he became Denver’s first Latino Manager of Safety, overseeing the city’s police, fire, and sheriff departments. He later served as Director of Excise and Licenses, presiding over licensing hearings that helped shape Denver’s business landscape.
Martinez served the Latino community both locally and nationally. He was Senior Vice President of the Colorado Bar Association and served on MALDEF’s board of directors for a number of years until 2013.
Please attribute the following statement to Thomas A. Saenz, president and general counsel of MALDEF:
“I was pleased to have Manuel Martinez’s support on the board when I was selected as MALDEF president and general counsel in 2009. While on the board, Manuel could always be counted on to vote his conscience. This integrity was grounded in his absolute commitment to advancing the Latino community nationwide. His eye was always on the horizon and to ensuring progress in the future for all communities in Denver, Colorado, and the United States as a whole. His leadership will be greatly missed.”
Please attribute the following statement to Antonia Hernandez, president and general counsel of MALDEF from 1985 to 2004:
“This is a great loss for Denver and for the national Latino community. I was very happy to welcome Manuel as a board member just before I left MALDEF because I knew he would be a very personable and dedicated leader on the MALDEF board of directors, able to craft the critical negotiations central to any governing body. Manuel was an outstanding civic leader who made so many contributions to society in his impressive career.”