DENVER – Local elections activist Marilyn Marks sent her lawsuit against the city of Aspen over its refusal to release ballot images from the May 2009 election to the Colorado Court of Appeals, just short of Tuesday night’s deadline.

The suit, which was dismissed by District Court Judge James Boyd on March 9, alleged that the city violated Colorado open records laws when it denied her request to view the images.

City officials denied Marks access to the images on the grounds that Colorado law prohibits them from doing so and because, they said, it would be a significant harm to the public. Marks disagrees. On the contrary, she said, Colorado law requires ballots to be open for inspection.

The city’s deadline for responding to the appeal is Nov. 18.