A Denver judge has ordered District Attorney Mitch Morrissey into court Friday to explain why he has not sought criminal charges against a Denver Sheriff Department deputy who slammed a shackled inmate into a courthouse window in 2012.

The hearing, which is rare, will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, just hours before the three-year statute of limitations expires on the prosecution. Morrissey will be asked to explain his refusal to prosecute the deputy in the use-of-force incident, according to an order signed by District Court Chief Judge Michael Martinez.

VIDEO: See the confrontation between the inmate and deputy.

Ken Padilla, the attorney who asked for a hearing on behalf of the inmate Anthony Waller, has asked for a special prosecutor.

“This is our shot at getting justice,” Padilla said.

Morrissey has been criticized by various community groups, including the NAACP and Colorado Latino Forum, because he rarely prosecutes police or sheriff’s deputies accused of excessive force.

On Thursday, those groups were pleased that one of their examples of Morrissey’s record will be heard before a judge.

Lynn Kimbrough, a spokeswoman in the district attorney’s office, said the DA would not comment before the hearing.

On Sept. 11, 2012, Deputy Brady Lovingier grabbed Waller by chains around his waist and slammed him into a window frame inside a courtroom. Lovingier, who is white, called Waller, who is black, “boy” as he ordered him to get up.

In a courtroom security video, Waller appeared to be calm as he posed a question to Judge Doris Burd. Lovingier then touched Waller on the back, leading the inmate to turn around.

That’s when Lovingier grabbed him by the waist chains. Waller suffered broken teeth, a fractured bone around his eye, a gash on his head and a closed head injury, according to the petition. Waller’s back, neck, legs and ankles also were injured.

Burd reported the incident to a higher-ranking judge, who launched an internal investigation.

Waller was in Burd’s courtroom following an arrest for kidnapping and assault charges. He later was acquitted of the kidnapping charge, but found guilty of third-degree assault. He was sentenced to 24 months in jail.

Waller is now jailed at the Downtown Detention Center after being arrested twice in June — once on suspicion of drug possession and once for third-degree assault.

Lovingier was suspended for 30 days in 2012. In April, interim Sheriff Elias Diggins granted Lovingier’s request to take one year of unpaid leave for personal reasons, said Simon Crittle, a sheriff’s spokesman.

Waller has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit.

Kimbrough declined to discuss why prosecutors chose not to file charges, saying the case would be presented on Friday in court.

State law allows people to request a judicial review of police use-of-force cases, but it is unusual for one to be granted.

In his petition requesting a hearing, Padilla said Deputy District Attorney Doug Jackson was biased because he had prosecuted Waller in a previous case.

The petition also included the Denver Department of Public Safety’s conclusion that Lovingier acted inappropriately and that his actions were not justified as self defense.

Kimbrough said prosecutors address petitions for prosecution from time to time, but they usually are handled through paperwork. This time, the judge has requested a hearing because time is running out on the case, she said.

Former Denver District Court Judge Christina Habas, who now works as a private attorney with the firm Keating Wagner Polidori Free, said the order handed down by Martinez is “really, really rare.”

“I was on the bench for almost 10 years and I never saw one,” Habas said.

Martinez will listen to evidence and Morrissey’s argument and decide if the prosecution’s decision was reasonable or arbitrary.

Martinez could order Morrissey to seek charges, call on a special prosecutor from another jurisdiction, or appoint a private attorney to prosecute the case.

Morrissey’s critics accuse him of being cozy with police and unwilling to charge bad apples with crimes. Padilla cited the criticism in his court filing.

Earlier this year, a recall petition for Morrissey failed.

The petition was organized by a coalition of groups who had complained about his tenure.

Lisa Calderon, co-president of the Colorado Latino Forum’s Denver chapter, said her group is eager to see how this avenue of recourse works out.

“We’re all kind of shocked,” she said about the judge’s order to grant the hearing.

Noelle Phillips: 303-954-1661, nphillips@denverpost.com or twitter.com/Noelle_Phillips