Published by CTBC Director on 21 Oct 2010 at 08:10 pm
Know Your Judge: Citizen Input on District/County Judges
On this page, Clear The Bench Colorado has collected comments and input from citizens across the state on judges in district and county courts.
Unless specifically noted, publication of any comments or recommendation on district or county court judges does NOT imply a recommendation by Clear The Bench Colorado; unfortunately, we have not had the resources (either funding or time) to review each of the 134 judges on this year’s ballot. Unless we receive compelling, documented evidence, CTBC takes no official position on any of the 100+ district and county court judges seeking retention this year.
CTBC has simply organized the comments received, by judicial district, as they have come in, as a community service to the hundreds of people who have called, E-mailed, Facebooked, or Tweeted asking for more information on their local judges as an alternative to the thoroughly discredited rubber-stamp “retain” recommendations purveyed by the “Blue Book”
Anyone wishing to comment on any judges on this year’s ballot is welcome to submit comments and responsible, documented articles of reasonable length (please, no rants or diatribes) as comments on this page or to our Sound Off! page.
(All judicial districts: A website of some help for reviewing District & County Judges in Colorado: http://www.dvmen.org/dv-79.htm#pgfId-1427671)
FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Gilpin, Jefferson Counties)
I have had personal experience with two Jeffco judges. Unfortunately, Judge Oeffler is not up for retention and will continue to overstep her boundaries as a judge, IMHO.
On the other hand, I find that Judge Munsinger is respectful, patient, fair, and that he will follow the rule of law. Once again, IMHO, I urge Jeffco voters to vote “yes” on Judge Munsinger. My personal experience suggests that Judge Munsinger is a proponent of transparency and the rule of law – enough said.
I was flabbergasted when I saw that the Bluebook recommended a retain vote for Judge Stephen M Munsinger of Jefferson County District Court! Our homeowner’s association had a terrible experience with Judge Munsinger. He may be okay on criminal cases but he is a terrible judge on civil law cases. He either cannot read the plain English of a civil law statute and determine what it says, OR he has already made up his mind and deliberately just totally disregards it. He was extremely rude, arrogant, insolent and short tempered to our Counsel and gave him no time at all to call our witnesses after the cross examination of our opponents. He also demanded thousands of personal emails from Directors and general Members of the association that had no bearing, or anything to do with Board of Director actions, a GROSS invasion of privacy. PLEASE, PLEASE VOTE NO ON THE RETENTION OF Judge Stephen Munsinger. He favors prosecution, and you will not be happy ending up in his court.
Judge Munsinger is an excellant judge. Recently he gave our community a chance to defend ourselves against tyrannical HOA and agressive law firms taking over neighborhoods for profit. Final decision has not been ruled yet, but at least he listened and gave homeowners a chance to be heard. Anita
(Mixed reviews on Munsinger - comments vary from strongly pro to strongly con).
SECOND JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Denver County)
In 31 years as a lawyer, I have never publically advocated voting “NO” (do not retain) on any judge. However, I have never seen a judge as arrogant, uncaring, ignorant of the law and vicious as Judge C. Jean Stewart.
I have spoken to other attorneys and it is clear from their comments that my client’s case is not the only one in which Judge Stewart has arrogantly ignored the law and the facts and done incalculable harm to those she is charged with protecting. Those attorneys are unable to speak out publically for they still practice law before her. They cannot take the chance that she will punish their existing or future clients for their comments. I no longer run that riskfor I am retired from the practice of law.
It is not only the disabled who are at risk before Judge Stewart. Our elderly in Denver are also at risk due to Judge Stewart. Judge Stewart is the Presiding Judge of the Denver Probate Court. In her capacity as Presiding Judge, she is directly responsible for the incredible and consistent failures of Denver’s Probate Court to protect our elderly from rapacious guardians and conservators. The Denver Post recently investigated the Denver Probate Court (February 2010). The Post’s expose of the Denver Probate Court can be found at: http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14442041.
In view of these facts, I strongly urge you to vote “NO” on Judge C. Jean Stewart, Denver Probate Court. We can AND MUST do better than Judge C. Jean Stewart. [Patricia Finley]
Vote “NO” on JUDGE C. JEAN STEWART, DENVER PROBATE COURT
Numerous articles describe why Judge Stewart should NOT be retained, however, and very little has changed since these reports were released.
Here are six articles you can review for yourself:
- “Probate court rife with lapses in training, oversight” ~ The Denver Post
- “Denver’s public estate manager frequently sold house to the same buyer” ~ The Denver Post
- “To Grandmother’s House We Go” ~ Westword
- “The Probate Pit” ~ The Rocky Mountain News
- “Changing of the Guard” ~ Westword
- “Mommy Dearest” ~ Westword
THIRD JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Huerfano, Las Animas Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
FOURTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (El Paso, Teller Counties)
Additionally, I have an input regarding one of the judges in the 4th Judicial District here in Colorado Springs based on my juror duty in a 2008 murder trial where Judge David A. Gilbert presided. During my week experience in Judge Gilbert’s court, I found him to be professional, fair, unbiased, and knowledgable of the law. Moreover, during the jury selection and trial, he showed a great deal of patience and understanding with the attorneys on both sides, as well as with us jurors, many of whom had never been jurors before, including me. Accordingly, I recommend that Judge David A. Gilbert be RETAINED and urge a YES vote.
FIFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Clear Creek, Eagle, Lake, Summit Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
SIXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Archuleta, La Plata, San Juan Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
SEVENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Delta, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Montrose, Ouray, San Miguel Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
EIGHTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Jackson, Larimer Counties)
Today, the Judicial Performance Commission has shown itself to be a joke which will ultimately be proven this November. Blair and Gilmore, prosecutors turned judges, withheld evidence and cost Mr. Masters 10 years of his life; left the taxpayers $10,000,000 dollars short and left Colorado with an unsolved murder. Even more despicable was after taunting Tim’s family by raising their fists in victory; they refuse now to offer an apology. Yet the JPC gave them both rave reviews equivalent to Oscar nominations. The weakness in the JPC, as exemplified by X Supreme Court Justice Jean Dubofsky, ( http://law2.fordham.edu/publications/articles/400flspub8522.pdf )
is it’s failure to be transparent, political subversions of despotic power and refusal to take public comment into account. It is nothing more than a country club where accolades are embellished on the board members in an effort to make the palace shine from the outside. The reviews for Supreme Court Justices Rice, Martinez and “Bend-Me-Over” Bender are no different than for Blair and Gilmore.
NINTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Garfield, Pitkin, Rio Blanco Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
TENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Pueblo County)
Judges in Pueblo need to be removed. Especially Judge Crockenberg, Judge Rayes, and Judge Mayes. Many judges in colorado come out of the law firm of Peterson and Fonda. The politics is all criminal with these men. We can’t get a fair trial when these judges are criminally linked to protect their friends. Judge Crockenberg refused to allow to me discovery in a rape case and Judge Rayes backed him up, as did the appeals and supreme court. The doctor had been molesting and raping women for years and women were afraid to stand up. He is a registered sex molester now and everyone who stood up to him is afraid. Judges don’t back up women. Clear the court in Denver. Then clear the court in Pueblo.
ELEVENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Chaffee, Custer, Fremont, Park Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
TWELFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Mineral, Rio Grande,Saguache Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
THIRTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Kit Carson, Logan, Morgan, Phillips, Sedgwick,Washington, Yuma Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
FOURTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Grand, Moffat, Routt Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Baca, Cheyenne, Kiowa, Prowers Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
SIXTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Bent, Crowley, Otero Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
SEVENTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Adams, Broomfield Counties)
Complaint against 17th Judicial District Katherine R. Delgado (information submitted by KnowYourCourts.com - a generally informative and reliable resource).
http://knowyourcourts.com/News/2008-10-25_lomtevasComplaintReDelgadoWebVer.pdf
EIGHTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert, Lincoln Counties)
In years of working as an attorney, I have had the opportunity to observe the performance of many of the judges in the 18th judicial district. Only one of the judges on the ballot this year is worth keeping: Judge Richard B. Caschette, who has impressed me as fair, knowledgeable, and impartial in applying the law. Vote YES on Judge Richard Caschette, and vote no on the remaining judges on the ballot this year.
Agape VS Agape Case # 2009CV2425
My wife and I own a local roofing company, Agape Construction & Roofing, we have been in business in Colorado for 19 years. We obtained a trademark for our business in Feb 2006. Last year a company with the same name entered out market and created confusion with our customer base as to who was who. The other Agape was taking our customers away from us. Storm chaser from Tulsa Oklahoma.
We hired legal counsel to force this other company from the state. Jesse Crow, the owner of the other “Agape” did not respone to the legal demands to leave the state so we had to sue in civil court. Arapahoe County Judge “Carlos Armando Samour Jr”
made my wife and I pay for all of our attorney fees and made us pay for his too. 40K-50K in legal fees so far. The case was presented to him (Carlos) and he made his ruling within a day or to, he did not read the case. Trademark laws prevent this from happening to companies like us.Vote this Judge out, ( “Carlos Armando Samour Jr “) he is young and making bad mistakes already!!!!
Karl Burgeson
Agape Construction & Roofing
NINETEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Weld County)
I’ve worked in the law enforcement community for several years in Weld County. We have some good judges, some bad, and some in-between. For District judge, vote Yes on Daniel Maus and Thomas Quammen; for County judge, vote Yes on Michele Meyer.
Weld County judge Charles Unfug is an awful judge who should not be retained - vote No on Judge Unfug.
TWENTIETH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Boulder County)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
TWENTY-FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Mesa County)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
TWENTY-SECOND JUDICIAL DISTRICT (Dolores, Montezuma Counties)
No comments yet received on judges in this district.
Susan on 22 Oct 2010 at 12:59 PM #
I am writing today because I am outraged, aggravated and annoyed still about something that happened 5 months ago. In 2009 my ex-husband managed to get 2 DUIs, his fourth and fifth in his lifetime. When I went to court to see if someone was FINALLY going to do something with this man, I was appalled to see my ex-husband show up DRUNK at court. I was able to briefly speak to the judge and let him know he previously drove with our children while he was drunk and that he would not stop drinking unless he was forced to. Judge Walker’s response? “That’s bad form, Mr. Lawson” I was told that he would not be sentenced that day because he was inebriated, and I was invited back to speak again on the day of his sentencing. I was all prepared to go to court and then I got a call a few days before court stating that he was sentenced to TEN days of work release, that he was sentenced incorrectly, that the DA had dropped the ball, and that the judge was REFUSING to re-sentence him. In fact, when the DA asked Judge Walker to re-sentence, his response was “While it is clearly a windfall for Mr. Lawson, I will not re-sentence him.” This man got a total of TEN days of work release for 2 DUIs. He went back to work release drunk, the judge refused to do anything. I contacted MADD because I was furious, and they know all too well about Judge Walker, apparently he is infamous for letting these idiots go. I am mad as hell, and I am telling everyone who will listen not to vote this Liberal, bleeding heart, unable to do his job Judge back in for another four years.
Charlotte Taylor on 25 Oct 2010 at 4:49 PM #
Where can I find out what my judges stand for? How they ruled in various cases? Whether or not they support things that are important to me? I really don’t want one persons opinion, I want to know facts.
Angela on 29 Oct 2010 at 10:29 AM #
It would be so helpful if you could just have a simple chart detailing information on every judge retention on the ballots!
steve tapp on 31 Oct 2010 at 2:36 PM #
thanks for all the info. in the future even if you do not have an opinion on a judges retention, their party affiliation would be very helpful. thanks again
Donna Kortman on 31 Oct 2010 at 2:58 PM #
I have looked and looked and called and called and cannot find the party afficliation for the judges that are on the ballot for retention. Where’s this information?
CTBC Director on 31 Oct 2010 at 10:44 PM #
Donna -
the judges don’t list party affiliation; they are supposed to be non-partisan.
However, it IS possible to find out when they were appointed, and figure out who was governor that year.
Personally, I’ve not found that a reliable indicator, since some good judges were appointed by Democrats, and some bad ones appointed by Republicans - but if you are looking for a partisan label, that’s about as close as you’re going to get.
Tim Roberge on 02 Nov 2010 at 6:24 AM #
I recommend to retain any “uncertain” judges as thier record probably does not provide enough information to make a decision at this time - might as well let them make some more rulings to put on thier record so we can decide later.
I think when we clear the benches of the “partisan” judges - a LOUD message will be sent to the rest of them to get there act together and make thier decisions based on “non-partisan” facts and “interpretation” of the existing law - or they will be on the chopping block in the next election.
CTBC Director on 02 Nov 2010 at 8:10 AM #
Probably a better response would be to leave that space blank; why buy the proverbial “pig in a poke?”
That will also send a message - without getting rid of any good judges, who will end up being retained.
Katelyn on 02 Nov 2010 at 10:20 AM #
Clearly, this Patricia Finely did not get the outcome she so desired. Completely looks like a witch hunt for Judge Stewart. Maybe, there is a reason Ms. Finely is no long practcing law….she is too busy with her friends at the news!
Larry Smart on 02 Nov 2010 at 11:29 AM #
Complaint against 17th Judicial District Katherine R. Delgado
http://knowyourcourts.com/News/2008-10-25_lomtevasComplaintReDelgadoWebVer.pdf
CTBC Director on 02 Nov 2010 at 12:47 PM #
Perhaps - or perhaps she has a point.
I’ve noted that many of the people attacking those who comment on what they perceive to be negative performance by judges throw around the “they just didn’t like the outcome” characterization.
Sometimes that may be the case - but often, when a pattern emerges, there’s some fire causing the smoke…
blair on 10 Mar 2011 at 3:27 PM #
I recall a little 8 year old guardian child who was ordered to be taken from our home by Judge Stewart. She heard evidence he was attached strongly, yet sent deputies to our home to rip him from our home because we disagreed with the plan for his adoption, and felt he should be adopted by a family to whom he was attached, not strangers. I will never forget her saying to me “Go home and get him packed and act like it is any other day.” She never had to see his absolute panic and fear, as he danced from one foot to the other, begging us in screaming sobs, “Please, I don’t want to go!” He was drug out the door angrily and thrown in the back seat of an attorney’s car, where he bounced around in terror, still screaming, and was driven away. Please remember, he was not removed due to any abuse or neglect - that was the opposite, as he was so loved here,he wanted to remain or go home to the mother who raised him most of his life - but was removed in that terrible, torturous manner because the attorney wanted ‘help’ to get him and send him to strangers. The damage to that child was amazing. No one could convince him he isn’t going to be snatched by strangers yet again. Yet, Judge Stuart ordered us to let him be abused by her order and ‘act like it is a perfectly normal day.” Amazing. We have sent many foster children to adoptive parents even when we don’t agree with the adoptive parents picked for the children. We have good-bye and Happy Going Home parties for them, and send them out the door with smiles on their faces, while we support their adoption. How simple that would have been in this case. I tried to stand up in court and ask for that, but Judge Stewart basically told me to listen to HER; she would not listen to me. Therefore, a small boy was permanently damaged. Shame on her - shame on her -
Michelle on 26 Apr 2011 at 1:05 PM #
Yes there is a debtors prison alive and well in Durango, Colorado!
I am facing a 10 day jail sentence for failure to pay a small claims judgement. I am the mother of 2, not employed outside of my home and rely on my husbands small income to get our family through. I was recently in Magistrate Sara Law’s courtroom who made changes to an existing judgment to be able to throw me into jail, and then gave me a 10 day jail sentence for failure to pay. She was unable to prove my income and in fact didn’t even ask me about it, she only asked me one question ” is your husband employed?” bam, you’re going to jail..!!
She didn’t review his income or anything, she just assumed that his income was mine, even though we are low income…