Grants provide funding for courthouses with limited resources

DENVER—The Colorado Judicial Department has opened the application period for fiscal year 2026-27 grants from the Court Security Cash Fund, which was enacted in 2007. The grants provide supplemental funding for courthouse security at state court facilities in Colorado counties with the most limited resources.

Funds from the grants may be used for supplemental court security staffing at a facility containing a state court or probation office, security equipment or related structural improvements at a facility containing a state court or probation office, training of local security teams, miscellaneous needs associated with court security, or emergency needs related to court security. Funds may not be used for architectural services, non-security related construction, firearms or other weapons, POST certification training, computers and computer servers unless a part of a security system, equipment not clearly identified as having a court security purpose, vehicles, ADA compliance issues that do not concern security, or emergency lighting already required by a fire marshal.

Grants to counties are awarded according to a priority schedule set by statute. To be designated as highest priority for grants, counties must meet at least two of four criteria set in the statute: counties whose total population is below the state median; counties in which per-capita income is below the state median; counties in which property tax revenues are below the state median; and counties in which the population living below the federal poverty line is above the state median. Of those counties, 39 are given the highest priority for grants as they meet at least two of the criteria.

Approximately $2.2 million to $2.8 million is anticipated to be available from the Colorado Court Security Cash Fund. Grant applications must be received through the Office of the State Court Administrator’s grant management system, Euna (formerly known as AmpliFund), by 5 p.m. on April 16, 2026. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application details, rules, and other information on the grants can be found at coloradojudicial.gov/financial-services/court-security-cash-fund-commission-grant-program.

Questions regarding the application process can be submitted to CourtSecurityGrants@judicial.state.co.us.

DENVER – Registration is now open for the Your Honor: Journey to the Bench symposium to be held on Friday, May 22, 2026, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Colorado Bar Association at 1290 N. Broadway, Denver, CO 80203.

The event is hosted by the Judicial Officer Outreach Program and sponsored by the Denver Bar Association. This dynamic, in-person symposium is specifically designed for attorneys and aspiring judges preparing to pursue a judicial appointment within the next 1–3 years, as well as current judges exploring opportunities on a higher court.

There will be seven engaging sessions offered that feature judicial officers from across the state as they share their experiences, practical advice, insights, and proven best practices:

1. Behind the Robe: A Day in the Life of a Judge

2. Building Bridges: Establishing Connections for Judicial Success

3. The Judicial Nomination Process: Getting Your Name in the Room

4. Silencing Self-Doubt: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome

5. Beyond Your Specialty: Learning New Areas of Law

6. Ethics in Action: Upholding Integrity on the Bench

7. The Judicial Family: Balancing Work and Life as a Judge

The event will also include Judges in a Flash: Speed Networking with the Bench, a high-energy session where attendees connect directly with judicial officers, ask questions, exchange ideas, and gain valuable insights in a dynamic, structured setting.

“Judicial leadership begins with intention, preparation, and a deep commitment to serve. Your Honor: Journey to the Bench Symposium provides an honest and practical look at the path to the judiciary,” said Nga Vương-Sandoval, judicial officer outreach program lead.

Space is limited. Register by 5:00 p.m. on May 12, 2026, to secure your spot at this free, engaging, and interactive event. Registration closes once capacity is reached, which may occur prior to the registration deadline.

To register, visit: https://forms.office.com/g/QTC9jMV3CK

For questions, please contact Nga Vương-Sandoval, judicial officer outreach program lead at nga.vuongsandoval@judicial.state.co.us.

Commission sets date to select nominees 

The 4th Judicial District Nominating Commission will meet on April 9, 2026, at El Paso County Judicial Building, 270 S. Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903, to interview and select nominees for appointment by the governor to the office of district judge for the 4th Judicial District (El Paso and Teller Counties). The vacancy will occur due to the retirement of the Honorable David Prince, effective June 1, 2026.

To be eligible, the applicant must be a qualified elector of the 4th Judicial District at the time of investiture and must have been admitted to the practice of law in Colorado for five years. The current annual salary for this position is $203,768.20. The initial term of office of a district judge is a provisional term of two years; thereafter, the incumbent district judge, if retained by the voters, has a term of six years. 

Application forms are available from the office of the ex officio chair of the nominating commission, Justice Brian Boatright, at 2 E. 14th Ave., Denver, CO 80203, and from the office of the Court Executive, Scott Sosebee, at 719-452-5000/Deputy Court Executive Bridget Collins at 719-452-5000. Applications are also available on the court’s home page at https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/careers/judge-opportunities.

The completed application must be emailed to the address listed in the instructions below by 4:00 p.m. on March 30, 2026. Late applications will not be considered. Any person wishing to suggest a candidate to fill the vacancy may do so by letter to be submitted to any member of the nominating commission, with a copy to the ex officio chair, no later than March 23, 2026, by 4:00 p.m.

The members of the nominating commission for the 4th Judicial District are:

Michael Allen of Monument; Andrew Pappadakis of Woodland Park; and Paul Hurcomb, Ian Kalmanowitz, Roland Rainey, and Misty Plowright, all of Colorado Springs. 

Editor’s Note: Contact information for the nominating commission members: 

• Paul Hurcomb, pwh@sparkswillson.com
• Ian Kalmanowitz, ian@coloradoemploymentlaw.com
• Roland Rainey, rojune28@yahoo.com
• Misty Plowright, misty.plowright@gmail.com
• Michael Allen, mtallen@mikemoranlaw.com
• Andrew Pappadakis, apappadakis@hsd2.org

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JUDICIAL NOMINATING COMMISSION

APPLICATION FOR COLORADO STATE COURT JUDGESHIP

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY

Instructions

1.   The application form for a Colorado state court judgeship can be found on the Judicial Branch website at coloradojudicial.gov/careers/judge-opportunities complete and thorough in answering the questions. If an answer to any question requires more space than provided, attach a separate page for the question(s). Do not change the margins or font size on the application.

2.   Your application materials should be prepared in the following manner:

The application and any attachments must be submitted as a single PDF file with reference letters attached last. The application should be in text searchable format. 

You may submit letters of reference from not less than three and no more than five individuals who are able to comment upon your qualifications for a judicial position. 

It is preferred that reference letters are included with your application submission. However, if they are submitted directly by the author, they must be submitted by email as described below in paragraph 3.  All letters of reference are due by the filing deadline listed in paragraph 4. 

3.   Your application materials compiled as outlined above should be sent via email with your name and 4th JD – District Court in the subject line with your materials attached as outlined above no later than 4 p.m. on March 30, 2026 to the following email address:

judicial.applicants@judicial.state.co.us

You should receive an automatic response to your email submission. If you do not, please call the supreme court at the telephone number listed below. Please add this email address to your contacts so that email does not get filtered into your spam.

4.           Your application must be received no later than: 4 p.m. on March 30, 2026.

5.   Call the Colorado Supreme Court Clerk’s office with questions: 720-625-5150

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Denver, CO – The Colorado Supreme Court Model Criminal Jury Instructions Committee has released its annual update to Colorado’s model jury instructions for use in criminal trials.

The model jury instructions may be found online at https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/model-criminal-jury-instructions-committee. They include instructions concerning all offenses defined in Title 18 of the Colorado Revised Statutes (the Criminal Code), along with instructions addressing select offenses defined in other titles of the Colorado Revised Statutes (including Title 42, Vehicles and Traffic).

This annual update incorporates 2025 legislation, as well as caselaw published since the release of the prior edition. Note that in light of new legislation, this edition includes a new section, Chapter 1.3‑8, that contains model jury instructions when defendants are charged as habitual criminals.

Users may download Word and PDF versions of the instructions, both of which feature hyperlink capabilities for ease of use. For any questions regarding the instructions, users are encouraged to contact the Committee at mcjic@judicial.state.co.us. 

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DENVER — After an earlier announcement today of the appointment by Governor Jared Polis, the Colorado Judicial Department welcomes the appointment of the Honorable Susan Blanco to the Colorado Supreme Court. Justice-designate Blanco will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Melissa Hart.

“On behalf of the Judicial Department, we congratulate Justice-designate Blanco on her appointment to the Colorado Supreme Court,” said Chief Justice Monica Márquez. “Justice-designate Blanco brings rich professional and life experience to our bench. She is known for her stellar leadership, compassion, and innovative ideas. We are delighted to welcome her as our newest colleague and look forward to her contributions to our court and to the State of Colorado.”

Appointed to the district bench in 2017, Justice-designate Blanco has served as the first female Chief Judge of the 8th Judicial District (Larimer and Jackson Counties), where she presided over criminal, civil, probate, domestic relations, adoption, and appeals cases. Prior to the bench, she served as a Deputy District Attorney, followed by a decade in private practice in criminal defense and as a guardian ad litem for children and vulnerable adults.

Justice-designate Blanco pioneered Colorado's first Competency Court and launched the first Veterans’ Court in the 8th Judicial District. She also developed the 8th Judicial District’s Latinx Task Force and has served as a Commissioner on the Colorado Access to Justice Commission since 2020. She currently serves on the boards of Bridges of Colorado and the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System.

Justice-designate Blanco is a Tedx Speaker and the recipient of the 2025 Colorado Judicial Institute’s Judicial Excellence Award, 2024 Conrad Ball Award, 2023 CWBA Judicial Excellence Award, and 2022 Colorado Hispanic Bar Association Community Service Award. Under her leadership, the Competency Court earned the City of Fort Collins Human Relations Award in 2022 and the Visionary in Law Award in 2024.

Born and raised in Colorado, Justice-designate Blanco is the first Iranian American female to serve on the Colorado Supreme Court. She earned an LLM from Duke, a JD from the University of Colorado School of Law, and a B.S. from Colorado State University. She currently serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Colorado School of Law and previously taught for the School of Social Work at Colorado State University.

The Colorado Supreme Court, comprising seven members, is the state’s highest court, whose decisions are binding on all Colorado state courts. The Supreme Court has the authority to review lower court decisions, exclusive jurisdiction to promulgate rules governing practice and procedure in civil and criminal actions, and oversees the administration of the state’s judicial system. For more information about the Supreme Court, visit coloradojudicial.gov/supreme-court.

4th Judicial District announces County Court Vacancy

Commission sets date to select nominees 

The 4th Judicial District Nominating Commission will meet on April 8, 2026, at the El Paso County Judicial Building, 270 S. Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903, to interview and select nominees for appointment by the governor to the office of county judge for the 4th Judicial District (El Paso County). The vacancy will occur due to the retirement of the Honorable Steven Katzman, effective May 27, 2026.

To be eligible, the applicant must be a qualified elector of El Paso County at the time of investiture and must have been admitted to the practice of law in Colorado. The current annual salary for this position is $195,001.25. The initial term of office of a county judge is a provisional term of two years; thereafter, the incumbent county judge, if approved by the voters, has a term of four years.

Application forms are available from the office of the ex officio chair of the nominating commission, Justice Brian Boatright, 2 E. 14th Ave., Denver, CO 80203, and the office of the Court Executive, Scott Sosebee, 719-452-5000, and Deputy Court Executive, Bridget Collins, 270 S. Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903. Applications are also available on the court’s home page at https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/careers/judge-opportunities.

The completed application must be emailed to the address listed in the instructions below no later than 4:00 p.m. on March 20, 2026. Late applications will not be considered. Any person wishing to suggest a candidate to fill the vacancy may do so by letter to be submitted to any member of the nominating commission, with a copy to the ex officio chair, no later than March 13, 2026, by 4:00 p.m.

The members of the nominating commission for the 4th Judicial District are:

Michael Allen of Monument, and Audrey Ramos, Paul Hurcomb, Ian Kalmanowitz, Roland Rainey, and Misty Plowright, all of Colorado Springs.

Editor’s Note: Contact information for the nominating commission members: 

• Audrey Ramos, audrey22ramos@gmail.com
• Paul Hurcomb, pwh@sparkswillson.com
• Ian Kalmanowitz, ian@coloradoemploymentlaw.com
• Roland Rainey, rojune28@yahoo.com
• Misty Plowright, misty.plowright@gmail.com
• Michael Allen, mtallen@mikemoranlaw.com

JUDICIAL NOMINATING COMMISSION

APPLICATION FOR COLORADO STATE COURT JUDGESHIP

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY

Instructions 

1.   The application form for a Colorado state court judgeship can be found on the Judicial Branch website at coloradojudicial.gov/careers/judge-opportunities complete and thorough in answering the questions. If an answer to any question requires more space than provided, attach a separate page for the question(s). Do not change the margins or font size on the application.

2.   Your application materials should be prepared in the following manner:

The application and any attachments must be submitted as a single PDF file with reference letters attached last. The application should be in text searchable format. 

You may submit letters of reference from not less than three and no more than five individuals who are able to comment upon your qualifications for a judicial position. 

It is preferred that reference letters are included with your application submission. However, if they are submitted directly by the author, they must be submitted by email as described below in paragraph 3.  All letters of reference are due by the filing deadline listed in paragraph 4. 

3.   Your application materials compiled as outlined above should be sent via email with your name and 4th JD – El Paso County in the subject line with your materials attached as outlined above no later than 4 p.m. on March 20, 2026 to the following email address:

judicial.applicants@judicial.state.co.us

You should receive an automatic response to your email submission. If you do not, please call the supreme court at the telephone number listed below. Please add this email address to your contacts so that email does not get filtered into your spam.

4.           Your application must be received no later than: 4 p.m. on March 20, 2026.

5.   Call the Colorado Supreme Court Clerk’s office with questions: 720-625-5150 

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4th Judicial District County Court judge finalists selected

The 4th Judicial District Nominating Commission has nominated two candidates for a county court judgeship created by the retirement of Honorable Theresa L. Kilgore, effective March 1, 2026.

Elizabeth Ann McClintock of Colorado Springs and Ryan John Skajewski of Woodland Park were selected by the commission on Feb. 2, 2026.

Under the Colorado Constitution, the governor has 15 days from today, within which to appoint one of the nominees as a county court judge for the 4th Judicial District (Teller County).

Comments regarding any of the nominees may be sent via e-mail to the governor at:

gov_judicialappointments@state.co.us

Editor’s Note: Contact information for the two nominees:

• Elizabeth Ann McClintock: 301 South Weber Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80903. 719-375-0112.
• Ryan John Skajewski: 112 N. A St., Cripple Creek, CO 80813. 719-520-7128.

For questions about this announcement, please contact the Colorado Supreme Court Clerk's Office at: 720-625-5150. 

Colorado Supreme Court justice finalists selected

The Supreme Court Nominating Commission has nominated three candidates for a vacancy on the Colorado Supreme Court. The vacancy was created by the retirement of the Honorable Melissa Hart, effective Jan. 5, 2026.

Honorable Susan Blanco of Fort Collins, Andrea S. Wang of Denver, and Honorable Christopher Clayton Zenisek of Golden were selected by the commission on Feb. 2, 2026.

Under the Colorado Constitution, the governor has 15 days from Feb. 3, 2026, to appoint one of the nominees as a justice on the Colorado Supreme Court. 

Comments regarding any nominee may be emailed to the governor at: gov_judicialappointments@state.co.us. 

Editor’s Note: Contact information for the three nominees: 

• Honorable Susan Blanco. 201 LaPorte Avenue, Ste. 100, Fort Collins, CO 80521. 970-494-3500.
• Andrea S. Wang. 1300 Broadway, 10th floor, Denver, CO 80203. 720-879-2169.
• Honorable Christopher Clayton Zenisek. 100 Jefferson County Parkway, Division 6, Golden, CO 80401. 720-772-2676.  

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DENVER - The Colorado Judicial Department announces the release of its Judicial Officer Outreach Program 2025 Annual Legislative Report, a comprehensive document detailing how the program continues to advance its mission to promote judicial transparency, belonging, and public trust through targeted outreach, pipeline-building, and education on judicial vacancies and the nomination process.

This year’s report includes new data points that highlight the path judicial officers take to reach the bench. These additions underscore the department’s commitment to understanding the path that current judicial officers have taken to the bench and to providing resources that make that path accessible to all.

Key insights found in the report include:

Judicial Officer Demographics and Statewide Trends: The report presents FY 2025 data on judicial appointments and demographics, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and numerous additional background data points of judicial officers statewide. Demographic data are provided both at the statewide level and separately for each of the twenty-three judicial districts.

Findings on Statewide Listening Sessions: This year’s statewide listening sessions, conducted across judicial districts, offered region-specific perspectives on the challenges and opportunities in judicial recruitment.

New Initiatives: Leveraging insights from statewide listening sessions, the Judicial Officer Outreach Program has launched Your Honor: Journey to the Bench, a seven-week virtual webinar series designed for attorneys and aspiring judges. The series aims to foster meaningful dialogue and clarify the judicial pathway to judgeship. This initiative was inspired by and is an extension of a similar in-person symposium held last spring.

"The Judicial Officer Outreach Program is grounded in the belief that meaningful community engagement and partnership build a strong and representative judiciary,” said Nga Vương-Sandoval, judicial officer outreach program lead. “By working closely with judicial officers, court staff, attorneys, government agencies, and community leaders across the state, we deliver programming and engagement that’s intentional, responsive, and impactful.”

The report is available on the Colorado Judicial Department’s website at: www.coloradojudicial.gov/human-resources/judicial-officer-outreach

About the Judicial Officer Outreach Program:

Through its educational and outreach efforts, the Judicial Officer Outreach Program seeks to further the mission of the Colorado Judicial Department to provide the community with a fair and impartial system of justice by ensuring that our courts reflect the communities we serve. This program was established under Colorado SB 19-043 to provide outreach on judicial office vacancies and to create and deliver educational programming on the judicial application process. This is the first program of its kind both in Colorado and in the nation.

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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The 4th Judicial District is now accepting applications for the appointment of a public administrator.

A public administrator is a private individual appointed by the Chief Judge to collect, protect, and manage the assets of certain living individuals, typically through conservatorship, and to administer the estates of certain decedents, when the decedent does not have a person willing and/or able to administer the estate.

A public administrator is not an employee of any city, county, or state government entity or agency, including the appointing district.

The appointee must be a qualified elector over 21 years of age and must be a resident or maintain a principal place of business in the 4th Judicial District (El Paso and Teller counties).

Applications must be submitted via email to Scott Sosebee, 4th Judicial District court executive, at scott.sosebee@judicial.state.co.us, and include a cover letter detailing the applicant's qualifications, a resume, and three professional references.

Applications must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. on Jan. 23, 2026. 

To learn more about the public administrator position, visit coloradojudicial.gov/media/19343. 

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