A judge who has spent a decade on the bench, and whom 86% of Boulder County voters approved for another term in the 2020 election, will now handle what is likely the highest-profile case of her career: the trial of the man accused of killing 10 people at a King Soopers this week.

Ingrid S. Bakke was a district court appointee of former Gov. Bill Ritter, taking office in 2011. She became the chief judge in the 20th Judicial District following the 2017 retirement of her predecessor, now-Supreme Court Justice Maria E. Berkenkotter.

“I really can’t think of a better judicial officer to preside over a case like this,” said Stanley Garnett, the former district attorney in Boulder County. During Garnett’s tenure, he prosecuted the well-publicized attempted murder case against Dynel Lane, and he described the trial judge’s responsibility to maintain control of press access in a way that is ethical but does also not compromise the defendant’s right to a fair trial.

“Part of what Judge Bakke will be doing is making sure evidence is presented efficiently, and also one of the judge’s responsibilities in a case like this is to make sure the jury is treated fairly and appropriately,” Garnett added.

Bakke, a graduate of the University of Colorado and the University of Denver’s law school, served in her career as chief deputy district attorney in Boulder and as a deputy district attorney for Jefferson County. Before her appointment, she worked on criminal defense and child abuse matters in private practice.

During the 2020 judicial retention cycle, the citizen-led commission that evaluates judges’ performance unanimously issued a favorable recommendation, finding 97% of attorney and 100% of non-lawyer survey respondents believed she met performance standards.

“Judge Bakke’s demeanor is respectful, intelligent, compassionate and patient. She manages trials well and pays close attention to the personal circumstances and needs of all litigants,” the commission wrote in its narrative to voters. “She demonstrates a good sense of humor that helps to put participants in her courtroom at ease.”

The commission also complimented her handling as chief judge of the district’s adaptation to the coronavirus pandemic.

Bakke, also speaks at schools and judges mock trial competitions, also presided over the 2016 trial of a man convicted of killing a Colorado State Patrol cadet in 2015. She sentenced the defendant to life in prison, per state law. That same year, she sentenced a Longmont man to two years in community corrections – Colorado’s term for a halfway house – for shooting his pit bull in the head.

“There is no justification for some sort of rogue euthanasia,” Bakke said, calling the animal cruelty offense “pointless” and “senseless.”

The suspect charged in the King Soopers murders has not yet entered a plea, but attorneys have suggested the case will likely end in a jury trial.