Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government. The state Supreme Court has finished its pre-summer vacation work by hearing a slate of oral arguments and issuing multiple unanimous opinions, plus the state’s Court of Appeals finally held formal swearing-in ceremonies for three members who joined just as the pandemic was shutting things down.

Closing arguments

•  The Colorado Supreme Court is away for the summer, but not before wrapping up some final business in pending appeals. The justices held oral arguments in a half dozen cases in late June, spanning civil and criminal matters plus a rare attorney discipline case.

•  The Sixth Amendment provides a guarantee of a public trial to criminal defendants, the idea being it holds judges and prosecutors accountable and discourages perjury, among other functions. In one trial involving a pair of defendants, an Arapahoe County judge excluded one man’s wife from the courtroom for harassing a witness in the hallway. The justices are now weighing whether the trial judge should have gone through the four-part test for deciding whether to partially close his courtroom, or if the need for courtroom management made that unnecessary.

•  There is a split in the Court of Appeals about how to interpret whether juvenile court judges have “reason to know” that a child is an American Indian child in custody proceedings, which would trigger longstanding federal protections for tribes. On the one hand, the justices were sensitive to tribal sovereignty. On the other hand, they recognized the need to avoid expanding the Indian Child Welfare Act to apply to more situations than required.

•  There was agreement between the prosecution and defense that if you’re going to prove someone had a prior conviction, showing the jury the same name and birthdate is not enough. But the parties differed about how much more evidence is necessary, and whether the Supreme Court needs to dictate a standard that’s different from the status quo.

•  In an unusual attorney discipline case, a prominent family law attorney with no disciplinary history and a good reputation was suspended for one year plus one day for a series of unethical behaviors in a divorce case. A hearing board found that she placed her own payment above her client’s interest, disobeyed a judge’s order and used undisclosed martial property to pay her own bills. While some Supreme Court justices wondered if the discipline was overly broad, others indicated the failure to disclose a $47,000 check made out to both spouses in the divorce was a big deal.

•  Municipalities and some state agencies are pleading with the Supreme Court to overturn an appellate decision that relaxed the 28-day deadline for people to challenge government decisions in court. The ruling, they say, opens the door to previously-barred lawsuits on so many diverse issues, from zoning and liquor licenses to correctional decisions involving inmates. 

Decisions

•  Three ballot initiatives will not make their way to voters this fall because they impermissibly combined expanded wine sales in food stores with third-party delivery of alcohol, which the Supreme Court deemed separate subjects. (There are two other approved ballot initiatives that would, separately, enact those policy changes.)

•  A Colorado State Patrol trooper in Mesa County quizzed four travelers about their itinerary until he was convinced they were smuggling drugs. He even ignored a drug-detection dog who indicated no contraband was present, choosing to search the car anyway. Although he was correct — ultimately finding drugs in the glove compartment — the Supreme Court labeled the search illegal because it lacked probable cause.

•  Under the Indian Child Welfare Act (see above), counties have a heightened obligation to try and keep American Indian families together in child welfare cases. Denver, which consistently provided services to a mother despite her own lack of progress, did just that, the Supreme Court decided.

A belated welcome

•  Shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, three judges took their seats on the Court of Appeals: Sueanna P. Johnson, Christina F. Gomez and David H. Yun. While there is normally an elaborate swearing-in ceremony called an investiture that happens soon after an appointment, obviously that was a bit tricky given the state of the world. Last week, the investiture finally happened, albeit after the trio of judges had already been working for two years.

•  The “three amigos,” as they are known, became close on the court given their entrance together under unprecedented circumstances. Among the interesting facts learned about each: Johnson is good at giving nicknames to her fellow judges. Gomez met her husband while he was a tour guide in Peru and she was visiting the country. Yun is a compelling orator, but also very shy.

•  Both Johnson and Yun are South Korean immigrants. Yun grew emotional when talking about the sacrifices his parents made, and remembered his recently-deceased father. Yun said he thought about canceling his investiture, but his siblings convinced him otherwise: “This event was about more than my accomplishments. This event gave my dad a sense of pride, fulfilment and meaning to his own life. That all of the sacrifices my parents made were worth it.”

Vacancies and appointments

•  Ketanji Brown Jackson is the newest U.S. Supreme Court justice, succeeding retired Justice Stephen G. Breyer on June 30.

•  There are three finalists to succeed Judge Monica Gomez on the El Paso County Court: Charlotte Ankeny, Marika Frady and Theodore McClintock.

•  The governor has made three appointments to vacancies on the Denver District Court: Anita M. Schutte, with the state attorney general’s office, will succeed retiring Judge Michael J. Vallejos. Public defender Demetria E.A. Trujillo will succeed retiring Chief Judge Michael A. Martinez. Andrew J. Luxen, a chief deputy district attorney for Denver, will succeed retiring Judge Edward D. Bronfin.

•  The governor also selected two new judges for the 11th Judicial District in Chaffee, Custer, Fremont and Park counties. Former appointed district attorney and Cañon City council member Kaitlin B. Turner will succeed District Court Judge Ramsey Lama, who has resigned. Custer County Court Judge Amanda J. Hunter will succeed retiring District Court Judge Stephen A. Groome.

•  Finally, criminal defense and child welfare attorney Laura H. Harvell will join the Montrose County Court, succeeding Judge Bennet A. Morris, who has resigned.

Miscellaneous decisions

•  Air Force Academy cadets in Colorado Springs are seeking to block the U.S. Department of Defense’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate with a lawsuit, The Gazette reports.

Summer vacation

•  The Court Crawl will be gone next week, and will return on July 18.