Gov. Jared Polis on Wednesday appointed Attorney General Phil Weiser to serve as interim district attorney for the 12th Judicial District beginning July 14 following the resignation of embattled San Luis Valley District Attorney Alonzo Payne.

Payne, whose resignation is effective on July 13, has been the target of a recall campaign and a withering report from the Attorney General’s Office. He resigned a day before Polis was set to announce the date of his recall election.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser on Tuesday said an investigation revealed complaints so severe they are unprecedented in the state of Colorado. The seven-month investigation not only confirmed the allegations but that Payne did not do anything about them.

In a statement, Weiser said that “the people of the San Luis Valley deserve a fresh start with a new district attorney” and acknowledged there are systemic problems with the 12th JD’s office. 

Payne blamed the “elite” and said he wanted to spare the citizens of the San Luis Valley the expense and divisiveness of a recall election.

“It is apparent to me that the elite of the San Luis Valley and the judicial activists amongst us do not want to see criminal justice reform enacted,” he said in a letter. “I hope they soon realize that incarcerating the poor and underprivileged is not the solution to address the overarching poverty and substance abuse issues that are rampant in the San Luis Valley and statewide.” 

During its investigation, Weiser’s office found that the vast six-county 12^th Judicial District, Payne and his staff routinely failed to communicate with victims about their cases, failed to consult with them about plea deals and case dismissals, and generally not treated them with dignity.

Weiser on Tuesday said the “lack of compliance in this case is deeply problematic happening in the face of prior efforts to do something about it.” 

The grassroots campaign to recall Payne was started earlier this year by a domestic violence victim who said Payne disrespected her, yelled at her and even called her “hysterical” on the eve of her ex-fiancee’s trial in which she was expected to testify against him.

“We’re done. The recall is over. Today the citizens/victims of the San Luis Valley have truly been heard,” Lani Welch of Alamosa said. “I never thought it would happen.”

Just last week, the Secretary of State’s office notified Welch that her petition campaign had garnered enough signatures to set a recall election in motion. 

Representatives of the Attorney General’s Office had traveled to the San Luis Valley to talk with victims who complained about how Payne treated them.

Weiser confirmed that his office investigated nine complaints from crime victims and the probe validated their claims. He also announced securing an agreement with the district attorney’s office. 

“It says to me that the lack of compliance in this case is deeply problematic happening in the face of prior efforts to do something about it,” Weiser said.

In a statement, Weiser said in some instances, Payne’s office “may even have placed victims’ safety at risk.”  

Under the agreement, an outside independent monitor will oversee Payne’s office’s compliance with the Victim Rights Act and the Colorado Constitution. The state will choose the independent monitor, who will be funded by the district attorney’s office. Payne’s office must provide full access to its documents and personnel to the monitor.

Payne’s office must also create a new policy that ensures it communicates with crime victims and with law enforcement related to cases which arise in the district. That agreement will last for three years or six months after a new DA takes office, “whichever comes first,” according Weiser.

In addition, the office must also:

• Adopt new mandatory training for employees to ensure compliance with new policies and procedures
• Revise the office’s website, create new informational materials, and notify victims of their VRA rights
• Hold quarterly meetings with staff and others, including law enforcement, to improve communication about VRA compliance and operations relating to VRA cases

Payne, a San Luis Valley native who has been the top law enforcement officer there for a year and a half, did not respond to a request for comment. He ran for office on a platform of criminal justice reform, was opposed to mass incarceration, and stressed that the poor were all too often criminalized because they couldn’t afford an attorney to represent them.

He was endorsed by Bernie Sanders in June 2020 as a criminal justice advocate.