Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government.

Colorado’s second-highest court formally welcomed its most recent member, while a new chief judge was appointed to lead one of the state’s 22 judicial districts. Plus, a handful of immigration decisions came out of the federal courts last week.

New(-ish) judges alert

?  Although it is a relatively small thing compared to the other disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic, the novel coronavirus put a hold on the formal swearings-in of judges, known as investiture ceremonies. This summer, the state Court of Appeals has celebrated investitures for five of its judges who were appointed just before and throughout the pandemic. The latest appointee, Timothy J. Schutz, held his ceremony this month, even though his appointment dates to late 2021.

?  Of note, Schutz is the first judge on the 22-member court to come from El Paso County in 50 years. He is also one of the few appellate judges with experience as a trial judge, spending 11 years on the district court for El Paso County.

?  Colorado Politics previously reported on Schutz’s dissents in two cases involving potential racial bias in jury selection. In both instances, he believed trial judges’ actions were insufficient to diagnose or address discrimination. During his investiture, attendees found out that Schutz has presented to other judges about implicit racial bias and worked to make juror questionnaires inclusive of transgender or nonbinary people. Schutz himself said he learned from his father the importance of “service to others and, particularly, those who are disenfranchised.”

?  Also, on Friday Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright appointed a new chief judge to take the reins in Weld County, given the impending retirement of Judge James F. Hartmann. Julie C. Hoskins, who has been a district court judge since 2007, will become the new chief judge on Oct. 1.

?  Prior to her appointment, Hoskins was a county court judge and a magistrate. Her caseload is largely criminal, plus a smaller number of mental health cases. She will be on the ballot this November for retention, where her performance commission has found Hoskins meets performance standards.

?  “Judge Hoskins displays a professional, calm, and deliberate demeanor that provides an atmosphere of dignity, respect, and civility to all who appear before her. She strives to communicate written decisions, so they are understandable to everyone. Judge Hoskins was rated higher than the average District Court judge in the areas of case management, application and knowledge of law, diligence, and demeanor.” -19th Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance

Immigration cases

?  It isn’t often that immigrants challenging their deportations in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit are able to get relief. But the circuit court last week slammed the federal government for proceeding to deport a woman from Colorado by relying on a rule that does not exist and acting contrary to the U.S. Supreme Court’s interpretation of the law.

?  “Instead of accepting its mistake or focusing its energies on Congress (who might be able to bail it out), the government has chosen to ‘continue down the same old path,’ asking us to ignore the clear statutory text in favor of its preferred interpretation.” -Senior Judge Bobby R. Baldock

?  At the same time, a former child soldier from Sierra Leone who has been sitting in detention in Aurora for 469 days was unable to convince a judge to intervene and order a bond hearing. Although his 16 months in detention is anything but brief, other judges have found detentions to be constitutionally unreasonable when they were far longer than 16 months.

Other federal news

?  A federal judge dismissed an inmate’s disability discrimination lawsuit, calling it “frivolous” and saying an appeal “would not be taken in good faith” because the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn’t apply to inmates in prison work programs. The 10th Circuit said simply: No, that’s not true.

?  A Black woman sued her former employer after she allegedly endured pervasive racist and sexist behavior in her Denver office, including the company’s refusal to promote her. A trial judge sided with the employer in dismissing the case, but the 10th Circuit ordered that a jury be able to decide whether she experienced a hostile work environment and retaliation.

?  The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office had a plausible, nondiscriminatory explanation for sending a Hispanic female deputy to repeated remedial trainings, the 10th Circuit decided, agreeing the deputy apparently did not know how to safely handle a firearm.

?  Even though her union reportedly gave her incorrect information that prevented her from pursuing a discrimination lawsuit in time, a Fort Collins postal worker could not sue the union itself for its mistake, the 10th Circuit said.

?  Law enforcement in Jefferson County caused damage to a man’s home and shot him in the abdomen while carrying out a predawn no-knock search warrant. Although he did not contest the warrant itself – indeed, prosecutors allege he was connected to a Hells Angels kidnapping – he claimed the police acted unconstitutionally in their execution. A federal judge agreed with that in part.

?  Three property managers in Gunnison signed an agreement with the federal government as part of an anti-discrimination settlement. Since then, they have ghosted everyone. A magistrate judge held a contempt hearing, sans the trio, and even attempted to call them from the courtroom. He will now recommend leaving open a path for them to be arrested.

?  A Southern California man is out of luck, as a federal judge in Colorado said he could not sue restaurant chain Red Robin under a federal telemarketing law for sending him promotional text messages.

Updates on familiar issues

?  The Court Crawl is monitoring several topics that frequently arise in the state’s justice system. One such issue is the application of the Indian Child Welfare Act, a 1978 federal law designed to prevent the breakup of American Indian families. Last week, a panel of the state’s Court of Appeals decided a Denver judge wrongly found she didn’t have “reason to know” she was dealing with an American Indian child – even though the mother and father each identified two tribes they were potentially affiliated with.

?  Another key issue is restitution orders that require criminal defendants to repay victims for their injuries. Carrying out the law on restitution can apparently be tricky, as evidenced by a pair of Court of Appeals decisions finding fault with two trial judges’ orders. In El Paso County, a judge directed the defendant to pay $303 for the funeral costs of a man he killed with his car – which was a problem because the defendant wasn’t actually charged with causing the victim’s death. And in Arapahoe County, a judge mistakenly ordered restitution in a domestic violence case well beyond the 91-day deadline in state law.

Vacancies and appointments

?  The governor has appointed Angela M. Roff, an attorney who works on municipal and family law issues, to the Garfield County Court. She will succeed Judge Paul Metzger.

Miscellaneous decisions

?  Although voters in 2018 approved a constitutional prohibition on involuntary servitude, even when someone is convicted of a crime, the state Court of Appeals said Colorado’s prison labor program does not amount to involuntary servitude.

?  Colorado’s attorney regulation system imposed a six-month suspension of the law license of District Court Judge Mark D. Thompson, who prosecutors accused of felony menacing last year. The suspension will not be in effect, however, as long as he completes his probation without further incident.

?  A La Plata County judge mishandled an ambiguous note from the jury by giving directions in a potentially-coercive manner, the Court of Appeals believed.

?  An El Paso County judge believed a defendant had relinquished his constitutional right to a trial by jury when, in fact, there was no clear proof he had, according to the Court of Appeals.

Going on holiday

?  The Court Crawl will be taking a break for the Labor Day holiday.