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

The Colorado Supreme Court decided a high-profile free speech case by dodging the high-profile constitutional question, plus the state’s new director of judicial discipline spoke about her path to the job.

Masterpiece Cakeshop appeal fizzles

•  Masterpiece Cakeshop of Lakewood, owned by Jack Phillips, made national news in 2018 after the U.S. Supreme Court sided with him on narrow grounds over his refusal to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple for religious reasons. Subsequently, Phillips was again accused of discriminating against a trans customer by refusing to supply her with a cake to celebrate her gender transition. A trial judge and the Court of Appeals agreed Phillips violated Colorado law, setting up the question for the state Supreme Court.

•  Rather than decide the case on the merits, the justices, by 4-3, concluded the case wasn’t filed properly in the first place. Therefore, they didn’t need to address recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent that suggested Phillips’ refusal would be constitutionally protected.

•  The justices disagreed over whether the majority violated the “party presentation principle” by basing its decision on a justification that neither side specifically relied upon. This comes just nine months after the state Supreme Court warned the Court of Appeals against raising issues on its own.

New judicial discipline chief

•  This summer, Anne Mangiardi took over as the executive director of the Colorado Commission on Judicial Discipline. Formerly with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office, she arrives at a time when voters may choose to revamp the process of disciplining judges through a constitutional amendment on this year’s ballot. Mangiardi spoke to Colorado Politics about her first few months on the job and her plans going forward. Here is an excerpt of the Q&A:

Colorado Politics: Before you joined the judicial discipline commission or since, have you had an opportunity to look at how other states handle judicial discipline?

Mangiardi: Yeah. There is an annual conference — an organization of these various state organizations — and it happened to be the first week I started. My fourth day on the job, I was in D.C. meeting a bunch of directors from other states

There’s a lot of similarities between how other states work. It was interesting to see some of the range. Some states have one person and that’s it. Other states have significant staffs. We’re kind of in the middle — we have three. But it is nice to know there are other people looking at issues in these states and they’re a great resource that I can talk to when I have questions.

CP: Either from that interaction or from your ideas having applied for the commission, is there anything you plan to do to change how things operate, to the extent you can change things unilaterally?

Mangiardi: One thing that’s always been part of our constitutional mission — but hasn’t been at the forefront of the commission’s actions for the last few years — has been education. We have a statutory mission to educate judges and the public. I think we want to put a lot more emphasis on that in the next year or two.

Judicial conference

•  On Sept. 15-18, the states’ judges met at The Hythe luxury resort in Vail for the annual judicial conference. Although media were not permitted to attend, event chair Justice Carlos A. Samour Jr. provided Colorado Politics with an overview of the program:

Samour: The speakers at this year’s judicial conference were, once again, informative, compelling, and inspiring. The primary plenary speaker, former Gov. Bill Ritter, spoke about the rule of law and the critical role that courts play in our democracy, especially during these politically polarizing times. He reminded us of how significant the work we do is in our society. And he encouraged us to lead with love, not fear.

Ozan Varol, another plenary speaker, challenged us to think like a rocket scientist, imagine the unimaginable, and reach for the impossible as we continue to grow individually and as a branch.

Our third plenary speaker, Dr. Tali Sharot, educated us about research showing that biases we may not be aware of (such as confirmation bias and optimism bias) affect our decisions, and she discussed suggestions to guard against that phenomenon.

The breakout sessions included a variety of nuts-and-bolts presentations — such as law updates in different areas, legal writing, and evidence courses — as well as classes focused on the intangibles (judicial wellbeing, race-related issues, generative AI, and an insider’s perspective into the Colorado Department of Corrections). The conference also allowed judicial officers an opportunity to interact with each other, including at the annual diversity dinner.

Notably, this was the first conference at which childcare was available, and during that time, we held a Women on the Bench retreat — a well-attended all-day event at which Jeannie Ritter, the former first lady, spoke.

•  There were 462 judicial officers registered for the conference. The judicial branch wasn’t yet able to share the cost of the event.

•  Other sessions for judges focused on evictions law, language access and cultural competency, the application of the Americans with Disabilities Act in courtrooms and personal safety tips for judges.

•  Also of note, retired Larimer County District Court Judge Julie Field — who told Colorado Politics this year she was willing to lead a workshop on improv comedy if asked — wound up teaching her improv workshop this time.

Heard on appeal

•  The state’s Court of Appeals clarified that law enforcement’s pursuit of a cell phone PIN code triggers the same constitutional protections as their pursuit of the contents of the cell phone itself.

•  The Court of Appeals upheld jurors’ use of a demonstrative aid in one murder trial and a calculator in a second murder trial, rejecting the defendants’ claims that the devices were problematic.

In federal news

•  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit concluded an Aurora councilwoman hadn’t stated viable constitutional violations against a former social worker who generated a false report of child abuse about her.

•  A jury will decide whether Denver police officers arrested a woman at former Mayor Michael Hancock‘s 2019 inauguration in retaliation for her protest, a judge ruled.

•  Acknowledging that the 10th Circuit needed to address the appeal first, a federal judge put on hold his ruling for a conservative podcaster to pay $1,000 per day in fines until he complied with court orders.

Hispanic heritage discussion

•  For National Hispanic Heritage Month, the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association, the Court of Appeals and other groups sponsored an event in the state Supreme Court’s courtroom with a discussion about Latino representation in the legal community. The panelists included Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez and Adams County Court Judge Mariana Vielma.

•  “I love being in a county courtroom because that is the one place in the world where I get to be all of me,” said Vielma.

•  Prior to the discussion, the sponsors invited Mi Casa Resource Center to present about its offerings, including legal clinics. The representative asked attendees to volunteer their time, leading Court Crawl to wonder: Was that an appropriate request for a private entity to make in the Supreme Court courtroom, with justices and judges sitting feet away on the bench?

“The organizing committee invited Mi Casa to speak on the ‘challenges facing the legal community.’ The court was unaware that any organization, including Mi Casa, would include information about volunteering in their presentations,” responded the judicial branch’s chief communications officer, Suzanne Karrer.

•  “There was nothing improper about the Court hosting an event the purpose of which was improving access to justice. The judges themselves didn’t participate in or encourage the solicitation; apparently they didn’t even know that it would occur,” added judicial ethics expert Jeremy Fogel, a retired federal judge from California. “The Court might want to consider a ‘no solicitation’ policy for future events, but I don’t see any impropriety on the part of the judges in this instance.” 

Vacancies and appointments

•  There are three finalists to succeed Denver County Court Judge James Zobel: Magistrate Arnie A. Beckman, former Adams County Court Judge Cindy Dang and Brian C. Williamson. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston will make the appointment.

Miscellaneous proceedings

•  Federal, state and municipal judges met with lawyers to receive feedback and discuss a variety of topics ranging from ethics and self-represented litigants to court procedures.

•  The trial continued in Denver District Court over the controversial merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, with Attorney General Phil Weiser‘s office making the case against the consolidation.

•  On Oct. 12, the Fourth Judicial District’s recovery court, a drug problem-solving court, graduated 12 people from El Paso and Teller counties who received diversion and case-management services to achieve sobriety.