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

The state Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week, plus disciplinary authorities resolved the misconduct case against a San Miguel County judge.

At the Supreme Court

•  The Colorado Supreme Court has four cases on its docket this Wednesday. They are:

People v. Vega Dominguez: The Supreme Court will examine the required mental state and potential equal protection violation arising from various child prostitution-related offenses.

Kavanaugh v. Telluride Locals Coalition Petitioners’ Committee et al.: Can a developer seek to rezone a parcel of open space in a planned unit development via the ballot box, rather than a locality’s standard review process?

In the Marriage of Dale: If a judge reduces the amount of time a parent can spend with their child post-divorce, can the reduction ever be so significant that the judge must consider the much higher standard of “endangerment?”

People in the Interest of T.J.W.: Although the underlying materials in this juvenile delinquency matter are shielded from public view, the case broadly concerns a judge’s order suppressing the evidence of a crime found in a child’s backpack during a search.

•  Also on Wednesday, three floors down, a three-judge Court of Appeals panel will hear the criminal appeal of Tina Peters, the former Mesa County clerk whose 2024 convictions and nine-year sentence of incarceration have drawn the president’s contempt and attempted pardon.

•  The Supreme Court reversed a Jefferson County judge’s order requiring a car crash plaintiff to sit for a mental evaluation because the defense’s experts suggested her injuries actually stemmed from psychological, not physical, sources.

Heard on appeal

•  One member of the Court of Appeals cautioned his colleagues against labeling new offenses as “grave or serious” in all scenarios, given the Supreme Court’s recent hesitancy about continuing that practice.

•  Due to improperly admitted evidence of previous, uncharged misconduct, the Court of Appeals ordered a new child abuse trial for a defendant.

In federal news

•  One member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit suggested the full court review its 1982 precedent that prohibits law enforcement from initially conducting anything more than a pat-down search when the officer has not arrested a suspect, even if probable cause exists to do so.

•  A federal magistrate judge recommended blocking the U.S. Department of Justice’s subpoena of Children’s Hospital Colorado, believing the broad request for patient and staff information was improper.

•  Although several of his colleagues have been preaching the virtues of civil litigants consenting to a magistrate judge’s handling of their cases, U.S. District Court Judge S. Kato Crews has gone a step further and is now making that pitch directly on the docket.

Vacancies and appointments

•  There are three finalists to succeed retiring Judge Michael Roche on the Arapahoe County Court: Jefferson County Magistrate Nicholas Campbell, Arapahoe County Magistrate Adam Hepp and Kathleen Marie Tierney.

•  There are two finalists to succeed retiring Judge John D. Mochel on the Las Animas County Court: Matthew Thomas Berumen and Rex B. Delmas.

•  The chief justice has named 13 members of the Legal Technology Advisory Committee, which will make recommendations about the use of artificial intelligence tools and other technologies in the legal community:

Court of Appeals Judge Lino S. Lipinsky de Orlov (chair)

Katina Banks

Denver District Court Judge Jill D. Dorancy

23rd Judicial District Court Judge Stacy Guillon

April Jones

Prof. Margot Kaminski

Lois R. Lupica

Prof. Julia Martinez

Colin Moriarty

Damien Riehl

Prof. Michael Siebecker

Boulder County Magistrate Thomas Ward

Justice Maria E. Berkenkotter (liaison to Supreme Court)

Miscellaneous proceedings

•  San Miguel County Court Judge Sean K. Murphy has resigned, following the request of disciplinary authorities that Murphy’s misconduct case proceed as a disability matter due to significant health concerns that allegedly played a role in his actions.

•  Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez spoke to the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee about her 2026 priorities, including the funding of newly established judgeships and a full-time employee to help coordinate judicial security statewide.