She joined the paper in 2019 and previously worked as a crime reporter at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in Pennsylvania and the Chattanooga Times Free Press in Tennessee. Were trying to avoid is a bunch of jury decisions being overturned on a technicality, he said. As the world waited for a vaccine, jury trials were put on pause and thousands of defendants and victims were forced to wait to have their day in court. In Eagle, Summit, Clear Creek and Lake counties, Fifth Judicial District Attorney Heidi McCollum expects her district, which has been holding trials since the beginning of March, to be caught up on its backlog by about August. The Colorado Department of Human Services says it has cleared a backlog of inmates who had to wait months in some cases for court-ordered mental health evaluations and treatments. being in a big room with hundreds of people for a Monday morning Vote in our annual food bracket challenge. So, if you didnt have to miss work to appear, if you didnt have to miss child care to appear, I imagine people are more likely to appear, he said. These are the types of decisions people will start making in 2021 until the court backlog is cleared. In a Sept. 18 order, U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen M. Tafoya observed that the curtailment of jury trials in Colorado Springs and the limited use of pilot trials in Denver's Arraj and Rogers . Its been really, really difficult Asking a lawyer to prepare for four or more trials on the same day, its unrealistic to think that each of those trials is getting the attention, investigation and preparation it deserves.. approach rather than discussing settling. Because of limited courtroom space, limited judges and limited jury availability, we will be backlogged for quite some time, Roberts said. go to court? I dont get extra staff because Im holding a trial off-site, she said, and yet it takes extra staff to man a different space, because the space isnt a court space, its a public space, and there are extra entries and things to consider that I need a body there to address.. The weighting The difference is having the legislature make a law it provides them differences because this is a constitutional issue, and it will be challenged, she said. Day-to-day operations have largely bounced back, he said, noting that the district opened an extra courtroom in Douglas County and his office boosted staffing to help work through the amassed cases. The justice system is weighted down by a backlog that grows I think were doing as best we can, McCann said. Free, unlimited access to more than half a million articles (one-article limit removed) from the diverse perspectives of 5,000 leading law, accountancy and advisory firms, Articles tailored to your interests and optional alerts about important changes, Receive priority invitations to relevant webinars and events. "The notion that there's a backlogthere's always a lot of backlog, always more than can go to jury trial. With cases piled up, it's hard to see how the Speedy trial is an incredible motivator, she said. Already, defense attorneys are concerned that defendants constitutional rights are being threatened as the backlog drags on, she said, not just the right to speedy trial but also the right to effective counsel. parties from moving forward creatively or with a settlement could Specialist advice should be sought And as the world slowed, so slowed the judicial courts. technology-enabled formats are starting to work and become more "There are always more cases than can be tried, anda very large percentage of cases reach plea deals," he explained. Chief Judge Martinez of the 2nd Circuit (for Denver Empowering courts to expand and expedite judicial administrations of the Oath. Webex has been upgraded to show documents and it is working well. If cases drag on too long, the reasons preventing both parties from moving forward creatively or with a settlement could fall away. We have to. The backlog of Colorado air pollution permit applications has doubled since the first of two recent EPA ozone downgrades that expanded the number of ozone-contributing polluters who meet the threshold for regulation, state officials said. conference space to manage frayed nerves and, at a minimum, be in Other Courts. In March 2020, the world seemed to grind to a halt as government-issued pandemic restrictions limited social interactions. It took a significant amount of planning to make the space work for jury selection, 10th Judicial District Court Executive Laura Snyder said. Criminal cases go first. We have to. Other trials have slowly begun to move forward after months worth of delays, like the trial of the teen accused of killing Kendrick Castillo in the STEM Highlands Ranch school shooting. docket. interesting, and perhaps the first half of 2021. In general, we do across the district have quite a few trials that are currently set, but I cant attribute the majority of those to COVID.. In 2021, it was closer to 250, and so far in 2022 its been closer to 200, he said. Also, the increase in discovery the increase of body camera information and other social media information is happening in every case. For district attorneys, like Beth McCann, this past year has been difficult. Statewide mandates cause delays in judicial districts On Feb. 18, 2021, Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Brian Boatright issued his first State of the Judiciary speech, noting that the. She joined the paper in 2019 and previously worked as a crime reporter at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in Pennsylvania and the Chattanooga Times Free Press in Tennessee. would be criminal cases because a speedy trial is constitutional. But I dont think its a very rosy picture at this point, Tofte Nestaval said. But its difficult to tie the higher caseloads directly to COVID-related jury trial delays, Cain said, noting that the office also hasseen a marked increase in serious felony charges in the cases it takes on. The uncertainty is going to make the first quarter 2021 very The District of Colorado has announced the suspension of all criminal and civil jury trials and all in-person bench trials through January 8, 2021. Colorado's courts grapple with COVID-19 trial backlog that could take years to clear Some judicial districts renting extra space, bringing back retired judges to speed pace of jury trials. Those conversations have been extremely productive. Vote in our annual food bracket challenge. And I think at some point its going to end up hurting victims and jeopardizing public safety., We will use this experience to enhance our safety protocols so the community may safely continue to conduct business in El Paso Countys courthouse, Chief Judge William Bain said in a. ourt operations shut down because a court staff member tested positive for COVID-19. litigators are uniformly trying to be efficient and have a good The networks scream "breaking news" Sign Up for our free News Alerts - All the latest articles on your chosen topics condensed into a free bi-weekly email. In the coming months, some of those 14,600 cases set for trial will resolve in plea agreements, and the courts will continue to loosen restrictions and hold more trials as the pandemic comes to an end. Will all these trials go to court? but court is in session, running virtually on a Webex platform, At the state public defenders office, caseloads for individual defense attorneys jumped by 15% during the three fiscal years of the pandemic, while they increased by just 6% in the preceding three fiscal years, said Maureen Cain, a spokeswoman for the office. I think those are some lessons we can take with us after the pandemic that may actually improve the rate of appearance.. Its pretty much back to normal, but the dockets are very crowded and trial dockets are particularly wild. certain courtrooms have appeared to be ready to host a socially the next speaker or hearing. Between January 15 and March 30, 2021, I currently If youre found not guilty by a jury or a DA dismisses your case, theres absolutely no provision in the law for you to get anything out of it. possible to carry. COVID disproportionately impacts the poor and people of color, she said. These courts handle traffic cases and misdemeanor criminal matters, as well as small civil actions to $15,000 (amount as of 2001). One District judge recently told me that a hierarchy "It's a double whammy. Between January 15 and March 30, 2021, I currently have five trials scheduled, which is a caseload that is really not possible to carry. But cases are moving forward again, attorneys said. Trial Courts. We dont want to have people sitting in jail longer than they need to. dealing with the backlog may not be as simple as scheduling out new District Courts hear civil cases in any amount, as well as domestic relations, criminal, juvenile, probate, and mental health cases. Officials caution that future changes could tighten restrictions again. Roberts worries that without the bill, defendants who now receive a mistrial and then are tried again and found guilty could appeal their cases and win. However, McCann insists the lighter plea bargains have not been offered on any of the serious, violent crimes involving victims. Some of the states less-busy courts alreadyhave cleared their COVID-19 backlogs. Home Courts. In 4 years, Lori Lightfoot went from breakout political star to divisive mayor of a Chicago beset by pandemic and crime, Florida lawmakers to consider expansion of so-called dont say gay law, Drone crashes at Disneyland after hovering over visitors heads See video, Rapper Travis Scott wanted for assaulting Manhattan club sound engineer, destroying $12K in equipment, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. On Feb. 18, 2021, Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Brian Boatright issued his first State of the Judiciary speech, Building connections: Swerdfeger Construction sells to national company, Pueblo West woman's dreams of owning a food truck come to fruition with Luke Dogs, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. This is new uncharted territory for our state., by Moe Clark, Colorado Newsline August 6, 2020. Some district attorneys say they have offered better plea bargains in low-level cases during the pandemic, and that in some cases those offers havent been accepted as defendants either hold out for trial or hope the backlog will lead eventually to an even better plea offer or their case being dismissed on speedy trial grounds. Our staff and the courts and the judges around the state, theyre doing what they can to clear it. Technology issues add a layer of anxiety for clients and increase the difficulty for lawyers in preparing a witness for any hearing. The bill allows judges to grant a continuance, as it is known, up to two times, but the bill sponsors indicated they would seek to limit the extensions to just one. Every trial I had scheduled this year starting on March 30, 2020, has been reset to the first quarter of 2021. One District judge recently told me that a hierarchy may be necessary to get through the backlog of cases. with the technology, and are becoming so familiar with the problem, clients. The delays in the court cases can be emotionally overwhelming for victims who prepared themselves for court only to have the case delayed or declared a mistrial. We just dont know for how long.. Governor's response have trickled down to both the state and It's Election night in America 2020 (night five or maybe seven?). would not be based on which case was filed first. Chieftain reporter Heather Willard can be reached via email at hwillard@gannett.com or on Twitter: @HeatherDWrites. Will all these trials parents today hiring school teachers for their children, we can The backlog is really overwhelming to the system right now, and it impacts the rights of defendants, and it impacts the rights of victims, and it certainly impacts the ability of the system from judges to prosecutors to defense attorneys to keep up, Mason said. And unfortunately, those answers just arent there., She said shes unsure how the long-term impacts will play out as a result of the backlog of criminal cases. But Rather, the weighting would be based on factual scenarios or the claims made to process more sensitive cases first, followed by the money cases later. Follow Colorado Newsline on Facebook and Twitter. Some judges are sitting for hearings, including evidentiary hearings, and certain courtrooms have appeared to be ready to host a socially distant jury selection. Dougherty said that the El Paso County courts recent shut-down highlights the reality that all courts are facing. Court staff, defense attorneys, prosecutors, judges and even the state legislature are taking a variety of measures to try to address the logjam, including renting extra space, trying to hire more staff and making it easier for retired judges to temporarily return to the bench to shoulder some of the workload. and circuit by circuit. justice system's perspective are the criminal cases because Thats really unusual to try two back-to-back homicide trials.. Adams Alamosa Arapahoe Archuleta Baca Bent Boulder Broomfield Chaffee Cheyenne Clear Creek Conejos Costilla Crowley Custer Delta Denver Dolores Douglas Eagle El Paso Elbert Fremont Garfield Gilpin Grand Gunnison Hinsdale Huerfano Jackson Jefferson Kiowa Kit Carson La Plata Lake Larimer Las Animas Lincoln Logan . Jon Sarche, a spokesman for the Colorado Judicial Department, said that it is difficult to quantify how long it will take to get through Colorados backlog of criminal cases, especially since new cases are still being filed every day. opposing side and move the case to arbitration. system. Banking, Lending & Financial Institutions, Securities Litigation & Enforcement Defense. One, the fact that our clients are being held in custody, in jails and prisons, during the global pandemic, which makes their chances of contracting coronavirus shoot through the roof, Gorman said. Denver, CO 80202, Ph: (303) 573 1600 She is a trial instructor as well as a frequent writer and presenter on legal issues. That ship has sailed, she said. Benavidez at least wants the defendants to have a voice in the continuance process if the bill passes. With each trial delay, litigants are taking a wait and see approach rather than discussing settling. 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