This is new uncharted territory for our state., by Moe Clark, Colorado Newsline August 6, 2020. They try to stay impartial and out of politics. Technology issues add a layer of anxiety for clients and increase the difficulty for lawyers in preparing a witness for any hearing. Banking, Lending & Financial Institutions, Securities Litigation & Enforcement Defense. Those conversations have been extremely productive. For the May trial of accused STEM school shooter Devon Erickson, officials in the 18th Judicial District plan to rent out hotel space in order to call in 600 potential jurors without violating COVID-19 social distancing requirements. The backlog has resulted in delayed justice for crime victims and their families and threatens to deny the constitutional right to a speedy trial for the accused. Over the last decade, public defenders have gone from carrying an average of 72 cases at a time to 106 a 47% increase. Copyright 2021 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Jury trials will not happen in Boulder, Jefferson, Broomfield, Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert and Lincoln counties until at least Jan. 21 if not longer, chief judges for those judicial districts. Specialist advice should be sought In the 17th Judicial District, Mason said he needs to hire more attorneys to address the backlog. Benavidez says many of the people who are in pre-trial detention simply cannot afford their bonds and extending the amount of time they are in jail infringes on their rights. parents today hiring school teachers for their children, we can We need people to believe trials will go forward, that their feet are to the fire, per se, to move to settlement when that is the best outcome for our clients. DEIJ Policy | Ethics Policy | Privacy Policy. Opinion: Colorado farms going fallow? Some are better at WebEx, some arent, said Raynes, referring to the video application that courts are using for remote court proceedings. I have an attorney who tried a homicide case this last week and will try another next week, he said. Readers should seek specific legal advice before acting with regard to the matters addressed above. At this point, I dont know if any of them will go as currently scheduled because no one knows what will happen with the pandemic. The U.S. Supreme Court has dismissed a case asking the Court to adopt an approach that would broaden the scope of the attorney-client privilege when communications contain both legal and nonlegal advice. Nicole Westbrook is an attorney with Jones & Keller in Denver. to come. "The notion that there's a backlogthere's always a lot of backlog, always more than can go to jury trial. These methods of making courts more efficient will likely revolutionize courts as we know them. Colorado Newsline is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. People just have so many trials set that its difficult to devote the attention to each one that we would like. "used" sandwich bag and replaces it with a new one for Dougherty said that since his districts courts started conducting some proceedings via video, it has seen a decrease in the number of no shows. Typically, when a person misses a court appearance, a warrant is issued for their arrest. On Feb. 18, 2021, Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Brian Boatright issued his first State of the Judiciary speech, noting that the state had a backlog of more than 14,600 cases, with over 10,000 belonging in criminal court. The courts and the parties continue . First up Because ultimately, when were dealing with the flood of cases in the backlog, time is going to run out on us, he added. We just dont know for how long.. Judges have instead declared mistrials which delays the trial for 90 days or extended speedy trial deadlines by six months, a move the state Supreme Court allowed during the pandemic under some conditions. The real question in my mind is whether you can force people to come. creative solutions to keep court proceedings moving forward. To hear that its going to be delayed is devastating, but to hear that it might get dismissed altogether because of a right afforded to the defendant that isnt exactly afforded to the survivor is even worse, said Emily Tofte Nestaval, the executive director of the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center. dealing with the backlog may not be as simple as scheduling out new but court is in session, running virtually on a Webex platform, I would say we dont have a backlog due to COVID in this district, said Fifth Judicial District Attorney Heidi McCollum, the top prosecutor in Eagle, Summit, Lake and Clear Creek counties. The lighter plea bargains can be even more devastating for victims to come to terms with. unusually quietnot a lot of people are there. The work has continued, its just slowed down, Sarche said. would be that the court system would return to near normal. documents and it is working well. Boatrightissued an urgent request to the Colorado General Assembly, asking for deadline extensions in criminal trials, whichare bound by Colorado law to take place within six months of an innocent plea issued by a defendant, or within 90 days of a pleafor federal charges. Now, Colorado lawmakers are considering a bill that would take some of the pressure associated with speedy trials off the court system to allow for some delays. First up would be criminal cases because a speedy trial is constitutional. But that hasnt happened in Colorado. "The pros of that situation is that those cases got done much faster and are no longer in the 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. I think were doing as best we can, McCann said. At this point, I don't know if any of them 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. With the backlog, litigators are uniformly trying to be efficient and have a good sense of humor. ", More: Building connections: Swerdfeger Construction sells to national company. showing up for work. So thats some of the difficulty, the lack of continuity throughout the state by the judiciary., Alleviating the backlog in criminal cases. opposing side and move the case to arbitration. Developed and managed by OvalOptions for Conflict Management, CCC is a statewide, online mediation service that provides disputants another route to resolve . It is overwhelming, and weve had the judicial branch of our government come to the legislature here and ask for some relief, and they dont normally do that. She is a trial instructor as well as a frequent writer and presenter on legal issues. The District of Colorado has announced the That means the district attorneys office like defense attorneys must prepare for all of the cases, straining resources. Legally, however, prosecutors are still bound to the six-monthguideline. POPULAR ARTICLES ON: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration from United States. His client, charged in 2019, waited three years for the misdemeanor case to go to trial in Denver because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which delayed thousands of criminal cases across the state as courts at first shut down jury trials completely, then slowly re-started them amid concerns about the spread of the coronavirus. Because of this, the Pueblo Combined Courts' municipal and district courts ground to a halt on jury trials. District Courts hear civil cases in any amount, as well as domestic relations, criminal, juvenile, probate, and mental health cases. In Pittsburgh, she helped the newspaper earn the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news after a mass shooting at a local synagogue, and in 2020 she was named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in local reporting for an investigation into child sexual abuse among Amish and Mennonite communities. Without sufficient pressure on both sides, though, one side may be willing to wait it out. Over the past five years, we have had an average of 2,716 jury trials, with 2,400 of those being criminal trials. doors open this fall, the recent upswing of COVID-19 cases and the an attorney speaks into the microphone, the clerk throws away the Protracted proceedings weigh on everyone across the judicial Home Announcements, Closures, and Delays. present is an important part of the justice system. One of the main reasons weve made progress is were back in person and the trial courtrooms are up and running, and we havent had to have the same restrictions on the number of jurors coming in, he said, adding that with more cases going to trial, defendants are also more likely to accept plea deals, which has chipped away at the backlog as well. Criminal cases go first. Even with the plea bargains, McCann points out there is still a lengthy process involved, including court hearings for the deal to be put into the system and a sentence to be rendered. 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. justice system has an obligation to move forward despite these commercial litigationthat will be pushed further down the 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. COVID disproportionately impacts the poor and people of color, she said. The legislature could change the general speedy trial deadline, but so far no bills have been introduced to do so. That could be a helpful addition, officials said, in the districts that have space available for senior judges to set up shop. Thats longer than other recent years: in 2018, felony cases lasted an average 148 days, and in 2021, about 121 days. hire judges if both sides agree to rule on the case. In an effort to help, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that a mistrial can be declared if the court room does not have the capacity to safely hold a trial or if a jury pool cannot be compiled due to the pandemic. The federal court buildings are still closed here in Colorado, For Tristan Gorman, a legislative policy coordinator for the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar, a backlog of criminal cases brings up two major issues of concern. biggest worry is that prosecutors across the state are going to struggle to meet defendants speedy trial requirements because of the steep backlog of cases. Even while the courts struggled to ease their In Pueblo's combined court system, there are over 50 such jury trials scheduled just through the end of July. Thats really unusual to try two back-to-back homicide trials.. Feds sue water company for rupture damaging Rocky Mountain National Park -- again, Family gets unexpected bill after Kaiser Permanente Colorado software error that resulted in refunds to thousands, Skygazers will have a great view Wednesday of two planets that look like they are almost touching. We dont want to have people sitting in jail longer than they need to. At the end of the day, it will be my sectorcomplex commercial litigationthat will be pushed further down the docket. To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com. Our staff and the courts and the judges around the state, theyre doing what they can to clear it. Singletonsaid he has not seen more Pueblo jury trials than what he believesto be averageduring 2020 or2021. The legislation as written would allow prosecutors to request a six-month delay for certain criminal trials if no courtroom is available due to the pandemic backlog. Citizenship Delayed Report on Citizenship and Naturalization Backlog in Colorado . I mean the list goes on and on. 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. ", Other news: Trial begins in Pueblo for Monte Vista man accused of killing, dismembering mother. may be necessary to get through the backlog of cases. February. In an attempt to elevate the growing backlog of criminal cases. Shelly Bradbury is the courts reporter at the Denver Post. As litigators, we know it isnt until litigants are on the cusp of a trial that they truly feel the pressure necessary to settle. The Legislature was encouraged to pick it up and did not do so, Dougherty said, adding that there is disagreement over whether the governor has the authority to suspend the mandate. The backlog is no longer growing. Fax: (303) 573 8133. is an attorney with Jones & Keller in Denver. Similarly, most mediation and arbitration are taking place via Trial Courts. Then, other cases would be weighted for priority. As the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) outbreak in Colorado develops, the Judicial Department is continually working to balance legitimate public health considerations with the necessity to maintain fair and effective administration of justice for citizens and communities in our state. Courts are now outfitted with COVID-related precautions such as glass in front of counsel tables and sandwich baggies on microphones. But ultimately, prosecutors decide how cases will be prioritized. I think those are some lessons we can take with us after the pandemic that may actually improve the rate of appearance.. The nearly five-month delay has created a hefty backlog of criminal cases awaiting trial, which some worry could result in prosecutors dropping some because of Colorado's speedy trial mandate. Earlier in the pandemic, some prosecutors tried to clear cases and jails by offering plea deals they might not have offered before the global health crisis. "My attorneys, they're having anxiety attacks, migraines. Some courts are working, some arent. would not be based on which case was filed first. Singleton noted that he did not see a strong increase in crime relating to the lower jail population. Although not the same as being in person, these technology-enabled formats are starting to work and become more effective. 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. 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. One trial I had reset is now the fourth trial set for Courts By County. Emily Tofte Nestaval, executive director of the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center, described the number of criminal cases in the backlog as a tidal wave barreling towards Colorados criminal justice system. Who makes the best hot chicken sandwich in Denver? Colorado judicial districts got the green light to resume criminal jury trials this week after the coronavirus shut down much of in-person court operations in, Im not a sky falling type of guy, but in a few months I think were going to see cases that have been delayed that are going to likely face dismissal, said. One trial I had reset is now the fourth trial set for the same day in the same week on the judges calendar in February. approach rather than discussing settling. about your specific circumstances. Its pretty much back to normal, but the dockets are very crowded and trial dockets are particularly wild. She said that her organization supports any efforts being made to increase the safety of jury cases but that health concerns need to be balanced with the defendants right to a speedy trial. The justice system is weighted down by a backlog that grows DENVER Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a serious delay in the court system. But its going to affect court operations for some time. But I dont think its a very rosy picture at this point, Tofte Nestaval said. . For Cooley, her concern, along with the backlog of cases courts . truly feel the pressure necessary to settle. 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. Around the state, theyre doing what they can to clear it `` the that... Has continued, its just slowed down, Sarche said, dismembering mother court operations some. Our staff and the courts difficulty, the Pueblo Combined courts ' municipal and District ground... Justice system Scripps colorado court backlog, Inc. All rights reserved that there 's backlogthere. Much faster and are no longer in the courts and the courts reporter at the end the!, Colorado Newsline August 6, 2020 with 2,400 of those being criminal trials in person, technology-enabled. 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