Ninth Judicial District - District Court Judge
Honorable Daniel B. Petre
Retention Year: 2012
Recommendation: Retain
Reports:
2012 Retention Survey Report (PDF)
2011 Interim Survey Report (PDF)
2009 Interim Survey Report (PDF)
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The Ninth Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance unanimously recommends that Judge Daniel B. Petre BE RETAINED.
Judge Petre ascended the bench Nov. 2, 2004. A Glenwood Springs native, he graduated Dartmouth College and Southern Methodist University Law School and worked 24 years in private practice in his home town. Additionally he served as Water Referee for Water Division Five; District Court Magistrate for the Ninth Judicial District; and held offices in both the local and state bar associations. He also served on the local school board, been a judge for the regional high school Mock Trial program and has conducted learning sessions with area grade school children.
Commission members observed Judge Petre during court proceedings, interviewed him and studied evaluations provided by attorneys (114) and non-attorneys (142) who had dealings with the judge or were familiar with his work. Appellate judges (five) also reviewed his work. Both attorneys and non-attorneys ranked the judge favorably in judicial demeanor, describing him as fair, patient, compassionate, honest, dignified, diligent, thorough, honorable, thoughtful, respectful of all, keenly analytical, and consistently neutral. Both groups were also adamant in criticizing the judge’s failure to make rulings in a timely fashion. In making their decision, the Commission took into consideration: Budget constraints have forced many courts to cut staff, but caseloads have continued to grow. The weighted caseload study conducted by the National Center for State Courts found that the Ninth Judicial District is understaffed by 2.55 judicial officers, thus requiring each district judge to administer 60% above what is considered to be a full caseload. And, while Judge Petre has had a disproportionate open caseload in the past, as of February of this year his percentage of cases open longer than state-suggested benchmarks has been reduced dramatically and acceptably, and Judge Petre is committed to continue this trend.
Of all attorneys surveyed about retention, 64% recommended to retain, 32% not to retain, and 4% were undecided or did not have enough information to make a recommendation. Of those expressing an opinion to retain or not to retain, 66% recommended to retain and 34% not to retain. Of all non-attorneys surveyed, 77% recommended to retain, 12% not to retain, and 11% were undecided or didn’t have enough information to make a recommendation. Of those expressing an opinion to retain or not to retain, 87% recommended to retain and 14% not to retain. (These percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.)