Twenty-Second Judicial District - Montezuma County Court Judge
Honorable Todd Jay Plewe
Retention Year: 2004
Recommendation: Retain
Reports:
The Twenty-Second Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance by a 7-0 vote recommends that Judge Todd Jay Plewe BE RETAINED.
Judge Plewe was appointed to the Montezuma County Court bench on September 2, 2002. Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Plewe was in private practice in Cortez and Alamosa, Colorado with emphasis on civil practice. Judge Plewe received his undergraduate degree from Brigham Young University and his law degree from the University of Colorado in 1997. Judge Plewe in his capacity as Montezuma County Court Judge presently hears a combination of criminal and civil cases. Judge Plewe also acts as a District Court Magistrate for the Twenty-Second Judicial District and in that capacity hears a number of domestic cases as well as other cases assigned to him by the District Court Judge.
The Commission reviewed written evaluations of Judge Plewe from attorneys and non-attorneys, including written verbatim comments attached to the evaluation questionnaires. The Commission also considered a written self-evaluation completed by Judge Plewe, scheduled and arranged open meetings to gather public comment and conducted a personal interview with Judge Plewe.
Judge Plewe has participated in training provided by the State for Judges and in workshops in Juvenile Law and attended a national domestic violence conference. Judge Plewe has implemented a new docket schedule to reduce the number of appearances in County Court and expedite the judicial process. Judge Plewe is active in community activities. He is a coach in youth baseball and soccer as well as serving on the baseball board as a division director. He has participated as an instructor at the Sheriff's Citizens Academy and has volunteered as a chaperone for the high school "after prom party."
Judge Plewe received his highest ratings from both attorneys and non-attorneys for his promptness, allocation of time to the parties, efficient management and control of the docket, treating parties fairly and equally, for being courteous and polite and for explaining in understandable terms the proceedings as well as the basis for his decisions. Of the attorneys who responded to the questionnaire, 89% recommended that Judge Plewe be retained and 11% recommended that he not be retained. Of the non-attorneys responding to the questionnaire, 59% recommended retention and 41% recommend non-retention.