First Judicial District - Gilpin County Court Judge
Honorable Fred Rodgers
Retention Year: 2006
Recommendation: Retain
Reports:
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The First Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance unanimously recommends that Judge Fred Rodgers BE RETAINED.
Judge Rodgers currently serves Gilpin County as the County Judge with a mixed docket of civil, criminal (including felonies), domestic relations, juvenile and traffic infractions. He has served on the Gilpin County Court bench for 20 years. Prior to this appointment, his previous judicial assignments include serving as an US Army Military Judge and a Magistrate in the Denver Juvenile Court.
The Commission used a variety of methods to evaluate Judge Rodgers. The Commission reviewed the Judicial Performance Surveys from attorneys and non-attorneys, including written verbatim comments attached to the survey responses, and studied the written self-evaluation completed by Judge Rodgers. Members of the Commission completed unannounced courtroom observations of him and conducted a personal interview with Judge Rodgers. From all of this data, the Commission found Judge Rodgers to be a very diligent judge with an even, patient temperament. He is very competent in his knowledge of the law and thoughtful and fair in his sentencing.
Judge Rodgers received high ratings from attorneys and non-attorneys in all categories, most notably in the area of communication and overall case management. His areas of strength include promptly making rulings during a trial, making sure all participants understand the proceedings, maintaining appropriate control over proceedings, making sure the participants in the courtroom understand the proceedings, treating everyone involved politely and giving the proceedings a sense of dignity. Of the attorneys who responded to the survey, 90% recommended that Judge Rodgers be retained and 10% recommended that he not be retained. Of the non-attorneys who responded to the survey, 83% recommended that he be retained in office, while 17% recommended against retention.
Judge Rodgers considers involvement in the community very important in his judicial role. Most striking, he provides pro bono teaching to judicial conferences and worked with the
Viet Nam Supreme People’s Court under a USAID grant in 2002 and 2003. He has been a national board member of the American Bar Association, the American Judicature Society and the National Judicial College. He also is a board member on the Gilpin County Historical Society and is a founding member and charter president of the Peak to Peak Rotary Club.