Tenth Judicial District - Pueblo County Court Judge
Honorable Margaret Vellar
Retention Year: 2024
Recommendation: Meets Performance Standards
Reports:
2024 Retention Survey Report (PDF)
2023 Interim Survey Report (PDF)
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The Tenth Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance unanimously agrees by a vote of 6-0 with two commissioners absent and two vacancies that Judge Margaret Vellar MEETS PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.
Judge Vellar's docket consists of misdemeanor and traffic matters. She runs an efficient court, has an outstanding knowledge of the law and manages her very heavy docket well. She is consistent in her rulings and sets clear expectations for all participants. Although she was observed by the commission to be tolerant and fair to all parties, there is some indication that her demeanor and treatment of others could improve in survey comments (e.g. her treatment of participants can be harsh and that she lacks empathy). Judge Vellar is aware of these critiques and continues to take steps to improve in that area.
To evaluate Judge Vellar's performance, the Commission personally interviewed Judge Vellar. In addition, they interviewed the Chief Judge and representatives from the District Attorney's office and Public Defender's office, observed her in Court, reviewed judicial performance data, written and transcribed orders, written comments from attorneys and non-attorneys, and a self-evaluation completed by Judge Vellar. One area of concern to the Commission is the performance scores obtained from the survey results. Judge Vellar's overall performance was rated as meeting performance standards by only 75% of attorneys responding to the survey. However, given that only 8 attorneys out of the 253 invited responded to the survey this is not a statistically relevant outcome.
Judge Vellar was appointed to the Pueblo County Court Bench in May 2021. Before taking the bench, she was a Chief Deputy District Attorney (2012-2021) and Deputy District Attorney (2006- 2012) in the 4th Judicial District as well as a Deputy District Attorney (1990-2006) in the 10th Judicial District. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Colorado in 1986 and her Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Colorado School of Law in 1989. Judge Vellar has lived in Pueblo since 1990 and is a member of the Colorado Bar Association, the Pueblo County Bar Association, and the Colorado Women's Bar Association.