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M.j. Menendez: Judge Boatright is a jurist, scholar, colleague, and human being. He says he is most worthy of appointment to the highest bench in the State of Colorado. Judge Boatright conducted the first domestic violence trial I ever witnessed, says menendez.
M.j. Menendez: Judge Boatright is a jurist, scholar, colleague, and human being. He says he is most worthy of appointment to the highest bench in the State of Colorado. Judge Boatright conducted the first domestic violence trial I ever witnessed, says menendez.
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M.j. Menendez: Judge Boatright is a jurist, scholar, colleague, and human being. He says he is most worthy of appointment to the highest bench in the State of Colorado. Judge Boatright conducted the first domestic violence trial I ever witnessed, says menendez.
Copyright:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Formati disponibili
Scarica in formato PDF, TXT o leggi online su Scribd
Division: OCDETF Unit September 7,2011 Chief Justice Michael Bender United States Attorney District olColorado 1225 Seventeenth Street, Suite 700 (303) 454-0100 Seventeenth Street Plaza (FAX) (303) 454-0400 Denver, Colorado 80202 Ex Officio Chair Supreme Court Nominating Commission 101 West Colfax Avenue, Suite 800 Denver, Colorado 80202 To the Members of the Nominating Commission: My name is M,J, Menendez. I was asked by the Honorable Judge Brian Boatright to submit a letter of recommendation on his behalf as he makes application for the Colorado Supreme Court. I unequivocally support Judge Boatright's application. Please allow me to share some of my history with Judge Boatright, as it is from such history that I know him to be a jurist, scholar, colleague, and human being who is most worthy of appointment to the highest bench in the State of Colorado. Fair warning; this letter is a long one, but at the conclusion I hope you will find that Judge Boatright is deserving of a letter that thoroughly documents his professionalism, commitment, fidelity to his mission, and character. Judge Boatright was known to me as 'Brian' when I joined the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office in 1994. I quickly learned that Brian willingly gave of his time to mentor young attorneys on trial techniques, ethics, written work product, and legal culture, while he maintained a large, active criminal docket. Brian conducted the first domestic violence trial I ever witnessed, and he obtained a conviction on a brutal Second Degree Assault with a recanting victim. He conducted the examination of the victim with compassion and dignity, while carrying out his sworn mission to find justice. I now realize that the demeanor, professionalism, integrity and ability demonstrated by Brian Boatright in that trial has been repeated daily during his service to the People of the State of Colorado as Deputy District Attorney, and as District Court Judge. As a practitioner in the DA's Office, I appeared before Judge Boatright on many occasions, and I sat in his courtroom on docket days where he dealt with anywhere between fifty and eighty cases a day. Judge Boatright never deviated from calm, professional, authoritative demeanor. He listened carefully and patiently, but he then made the hard decision as to trial scheduling, bond setting, or sentenCing. He was born to the bench from the beginning of his appointment. When Judge Boatright was appointed to the Jefferson County District Court bench, I was privileged to attend his investiture. I specifically recall Judge Boatright talking about how he had contemplated the qualities that comprise the character of a fine judge before seeking appointment. Brian spoke of the importance of respectful and tempered judicial demeanor, the utmost regard he held for the law and the adversarial process, and his heart-felt hope that he would always treat all persons, criminal defendants, family law litigants, attorneys, probation officers, and court personnel with dignity, respect and integrity. I recall thinking, "Wow, he has some lofty principles in mind: I was correct; his principles were and are lofty. What I could not know at that juncture was that Judge Boatright, without fail, united his principles with action, leadership, and foresight in a manner that has made him a reigning voice of authority, wisdom and discretion on the highly regarded Jefferson County bench. I am uniquely situated with regard to Judge Boatright, as I am his former colleague from the Jefferson County District Court bench; a position I resigned on July 17, 2009. If you are asking why Judge Boatright would ask someone who spent a time on the bench, realized it wasn't my calling, and walked away for a letter, please know I wondered the very same. When I asked Brian, he said, "Because you know me, you know judging, you personally know when someone is a fit for the bench, and you have the guts to tell the truth." Please allow me to share some of that truth. When I arrived at Jefferson County to assume a position on the District Court bench, Brian immediately sought me out. He went over docket management, ECF filings, standard practices regarding setting and routine rulings, and he provided encouragement around the length of time needed to get a good grasp on a docket. He also shared his wisdom on the challenges of the black robe. I recall him telling me, in paraphrase, as I can best recall: You aren't going to get feedback here on whether your decision is wrong or right, or whether you did a good job or a bad job today. You are the judge; everyone will tell you that you did a good job. We have precedent, rule of law, our internal compasses and each other. Once you have utilized all of those tools, you have to rest in your decision and move forward. That is our oath. That is our solemn duty. Time after time, I went to Judge Boatright's office to ask him all kinds of questions relating to suppression issues, family law custody decisions, complex medical malpractice motions practice, mistrial motions, and docket management. Judge Boatright makes no decisions without rigorous discussion and contemplation of relevant facts, posture of the case, and pertinent legal authority, but after considering all of those things, he makes decisions. I have watched Judge Boatright sentence murderers, terminate family rights, and enter not guilty verdicts on horrendous personal injury trials. His heart is compassionate, but he rules by law and not by emotion. He makes the hard decision with integrity and certainty. When Judge Boatright called and asked me to write this letter, he stated that he believes he can contribute the existing wealth of authority, knowledge, experience and wisdom on the Colorado Supreme Court through his experience as a jurist assigned to a dedicated courtroom specializing in the legal arenas of juvenile law, dependency and neglect work, and non-dissolution I family law. In customarily bold fashion, I asked Judge Boatright, "Is there really that much work in thse areas done at the appellate and Supreme Court level?' Judge Boatright's answer spoke of commitment to the rule of law in those areas, but the spoken verbiage did not convey the information that I wish to express to you. What you should know is that Judge Boatright's commitment to the law is interwoven with his paSSion for the people and children involved in these extraordinarily difficult, personal and heart-wrenching cases. Judge Boatright quickly informed me about judicial cases and trends in the - 2 - areas of juvenile law, dependency and neglect, and non-dissolution family law. He spoke to me about his work has been on the Best Practices Juvenile Reform Committee where he serves as the Chairperson, the Colorado Commission on Juvenile Justice -Judicial Task Force, and the Juvenile Services Planning Committee. In humble, yet proud, fashion, Brian told me how each day and each challenge adds a little more to the bank of experience, wisdom and empathy for the kids, parents and the cases. Brian knows the importance of making these calls correctly because he knows the existence and welfare of families depends on it. As a personal aside, I was talking with Brian on a particular Thursday while I was on the bench about his upcoming weekend plans. Judge Boatright, the father of two active children, told me he was going to a high school football game. I was puzzled as he has no children of high school age. When I inquired further about his plans, Judge Boatright told me of a young high school student who was struggling, but really trying, to better his studies. The student loved playing football, but he was unable to play because of academic ineligibility. Judge Boatright made a deal with the young person that if the student kept his grades up and became academically eligible, the judge would attend his football games. Brian's incentive made that young man work hard and make good choices, and Judge Boatright was at that football game cheering him on, just as promised. Judge Boatright has also touched Jefferson County through his dedication in spearheading the formation of the CASA program in Jefferson County, creating the dedicated juvenile court docket where he handles virtually all termination of rights cases, and restructuring of the Magistrate Judge assignments to better serve the jurisdiction. He is a quiet leader, as he demonstrates his leadership by fidelity to the mission and action, rather than words. Personally, I know Brian and his wife Cara to be devoted parents who manage that incredibly difficult task of putting family and vocation first, because he knows no "second". Brian has led the Jefferson County legal community and the bench while maintaining humility and priorities in life. Brian does not seek a seat on the Supreme Court bench for power, but for the opportunity to serve, and you will find no better scholar or jurist than the Honorable Judge Brian Boatright. I unequivocally and wholeheartedly speak on his behalf and I am honored to submit this letter so indicating.
Deputy Unit Assistant United States Attorney District of Colorado 720-281-2002 - 3 -