Weld appeals judge's ruling on commissioner redistricting
Court of Appeals decision could take months
The Board of Weld County Commissioners has filed its appeal of a Weld District Court judge’s March ruling throwing out a 2023 commissioner district map the judge said was prepared in a redistricting process that clearly violated state law.
On April 26, the board filed a Notice of Appeal with the Colorado Court of Appeals. The commissioners raise 12 questions for the appeals court, including:
Whether the Colorado Legislature has the authority to regulate the commissioner redistricting process in counties with Home Rule Charters.
Whether the Latino Coalition of Weld County and the League of Women Voters of Greeley and Weld County waited too long after the county’s redistricting process was completed to file their lawsuit.
Whether those groups and two voters who joined the lawsuit lacked standing to sue the county in the first place.
Whether the Legislature’s 2021 bill changing the commissioner redistricting process actually applies to counties whose Home Rule Charters “conflict” with the bill.
Whether Weld’s charter and state law are in conflict when it comes to the commissioner redistricting process.
In response, the Latino Coalition and the local League of Women Voters group, as well as Barbara Whinery and Stacy Suniga, on May 7 filed a Notice of Cross-Appeal. They essentially ask the appeals court to answer their own question as the case winds through: Whether Weld must now be forced to conduct a commissioner redistricting process that complies with state law. The District Court judge did not require that of the county.
So what comes next?
Don’t expect this thing to be resolved anytime soon. The Gadfly can’t speak from experience, but in all likelihood the Court of Appeals will take months to decide this case, which probably means there won’t be any sort of new map before Election Day this year.
On its website, the appeals court notes it schedules days for judges to sit down and decide cases “about five to six weeks in advance,” and that’s after oral arguments have taken place. As of today, the court’s posted schedule for May goes only through Wednesday, and new case announcements are made on Thursdays.
There are still some early procedural hurdles at the appeals court. Staff attorneys have to comb through the dueling filings and ensure everything is up to snuff — that the appeals were filed on time, that they raise questions the court has the authority to answer, etc. Then, more staff attorneys have to determine whether the three judges who will be automatically assigned to the case have any conflicts of interest. That’s unlikely, but that rigorous checking process still takes time.
All that to say, Weld voters can settle in for the long haul on this one. It wouldn’t surprise the Gadfly if the county takes this case all the way to the state Supreme Court, assuming the county loses their appeal.
The Gadfly believes justice delayed is justice denied, and that Weld should stop wasting taxpayer money defending an opaque and clearly illegal redistricting effort.
Additionally, once this dust settles, the commissioners will have to decide whether they can still trust the legal advice they receive from County Attorney Bruce Barker, who urged the board to follow only the Home Rule Charter and to ignore state law.