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Recommendation for federal judgeship could come any day
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David Young, (Bio) dyoung@greeleytribune.com
May 7, 2008
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Having northern Colorado represented on the Colorado Federal District Court bench is of the utmost importance to U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., said Sean Conway, chief of staff to Allard.
Allard recommend seven individuals, including Judge James Hartmann Jr., of Division 12 in Weld County, for three vacancies on the U.S. District Court of Colorado.
In January, Justice Phil Figa died of cancer and in March, Justice Walker Miller of Greeley, and Justice Lou Babcock retired, leaving three vacancies on the seven-judge bench.
The vacancies have left the Colorado Federal District Court docket overloaded, Conway said.
"Those names are being considered by the White House. We are hoping for a recommendation any day," Conway said. "We lost the only northern Colorado representative on the bench, it almost makes it more imperative to select someone who is from northern Colorado.
If the vacancies are not filled by August, Conway said the recommendations may go by the wayside with the upcoming election.
Hartmann was interviewed by the White House in December 2007 and is qualified for the position, Conway said.
Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., has not recommend Hartmann for the nomination.
In January, Salazar appointed eight people to a bipartisan committee to help find three candidates for the judgeship, said Stephanie Valencia, Salazar's press secretary.
Based on the recommendations of that committee and personal interviews, the committee narrowed the list to three. Valencia said it is not known if Salazar had considered Hartmann.
Salazar's recommendations to the White House include two Boulder residents and a Denver resident.
"I think that the members of the commission were looking to provide the senator with the people who represented very diverse backgrounds," said Valencia who added Salazar wants to fill the vacancies in a timely manner.
Hartmann grew up in Windsor and graduated from Windsor High School in 1981. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley and a law degree from the University of Idaho in 1989. He was a Weld deputy district attorney for 13 years before becoming a Weld District Court judge in 2003.
Allard's nominations to Colorado Federal District Court
« James Hartmann, judge, 19th Judicial District
« Christine Arguello, senior associate counsel for the University of Colorado, former Chief Deputy Attorney General, Colorado
« Gregory Goldberg, former assistant U.S. Attorney
« Mary Jo Menendez, judge, 1st judicial district
« William Leone, former U.S. Attorney
« Michael Hegarty, magistrate for U.S. District Court,
« Philip Brimmer, special prosecutions section chief, U.S. Attorney's Office
Salazar's nominations to Colorado Federal District Court:
« Christine Arguello, Senior associate counsel for the University of Colorado, former Chief Deputy Attorney General
« Gregory Goldberg, a partner at Holland & Hart in Denver; former assistant United States attorney in Denver and associate attorney at Arnold & Porter in Denver
« Lael Montgomery, judge, 20th Judicial District in Boulder
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