Judge in Northeast Colorado Helped Friend in Several Cases, According to Officials

A northeastern Colorado judge, who presides over the 13th Judicial District, which includes Morgan, Logan, Washington, Sedgwick, Kit Carson, Phillips & Yuma Counties in Colorado, was suspended last November by the Colorado Supreme Court, pending a disciplinary investigation.

District Court Judge Justin B. Haenlein allegedly used his position to help a female friend in multiple cases. According to several news sources, in a filing on Tuesday, (4/15), the judge ordered the pretrial release of his friend’s boyfriend, who had been accused of felonies. The Colorado Commission on Judicial Discipline and Haenlein reached an agreement that the judge would resign, but the panel ordered the commission to file a document that contained the original allegations.

In the filing on Tuesday, the commission alleged that Haenlein violated 4 rules of judicial conduct. The relationship with one of his former clients was not disclosed, as he represented this client previously in multiple criminal cases. The client is referred to as ‘Jane Doe’, and it’s also alleged that the two exchanged ‘sexual & flirtatious texts’, and Haenlein also helped her with certain living expenses. He also allegedly assisted her with legal advice, using the cases’ management system, after he withdrew from being her lawyer in a domestic relations case. He did disclose that she was his prior client, but did not disclose the intimate relationship during a July 2022 appearance she made in his court for a felony drug case. The case was resolved in a guilty plea, as he made several rulings and ultimately sentenced her.

There are many other details to this story, as the elected District Attorney Travis Sides and the state public defender’s office have not given a response about complaints or the effects of Haenlein’s alleged actions on the cases. Weld County District Court Judge Vincente G. Vigil has said that further filings about the case will be posted on the Weld County Court’s website.