The pandemic-induced delays created a massive backlog of cases awaiting jury trials in 2021, and while court operations have since largely returned to normal, a historically-high backlog remains an…
The jury trial that attorney Jonathan Booker started last week was a long time coming.
His jurisdiction has seen the backlog of felony cases set for jury trials in the next six months drop from more than 700 in the spring of last year to just over 500 this month, according to data the office provided. But pre-pandemic, in the spring of 2019, that number was closer to 250, Mason said. In 2020, Colorado felony cases on average lasted 184 days from the arrest and filing of charges to the disposition of the case, according to data provided by the Colorado Judicial Department, although that number only includes cases that have been closed. That’s longer than other recent years: in 2018, felony cases lasted an average 148 days, and in 2021, about 121 days.
“That ship has sailed,” she said. “It’s pretty much back to normal, but the dockets are very crowded and trial dockets are particularly wild. They’re trying to move forward as best they can, but it’s a tough proposition.”