Court surveys to be conducted in Alamosa

ALAMOSA – People with business at the Alamosa Combined Courts on Tuesday, July 18, will be asked to participate in an ongoing program designed to help ensure the Colorado Judicial Department is providing the best service possible to the public.

Throughout the day, court and probation employees at the courthouse at 702 4th Street in Alamosa will ask people exiting the building to fill out brief, anonymous survey forms asking about their experiences as jurors, parties to a case or recipients of other Judicial Department services. Survey forms will be available in English and Spanish.

In addition, attorneys, law enforcement officers and anyone else who does business with the courts is encouraged to participate.

Similar surveys have been conducted in the past in the 12th Judicial District (Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Mineral, Rio Grande and Saguache counties), most recently in 2015. Since 2007, surveys have been conducted at least once in each of Colorado’s 22 judicial districts.

The surveys measure public opinion about access to and fairness of the courts. Questions include whether people felt safe in the building, whether they could easily understand the forms they needed, and whether they felt their case was handled in a fair manner. Participants also are asked whether they felt the judicial officer listened to them and had all the necessary information before making a decision, and whether they felt they were treated with courtesy and given clear information about the next step in their case.

During Fiscal Year 2016, 2,759 cases of all types were filed in District Courts throughout the 12th Judicial District, including 1,259 in Alamosa County, and 7,569 cases were filed in County Courts in the 12th Judicial District, including 3,000 in Alamosa County Court.