Bottger Appointed to 21St Judicial District Chief Judge Position

news Colorado Judicial Branch Mary J. Mullarkey, Chief Justice Gerald Marroney, State Court Administrator

Oct. 7, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Karen Salaz 303/837-3633 1-800-888-0001 Ext. 633 Bottger appointed to 21st Judicial District chief judge position District Court Judge David A. Bottger has been appointed as the new chief judge for the 21st Judicial District by Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Mullarkey. He replaces retiring Judge Nicholas R. Massaro, Jr., who has served in the position since Nov. 1, 2004. The 21st Judicial District encompasses all of Mesa County. “Judge Bottger’s nearly 20 years of experience on the state trial court bench provides him with the experience and skills to effectively manage the courts in Mesa County,” says Mullarkey. “As our caseloads continue to steadily outpace our resources, it is important to have a strong leader such as Judge Bottger in the chief judge position.” Bottger is a graduate of Notre Dame University School of Law and was admitted to practice in Colorado in 1976. He served one year as a law clerk for Colorado Supreme Court Justice Robert B. Lee and then entered the private practice of law in Denver. In 1983 he moved his private practice to Grand Junction and later that year was appointed to serve as Mesa County's first magistrate. He served as magistrate for three and a half years then was appointed district court judge in 1987. Colorado is divided into 22 judicial districts, each with one chief judge. As chief judge in the 21st Judicial District, Bottger will serve as the administrative head of the district. He will be responsible for appointing the district administrator, chief probation officer and clerk of the court to assist in the personnel, financial and case management of the district along with seeing that the business of the courts is conducted efficiently and effectively. Other responsibilities include judicial assignments within the district. The appointment became effective Oct. 1, 2005.

This information is provided as an e-mail service of the Colorado State Judicial Branch, Office of State Court Administrator, 1301 Pennsylvania Street, Suite 300, Denver, Colo. 80203. To discontinue this service or update your e-mail address, please respond to this message with your name, contact information and any comments.