Commission sets date to select nominees 

The 4th Judicial District Nominating Commission will meet on June 30, 2026, at the El Paso County Judicial Building, 270 S. Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903, to interview and select nominees for appointment by the governor to the office of county judge for the 4th Judicial District (El Paso County). The vacancy will occur due to the retirement of the Honorable D. Denise Peacock, effective August 1, 2026.

To be eligible, the applicant must be a qualified elector of El Paso County at the time of investiture and must have been admitted to the practice of law in Colorado. The current annual salary for this position is $195,001.25. The initial term of office of a county judge is a provisional term of two years; thereafter, the incumbent county judge, if approved by the voters, has a term of four years.

Application forms are available from the office of the ex officio chair of the nominating commission, Justice Richard L. Gabriel, 2 E. 14th Ave., Denver, CO 80203, and the office of the Court Executive, Scott Sosebee, 719-452-5000 at 270 S Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903.

Applications are also available on the court’s home page at https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/careers/judge-opportunities.

The completed application must be emailed to the address listed in the instructions below by 4:00 p.m. on June 10, 2026. Late applications will not be considered. Any person wishing to suggest a candidate to fill the vacancy may do so by letter to be submitted to any member of the nominating commission, with a copy to the ex officio chair, no later than June 3, 2026, by 4:00 p.m.

The members of the nominating commission for the 4th Judicial District are:

Andrew Pappadakis of Woodland Park; Michael Allen of Monument; Shahera Shalabi, Paul Hurcomb, Ian Kalmanowitz, Roland Rainey, and Misty Plowright, all of Colorado Springs. 

Editor’s Note: Contact information for the nominating commission members: 

·        Shahera Shalabi, sshalabi@usada.org

·        Paul Hurcomb, pwh@sparkswillson.com

·        Ian Kalmanowitz, ian@coloradoemploymentlaw.com

·        Andrew Pappadakis, apappadakis@hsd2.org

·        Roland Rainey, rojune28@yahoo.com

·        Misty Plowright, misty.plowright@gmail.com

·        Michael Allen, mtallen@mikemoranlaw.com