Sam Burney

Sam Burney, known as Samorreyan Burney, was appointed to the El Paso County Court in April 2020. About 95 percent of her docket is criminal cases and about 5 percent civil. Voters retained her in 2022 with 69.32 percent of the votes cast on the question: 152,266 yes and 67,388 no.

Before her appointment she practiced criminal law, insurance defense and medical compliance law. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Denver and a law degree from California Western School of Law. She works with youth in her church, in schools serving underserved populations and with agencies that help children with special needs, and she serves on the Judicial Well-Being Committee and the Judicial Conference Committee.

The Fourth Judicial District's commission voted 10 to 0 that she meets performance standards. The commission writes that Judge Burney "runs an efficient courtroom with a less formal but friendly approach toward attorneys and litigants" and that survey respondents "praise her fairness, efficient case management, and demeanor".

Attorneys from the Public Defender and District Attorney offices, it writes, "raised concerns about the potential appearance of impropriety or bias stemming from her interactions with them in front of defendants and victims." It "encouraged her to adopt more formal engagement practices to preserve courtroom dignity and avoid any appearance of partiality." The commission found no evidence that impropriety occurred, and writes that Judge Burney "committed to adjusting her courtroom demeanor to dispel the appearance."

Attorneys, it reports, "noted issues in case management, legal application, diligence, and demeanor, while non-attorneys rated her more favorably"; "Some concerns have remained consistent across past evaluations." Because of "a small number of survey responses," it writes, "survey data was used primarily to confirm independent observations." After her interim evaluation found deficiencies in her courtroom administration and communication skills, the commission recommended a Judicial Improvement Plan. The district's chief judge, who monitored the plan, reported to the commission that she had completed it satisfactorily.