Amanda C. Hopkins

Amanda C. Hopkins, a judge of the Twelfth Judicial District Court, was appointed to the bench in 2018 and named the district's chief judge in 2023. She hears civil, domestic relations, juvenile, criminal and water matters throughout the San Luis Valley. Voters retained her in 2020 with 71.55 percent of the votes cast on the question: 15,215 yes and 6,050 no.

Before her appointment she worked in the Alamosa office of the State Public Defender and became its managing deputy public defender in 2011. She graduated from the University of Puget Sound in 2001 and received her law degree from Seattle University in 2006. In 2025 the Center for Restorative Programs gave her its Restorative Justice Champion award for her work with families and schools on her truancy docket.

Two commissioners were absent for the 6 to 0 vote, and two seats were vacant. The commission describes her as "a fair and impartial decision maker" and reports that attorneys and non-attorneys alike highlight her "effective communication and active listening skills". Appellate judges from the Colorado Court of Appeals scored her overall performance 3.6 out of 4.

The commission writes that "One area of growth highlighted by attorneys, non-attorneys, and Judge Hopkins herself, is the timeliness of her decision making in civil litigation." It reports that she acknowledged delays in issuing written orders and has sought further training, and that "a few survey responses raised concern regarding Judge Hopkins’s understanding of water law, the rules of civil procedure, and the rules of evidence." Survey responses were few.