In September, the Honorable Susan Blanco was selected as the recipient of the 46th Judge Conrad L. Ball Award. Blanco is the Chief Judge in Colorado’s 8th Judicial District and has dedicated her professional life to the justice system to impact our community positively.
Chief District Judge Susan Blanco
First appointed to the bench in 2017, Blanco is the first female Chief Judge for the 8th Judicial District. She began work as a Deputy District Attorney in the 8th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, followed by work in private practice focusing on juvenile delinquency, neglect and criminal defense cases. Judge Blanco has always worked to supportively impact those in our community and improve the justice system.
Judge Blanco has collaborated with many partners to establish Colorado’s first competency docket. Often, individuals with mental health issues in the criminal justice system do not understand the court system and its complexities and end up stuck in jail while waiting to be evaluated. The docket now helps to streamline the process.
Other nominees for the 2024 Conrad L. Ball Award were the City of Fort Collins Police Department District 1; City of Fort Collins Police Department Corporal Al Brown; Nathan Hansen of Nathan Hansen Law, LLC; Larimer County Community Justice Alternatives Specialist Carole Weishahn; Larimer County Sheriff John Feyen; and 8th Judicial District Judge Daniel McDonald.
For many years, Judge Ball was a loved and respected jurist in Larimer County. Each year, the Conrad L. Ball Award is given in his memory to a recipient who has significantly contributed toward improving the quality of community justice in the County. The recipient, usually an individual but sometimes co-recipients or a team, is selected from among candidates nominated each year by colleagues, coworkers, and citizens.
A celebration banquet was held in September at the Fort Collins Country Club in Fort Collins. Chief Justice Brian Boatright was the keynote speaker.