The Pueblo Municipal Court has a “challenging” workplace, a review finds

A lack of oversight within the Pueblo Municipal Court has contributed to a “challenging” and “deteriorating” work environment under a president who did little to ensure accountability, a third-party investigation commissioned last month found city ​​had been carried out.

The bad behavior in the department has been going on for months – and in some cases even years, the report’s summary reads. The outside law firm Hoffman, Parker, Wilson & Carberry ruled that the department “required intervention.”

“The technical skills exist, but the work environment makes the atmosphere very unpleasant,” the researchers wrote.

The summary, obtained by JS through an open records request, paints a picture of a dysfunctional office culture under former Speaker Carla Sikes, who now serves as Pueblo’s city attorney.

The city declined to release the entire report, citing attorney-client privilege, and did not respond to requests for comment on the investigation.

News of the investigation follows a Denver Post investigation last month, which found that Pueblo Municipal Court judges likely used unconstitutional practices to increase municipal prison sentences for non-violent crimes.

The Post found that the Pueblo Municipal Court, under Sikes, routinely used contempt of court to punish people for failing to show up for their hearings — a practice that had no precedent in Colorado’s major cities.

Court staff, in statements to The Post that were also shared with investigators, pointed to a toxic workplace culture filled with bullying, belittling and condescension.

One supervisor demotes people and “treats them as if they were stupid,” a statement read.

Employees said management engaged in age discrimination, making inappropriate comments on the way employees dressed and how often they used the restroom.

“…In their time here they seem to have lost their compassion,” one employee wrote. “Many shamelessly humiliate others in such a comfortable way that it is clear they have been doing this for a long time without consequences.”