Alamosa County DUI Court Process

Showing up at 702 Fourth Street for an Alamosa DUI hearing gets a defendant a missed appearance and a possible warrant. The court and probation department relocated to the Justice Center at 8955 Independence Way, but older resources and some GPS systems still list the old address, and that mismatch alone has cost people their appearance through no fault beyond trusting an outdated map.

The Alamosa Combined Court runs weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with full airport-style security at the door. Phones are allowed inside but must be silenced per a standing Chief Judge administrative order; a ringing phone during proceedings risks confiscation and a contempt citation, and texting or taking photos is flatly prohibited. Civil return dates and advisements typically land on Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m., run as a true cattle call, dozens of defendants summoned for the same time block while the judge works through cases one at a time. The wait can run hours, so anyone with a Wednesday docket needs to clear the whole morning, not just a 15-minute window, from work.

Most DUI cases fall to Judge Jason Kelly or Judge Tamara Sullivan, serving a conservative, rural constituency that expects strict decorum in the courtroom. Given how much ground the 12th Judicial District covers, WebEx gets used heavily for many proceedings, with each judge assigned a specific access room. Virtual appearance is a privilege here, not a right, and assuming a login counts as showing up without first getting explicit permission is a leading cause of bench warrants. Still, keeping those access codes saved matters practically: if Wolf Creek or La Veta Pass closes in a winter storm, logging into the right virtual room before the docket starts is often the only way to avoid a warrant anyway.

Probation operates out of the same Independence Way complex, with compliance enforced strictly despite the geographic spread the office covers. Fines and court costs don't get handled at the regular clerk's counter at all; they run through a separate Collections Office that closes at 4 p.m., a full hour before the courthouse itself shuts down. Get sentenced at 4:30 and that office is already closed for the day, meaning a defendant either has to return the next morning or call immediately to set up a payment plan, since walking out assuming "I'll pay later" triggers a default that leads to a separate license suspension, entirely apart from whatever the DUI itself already did to driving privileges.

One more detail worth knowing: courthouse staff get a relaxed dress policy on Fridays, but that leniency does not extend to defendants. Showing up underdressed, especially on a day when the staff themselves are dressed down, stands out for the wrong reasons; dressing like it's a formal occasion remains the safe baseline regardless of the day of the week.

Sources

• Alamosa County — Colorado Judicial Branch
• Alamosa Combined Court — Judicial Legal Help Center, Colorado Law Help
• Alamosa County Probation — Colorado Judicial Branch
• ORDER REGARDING CELL PHONES and PDAs IN COURTROOMS — Colorado Judicial Branch