4th Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen sworn in, shares office accomplishments, priorities for next term

January 14, 2025, marks the first day of 4th Judicial District Attorney Michael J. Allen’s second term in office, after he was sworn in by 4th Judicial District Chief Judge Erin Sokol. DA Allen was sworn in for his inaugural term on January 12, 2021.

“I am honored to have this opportunity to serve the communities of El Paso and Teller Counties with a renewed commitment to protect public safety, advocate for victims of crimes, and enact justice to hold wrongdoers accountable,” DA Allen said, ahead of Tuesday’s ceremony.

A Colorado native and United States Navy Veteran, DA Allen has spent his professional career serving the public interest. As District Attorney, he applies experience, research, and data-led prosecution efforts to guide the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office in its pursuit of justice on behalf of all community members.

Those methods have led to notable successes in court, such as the conviction and sentencing of JD Sutcliffe, who pleaded guilty on September 24, 2024, to Motor Vehicle Theft in the First Degree, Distribution of Fentanyl, and Felony Theft in three separate criminal cases. On November 19, 2024, Mr. Sutcliffe was sentenced to 20 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections— the highest such sentencing ever seen in the 4th Judicial District.

It’s a focus that will extend through DA Allen’s second term in office.

“Motor Vehicle Theft is a criminal act that not only poses great financial risk to its victims, but also so often leads to additional, violent crimes,” DA Allen said. “One of this office’s priorities is in effecting a change in the rate these crimes are committed and in holding wrongdoers accountable for the actions that put people in our community at risk.”

An extensive investigation by the Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) revealed Mr. Sutcliffe stole at least nine vehicles between September 2023 and January 2024. Many of these were trucks, which were then used to steal trailers and construction equipment—endangering public safety and causing financial loss to victims.

In late 2024, the Colorado Auto Theft Prevention Authority (CATPA) program developed a one-year grant program, currently in its pilot stage, in a limited number of jurisdictions, to include the 4th Judicial District. The grant allows for a dedicated prosecutor and investigator to work exclusively on cases that involve motor vehicle thefts and related crimes to improve conviction rates and reduce instances of these crimes in the Pikes Peak region.

To that end, and in response to a statewide and local spike in the occurrence and level of violence being recorded in juvenile crimes, District Attorney Allen is currently engaging with other law enforcement agencies and legislators to bolster response resources and enact more effective preventative solutions.

“Right now, we are prosecuting several smash-and-grab cases involving juveniles as young as 11 years old,” DA Allen said. “In many cases, the stores being burglarized sell weapons and suspects are taking firearms to be used in other violent offenses.”

DA Allen says part of the solution could lie in a fight to increase the number of beds available at youth detention facilities across the state. The statutory cap was cut from 380 beds in total in Colorado to 215 beds during the COVID pandemic. That leaves a total of 27 beds available to juvenile offenders in the Pikes Peak region, which puts pressure on judges to select which offenders to release from custody to accommodate juveniles with more recent offenses.

The 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office has also seen major accomplishments in its Organized Crime Unit, which is responsible for the prosecution of offenders with the largest potential impact on the community, dialing in on cases such as pattern aggravated robberies, inter-related property crime rings, and larger scale drug trafficking organizations. In 2024, four defendants accused of laundering money over a period of four years at several Top Dollar Pawn locations in the area were convicted. All four defendants (three individuals and one business entity) were sentenced for their part in a crime that ultimately amounted to more than $1.3 million in stolen goods.

OCU is also the tip of the spear for Fentanyl Resulting in Death prosecutions, which have been a major priority during DA Allen’s time in office. In 2023, the office successfully prosecuted Katariina Gibson on such a case, that occurred within the El Paso County Jail. She was sentenced to 28 years in the custody of the Department of Corrections, the longest sentence of its kind in Colorado history.

“This office has made tremendous progress towards protecting public safety and holding evildoers accountable when they harm people in our community,” said DA Allen. “I am grateful to continue this work in service of the citizens in El Paso and Teller Counties.”