Meet Pueblo's new chief judge Gregory Styduhar

Judge Gregory J. Styduhar, who was recently appointed chief judge of the 10th Judicial District, wants to maintain the "positive culture" of the district court, he said in a recent interview with the Chieftain.

Styduhar was appointed March 9 by Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright to replace Chief Judge Deborah Eyler, who has served as chief judge since 2012. Eyler is set to retire April 29.

A Pueblo native, Styduhar graduated from Central High School in 1992 before receiving his undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Southern Colorado, now Colorado State University Pueblo.

Becoming chief judge for the community he grew up in brought up a "lot of different emotions," Styduhar said, including "being overwhelmed and certainly just feeling privileged to be in such a position."

"Especially being from Pueblo, it means a lot," he said. "This is the town I grew up in. In a sense, I see it as just another opportunity to give back to my community, in a perhaps bigger way."

"The chief judge is the head administrator for the district," he said. "With that comes responsibility for appointments of the court executives, as well as the chief probation officer, and dealing with some of the day-to-day administration.

"There are a lot of administrative responsibilities, statutory appointments, being on particular boards, or just day-to-day administrative issues. Whereas as a district judge, you're given your docket, and your focus is your docket, whatever particular class of case you may have."

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Styduhar was sworn in as a district court judge in February 2020 after he'd served as a magistrate in the 10th Judicial District since 2017. He has worked in both the private and public sectors, holding positions as an associate attorney with Koncilja & Koncilja, P.C., assistant city attorney with the city of Pueblo, and attorney for Pueblo County.

Each career step for Styduhar has meant a gradual increase in responsibilities and an opportunity to learn about new areas of law, he said.

"From that point of working at Koncilja and Koncilja to working as an assistant city attorney, those all represented personal accomplishments," Styduhar said. "In each capacity, having a direct impact on the lives of my clients, or the work that my clients were doing in the context of the county and city, that was absolutely rewarding."

As magistrate and district court judge, he said he has had the opportunity to make the most "intimate" impact possible when it comes to individuals.

"You are charged with making some very important decisions, each bringing a level of satisfaction and a level of strife each time you have to make them as well," he said.

Styduhar believes his "broad experience" serving in local government and different roles within the judicial system have helped prepare him to serve in the role as chief district judge.

"When I left private work and left to work for the city, and then later as I went into the county attorney's office, my duties expanded, and my experience expanded," he said. "Part of that included budget and finance and personnel experience which all is related to the administrative functions of a chief judge. My commitment to and desire to make well-balanced decisions when a serious question is put in front of me also contributes."

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Styduhar is a father of four and believes certain aspects of fatherhood also have helped make him a better judge.

"I have four children, and they've been all raised by the same two parents, but they're all completely different, and present different challenges day to day," he said. "One thing you learn is that regardless of how you raised them, they all have their own personalities and their own needs. Being able to adapt to that quickly is a good characteristic that can transfer to the job because you have to adapt quickly. And then, of course, simply being empathetic."

Styduhar said when he came to the district as a magistrate years ago, he was "immediately struck by two things — the effective and efficient work that comes out of this building, which is a direct result of the good work that comes from court and probation personnel, and also the positive culture in this building," he said.

"And that, I came to learn immediately, was a result of good work by the leadership and the employees. I have a certain level of commitment to continue the good work that Judge Eyler has done," he said.

Questions, comments, or story tips? Contact Justin at jreutterma@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @jayreutter1.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Incoming chief judge Gregory Styduhar outlines priorities for district