People v. Julien

This case arises out of Dywand D. Julien's conviction after a jury trial of first-degree assault and possession of a weapon by a previous offender. We granted certiorari in order to review the court of appeals' unpublished decision, People v. Julien, No. 98CA2542 (Colo.App.1998),1 which held that the trial judge's previous employment by the district attorney's office created an appearance of partiality that required vacating Ju-lien's conviction and ordering a new trial.

Julien's trial occurred five weeks after the trial judge took the bench. While he was with the district attorney's office,…