CDAC Announces Retirement of Executive Director Tom Raynes; Jessica Dotter Named Successor
DENVER, March 2, 2026 — The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council announces that Executive Director Tom Raynes will retire at the end of May after 16 years of service to the organization. The Board of Directors is promoting Senior Chief of Legislative Policy and Special Victims Prosecution Jessica Dotter as his successor.
“It’s been an absolute honor and privilege to serve this organization, numerous elected district attorneys, and to support every prosecutor in the state for more than fifteen years,” said Raynes. “The Board’s thorough planning enabled me to make this decision knowing that CDAC will be in excellent hands going forward.”
“Words can’t express how excited I am for this opportunity to lead this organization in its mission to support district attorneys across Colorado as they work to make communities safer,” said Dotter. “I am ready for this challenge and excited to lead with service, transparency, vulnerability, and integrity.”
Dotter joined the CDAC team in 2021 as Sexual Assault Resource Prosecutor before she was promoted to Senior Chief of Legislative Policy and Special Victims Prosecution. Her duties ranged from prosecuting sex crimes to training, to advancing policy goals on behalf of prosecutors at the state capitol. Prior to joining CDAC, she served more than eight years as a district attorney in the 20th (Boulder) and 4th (El Paso, Teller) Judicial Districts – six of which were spent prosecuting special victims’ cases. She is the 2025 recipient of the Colorado Bar Association’s Gary McPherson Outstanding Young Lawyer award. Dotter earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas and her Juris Doctor from Washburn School of Law.
Raynes joined CDAC in November of 2010, helping implement the state’s eDiscovery system, train nearly 800 prosecutors a year, and pass dozens of bills that made Colorado safer. Prior to coming to work for CDAC, Raynes served as Deputy Attorney General and as the Elected District Attorney for the 7th Judicial District. He also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Colorado School of Law from 2014-2023.