Colorado District Attorneys’ Council Awards
Each year, The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council recognizes outstanding prosecutors, investigators, victim advocates, and support staff across Colorado’s district attorneys’ offices whose work exemplifies the highest standards of the profession. Congratulations to this year’s honorees.
Robert R. Gallagher Prosecutor of the Year
David Dingess Wins 2026 Robert R. Gallagher Prosecutor of the Year Award
CDAC is proud to name Senior Deputy District Attorney David Dingess, 10th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, as the 2026 Robert R. Gallagher Prosecutor of the Year. In 2025, Dingess tried four first-degree murder cases, three in consecutive months, two of them involving the deaths of young children. He handled these demanding trials with professionalism, empathy, and steady resolve, even while adjusting to life as a first-time father.
“What truly sets David apart is his unique combination of a laid-back, approachable personality and an unshakable work ethic. He is calm, friendly, and easygoing—yet when trial approaches, he transforms into an absolute go-getter, fiercely focused and fully prepared. You will not meet another prosecutor who balances these traits so naturally or so effectively,” Kala Beauvais, 10th Judicial District Attorney, wrote in her nomination letter.
Beyond the courtroom, Dingess served as county court supervisor, trained new attorneys, and supported colleagues throughout the office. He is a regular volunteer with Heroes and Helpers, Read Across America, and the office’s Back-to-School Shoe Drive. His ability to balance an approachable demeanor with relentless focus and preparation under pressure exemplifies the standard this award was created to recognize.
The Robert R. Gallagher Prosecutor of the Year Award is for a prosecutor who distinguishes his or herself in the following ways: consistently exhibits exceptional performance and maintains the highest level of personal and professional ethics; demonstrates commitment and dedication to the community and the office; performed one or more act or acts within the last year that illustrated exceptional effort, initiative, performance and dedication as a prosecutor to include but not limited to trial work, management and training of other prosecutors or community involvement.
Victim Advocate Award
Colleen Vogel Wins 2026 Victim Advocate Award
CDAC is delighted to recognize Colleen Vogel, 23rd Judicial District Attorney’s Office, as this year’s Victim Advocate Award recipient. For 20 years, Vogel has been a constant source of compassion, strength, and reassurance for some of the most vulnerable people in our community. She supervises all Victim Witness Advocates assigned to the felony district court dockets, mentoring them with the same fairness and compassion she brings to her work with victims.
“What makes her guidance so valuable is her ability to strike the perfect balance between advocating fiercely for victims and remaining realistic about the limitations and pitfalls of our criminal justice system. She never gives victims false hope, but she also never allows the limitations of the system to diminish the importance of their experience,” 23rd Judicial District Attorney George Brauchler wrote in his nomination letter.
This past year presented Vogel with significant personal medical challenges that required her to be away from work for several months. Several victims said they hoped their cases wouldn’t go to trial until she returned because they wanted her by their side. When she did return, she came back with the same dedication that defined her career. In July, she supported the mother of a child abuse victim through a difficult trial, staying on the phone with her every night after full workdays so she could complete her testimony. Vogel also helped secure a second conviction in the retrial of a case first tried in 2016, coordinating support for a young victim so she could testify again — a victim whose family has continued to rely on Vogel’s guidance for nearly a decade since.
The Victim Advocate Award is for the person who distinguishes him or herself in the following ways: provides a model for professionalism in victim advocacy; demonstrates passion and dedication to the work, the office and the community; AND engaged in in work-related act or acts within the last year that displayed exceptional initiative, passion, perseverance, and dedication to victims and public safety.
Sean May Sustained Excellence Award
Doyle Baker wins 2026 Sean May Sustained Excellence Award
CDAC is honored to recognize Senior Deputy District Attorney Doyle Baker, 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, as this year’s recipient of the Sean May Sustained Excellence Award. Over the past 30 years, Baker has written more than 480 appellate briefs, including 25 in 2024 alone, while also supervising 65 others filed by the appellate division he leads.
Beyond his casework, Baker is a go-to legal resource for prosecutors statewide: he has served on the CDAC Pleading Committee for a decade, prepares weekly case law updates, and authored critical legal memoranda on issues ranging from COVID-era speedy trials to First Amendment challenges involving school libraries.
“Sustained excellence is not defined by one extraordinary case or one exceptional year. It is the ability to perform at an exceptional level year after year; to develop expertise and then share it generously; to become the person colleagues turn to when the answer is difficult to find; and to continue doing the work with the same rigor decades into a career. For more than three decades, Doyle Baker has done exactly that,” 4th Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen wrote in his nominating letter.
The Sean May Award Sustained Excellence is for any employee within a district attorney’s office who has distinguished his or her self by showing a sustained career commitment to prosecution, as exemplified by superior work, high ethics, and long tenure (exceeding 20 years).
Mike Bell Investigator of the Year
Michael Martinez Wins 2026 Mike Bell Investigator of the Year
The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council is excited to name Michael Martinez, 12th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, as this year’s recipient of the Mike Bell Investigator of the Year Award.
Martinez joined the DA’s Office in 2024, and immediately overhauled the investigations unit from the ground up — building a comprehensive policy structure and training protocol, securing grant funding to expand the office and equip his team, and sponsoring a candidate through the police academy, all without adding cost to the office budget.
Under his leadership, the unit has grown from a reactive support role into one of the most effective, proactive investigative agencies in the San Luis Valley. Despite limited resources, Martinez built a case that led to grand jury indictments against nearly the entire Costilla County Sheriff’s Office. When major evidence-handling failures came to light within that Sheriff’s Office, Martinez coordinated a multi-agency operation to secure and relocate the evidence, and then built a logging system to review and catalog thousands of items dating back to 1976.
“His vision transformed our office’s investigative capabilities, his dedication restored trust for community members who felt abandoned, and his courage brought massive changes to a community suffering from lack of hope in their criminal justice system,” Anne Kelly, 12th Judicial District Attorney, wrote in her nomination letter.
The Mike Bell Investigator of the Year Award is for an investigator who distinguishes his or her self in the following ways: Continually maintains the highest professional standards in regard to daily assignments and duties; Shows an ongoing commitment to the office, the community and public safety; and Performed an act or series of acts over the last year demonstrating exceptional dedication, effort, initiative and passion in the pursuit of justice.
Cindy Nelson Office Manager Award
Wendi Rowles Wins 2026 Cindy Nelson Office Manager Award
The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council is celebrating Wendi Rowles, 5th Judicial District, as this year’s recipient of the Cindy Nelson Office Manager Award.
Rowles has served as Financial Manager since 2013, a title that barely captures the scope of her role. She is the go-to resource in the office for payroll, benefits, disability, and health insurance. She also oversees compliance across the district’s grants, including CVC, VOCA, and VALE, as well as coordinating travel logistics for expert witnesses and victims.
Rowles’ knowledge of complex restitution matters exceeds that of most attorneys in the office. She trains and mentors the Victim/Witness team to ensure victims are treated with dignity, and personally steps in on difficult cases to ensure victims’ concerns are always addressed.
“Wendi embodies the concepts of professionalism, strong work ethic, drive, compassion and kindness. This office would not function without her, and I could not do my job without her by my side,” 5th Judicial District Attorney Heidi McCollum said in her nomination letter.
The Cindy Nelson Office Manager Award is for an office manager who distinguishes him or her self in the following ways: Exhibits outstanding office management expertise and above average performance in all assignments and duties; provides exemplary guidance and support to all in the office including the elected District Attorney; provides a professional model for other support staff to emulate and follow; and fosters a highly professional and respected work environment.
Outstanding Trial Team Achievement
Denver District Attorney’s Office Wins 2026 Outstanding Trial Team Achievement
The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council is thrilled to name the trial team behind People v. Angelo Mantych as this year’s recipient of the Outstanding Trial Team Achievement Award: Assistant District Attorney Lara Mullin, Chief Deputy Amelia Sapp, Investigators Randy Denison and John Saulton, Victim Advocate Audrey Keen, Paralegal Holly Mandis, and Legal Administrative Assistant Dolores Huiting.
In 2016, Marina Placensia died aboard an Amtrak train that was destined for Denver’s Union Station, traveling with her four young children and her boyfriend. Despite roughly 35 injuries and a documented history of domestic violence, the medical examiner could not determine a cause of death.
Detectives Denison and Saulton, police detectives who later became investigators at the Denver DA’s Office, never let the case go cold. They brought in outside experts to secure a homicide determination. From there they faced the challenge of trying to prove a murder that occurred on a crowded train with no direct witnesses.
Victim Advocate Audrey Keen worked to secure witness participation that was essential to the case, including traveling to Wisconsin ahead of trial to meet with them. At trial, Chief Deputy Sapp delivered what colleagues called a masterclass cross-examination of the defense’s medical expert, while the full team’s investigative persistence, legal strategy, and administrative precision came together to secure a conviction in a case with no eyewitnesses and no digital evidence.
“The case did not turn on a single breakthrough, nor was it carried by any one discipline. It required the convergence of investigative persistence, prosecutorial strategy, administrative precision, and victim-centered advocacy to overcome obstacles that would have derailed most prosecutions,” John Walsh, 2nd Judicial District Attorney, wrote in his nomination letter.
The Outstanding Trial Team Achievement Award is an award for the trial team within a single office (one jurisdiction) comprised of the attorneys, investigators, paralegals, staff, and victim advocates of that office who collaborated and persevered on the prosecution of a case of significant importance to the jurisdiction. This is a single award given to the office as a unit.
Faculty Award
Amanda Hensen Wins 2026 Faculty of the Year Award
The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council is happy to name Deputy District Attorney Amanda Hensen, 1st Judicial District Attorney’s Office, as this year’s recipient of the Faculty of the Year Award, honoring her outstanding commitment to strengthening CDAC’s training programs — most notably through her role in the success of the revamped Misdemeanor Prosecution Skills Course.
Over the past year, Hensen has taught two courses during each of the three training sessions, while also developing entirely new material for both. One of those courses had never been offered before and Hensen built it from the ground up, bringing something genuinely new to CDAC’s training program.
“Amanda’s knowledge, creativity, and dedication have made her an integral part of the Misdemeanor Prosecution Skills Course’s success, helping build the next generation of Colorado prosecutors. As a teacher, presenter, and mentor, she brings both expertise and enthusiasm to every training she leads,” said Jessica Dotter, CDAC Executive Director.
The “Faculty of the Year Award” is for a CDAC trainer or presenter who distinguishes his or her self in the following ways: consistently delivers exceptional instruction and demonstrates academic excellence; demonstrates outstanding dedication to CDAC’s training mission and the development of prosecutors statewide; performed an act or series of acts within the last year that illustrated exceptional effort and creativity to advance CDAC’s educational programs.