LINCOLN, Colo. — Despite testimony that another jail sentence would jeopardize her recovery, cost her a job opportunity and further damage her relationship with her teenage daughter, a Colorado judge ordered a mother to serve 30 days in jail after finding she repeatedly violated the terms of her probation.
The accused had previously been charged with two DUIs in Lincoln County after previously being charged in Morgan County as well. After violating probation in the Morgan County case, she received a lenient sentence of 15 days in jail.
However, after violating the conditions of her probation multiple times in Lincoln County, Judge Miles Cabral sentenced her to 30 days in jail, with credit for the 14 days she had already served.
The accused pleaded guilty to violating her probation, stating that while she understood a jail sentence might be appropriate, she asked the court to consider the harm incarceration would cause to her relationship with her daughter, as well as the difficulty it would create in obtaining employment.
Senior Special Deputy District Attorney Keegan Doheney argued that additional jail time was appropriate, noting that the accused had two previous DUI cases and had been placed on probation in multiple other cases, all of which were ultimately revoked.
Despite repeated opportunities, he argued, she was once again before the court on similar violations. While he did not recommend a specific amount of additional jail time, Doheney maintained that because leniency had not proven effective in the past, incarceration might help curb future violations.
Deputy Public Defender Edward Bowden argued that the accused should receive no more than the 14 days she had already served, noting that nearly identical charges in Morgan County resulted in a 15-day jail sentence in 2024.
He explained that her primary treatment was DUI treatment, which she had completed, and argued that the role of the court is to help individuals struggling with addiction get back on their feet.
Bowden also highlighted the significant lifestyle changes she had made, including finding a new therapist, developing her self-worth, moving into a more supportive environment and surrounding herself with a stronger support system than she had at the time of her original DUI conviction.
Bowden further explained that the accused had voluntarily enrolled in and completed Intensive Residential Treatment, or IRT, a program embedded within correctional facilities for individuals requiring intensive treatment. He stated that she not only completed the program voluntarily but also earned Gold and Silver certifications on Feb. 12, 2024.
As one of the conditions of her probation required an ignition interlock device on her vehicle until November, Bowden explained that she had struggled to maintain employment because many jobs required reliable transportation.
Despite those challenges, she remained hopeful and had a job interview scheduled for Wednesday morning. He argued that imposing additional jail time would eliminate that opportunity and significantly affect her mental health.
When allowed to address the court, the accused testified that after serving her previous 15-day jail sentence, her daughter refused to speak with her for months. As a single mother with 50/50 custody, she explained that the time she already had with her daughter was limited and she feared another jail sentence would further damage their relationship.
Through tears, the accused also told the court that she had begun caring full time for her boyfriend’s son, who has Level 2 autism. She explained that she had completely turned her life around and wanted the opportunity to continue doing so on her own.
The accused further explained that she now “lives a quiet life” and hopes to use her experiences with addiction to support others who may be struggling as she once did. Ultimately, she told the court she was “desperate to not go to jail” so she would not ruin her relationship with her daughter.
After hearing the defense’s arguments and the accused’s testimony, Judge Cabral acknowledged the progress she had made but emphasized that the issue before the court was her repeated noncompliance with probation, not simply her underlying DUI convictions.
He noted that this was not only her second DUI conviction in Lincoln County, but that she had also been given countless opportunities to comply with probation and seek treatment. Despite probation officers continually reaching out, he said, she failed to comply until the court filed a complaint against her.
Cabral also pointed to additional examples of noncompliance. He stated that when the accused was located at her home, she had “[come] up hot” for marijuana as recently as June 2025.
He then suggested that he did not know how many times she had “come up hot” for alcohol, a statement that was immediately disputed by both Bowden and the witness, who clarified that she had remained completely alcohol-free since 2024.
The judge further noted that as of March 11, 2026, the accused had paid nothing toward a $1,400 fine owed to Lincoln County despite being placed on a $100-per-month payment plan. The accused acknowledged she had not made payments for a long time, explaining that her unstable income, transportation issues and responsibilities at home had made it difficult to keep up with them.
Judge Cabral praised her efforts to take her recovery seriously but explained that the issue in this case was her repeated noncompliance with probation, which he said was not sustainable.
He then asked, “Are you never going to have stress again? Are you never going to be so stressed you fall off the wagon again?”
Cabral also explained that Morgan County had shown her grace and revealed that, before hearing the case, he had been considering a 90-day jail sentence. He concluded that the repeated probation violations and resulting complications for the court warranted incarceration, explaining that “16 days is far lower than what you would receive in any other court, including Morgan County.”
After hearing the accused’s statement and the defense’s arguments, Cabral said he was willing to reduce what he believed would have been an appropriate 90-day sentence to a total of 30 days, with credit for the 14 days she had already served.
The accused is scheduled to begin serving the remainder of her sentence on July 31, 2026, at 4 p.m.
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