Otero County, CO Courts and Public Records

The Otero County Court and District Court in La Junta are part of Colorado's unified state court system and serve the 16th Judicial District. The County Court handles misdemeanors, traffic, infractions, small claims, and civil cases under its limit, while the District Court handles felonies, civil, domestic relations, juvenile, mental health, and probate matters.

Have the full name, the case number if you know it, and approximate dates ready before you search. Colorado court records are not on one official public search, so start with the options below.

The District and County Courts in Otero County together recorded 3,135 filings and 2,884 terminations in FY 2024, the sum of each court's reported figures. Combined filings were up 28.7% from 2,435 in FY 2023.

The biggest driver of the change was County Court infractions, which rose by 227 filings.

This table covers the five most recent fiscal years for Otero County. Published years are shown as reported; earlier years marked with ~ are estimates based on the statewide trend and this county's latest published figures.

Combined filings went from 2,906 in FY 2021 to 3,135 in FY 2024, a change of +7.9% over the period. The largest annual change was +28.7% in FY 2024, when combined filings went from 2,435 to 3,135. The latest change was driven mainly by County Court infractions, which rose by 227 filings. FY 2020 is not in the source series, so no year-over-year change is shown for FY 2021.

The largest category in FY 2024 was County Court infractions, with 627 filings or 26.1% of that court's total.

The fastest-growing category was County Court infractions (+56.8%), and the fastest-falling was County Court felony (-31.6%).

Otero County accounted for 0.18% of all statewide combined filings in FY 2024.

Filings per 1,000 residents were 174.3 in Otero County compared with 288.0 statewide, while its combined filings were up 28.7% against up 9.9% statewide. Criminal made up 27.2% of district filings here compared with 19.2% statewide, and civil made up 22.6% compared with 45.2%. The statewide dispositions figure marked with ~ is an estimate based on the statewide filings figure.

These figures are Colorado statewide totals as reported to the FBI, not counts for Otero County. Agency reporting may be incomplete, and county crime counts are not available here. Statewide violent and property crimes combined fell 14.6% from 2024 to 2025. In 2025, reporting agencies covered about 99.1% of Colorado's population, so year-over-year changes can partly reflect which agencies reported.

Rates use the Colorado 2025 population of 6,012,561. County-level rates are not published, so this section does not compare Otero County with the state.

Otero County has 1 official court location, the Otero Combined Court in La Junta. Check your notice or ticket for the court location assigned to your case before you go.

Colorado's District Court and County Court form one state court system, so the case type decides which court hears it. Federal cases go to the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

Yes, most court records in Otero County are public, with exceptions set by Chief Justice Directive 05-01 and state law.

Public records

Most District and County Court case files are open to the public, including dockets, filings, and orders, unless a rule or court order restricts them.

Restricted or confidential records

Sealed records are visible only to judges, court staff, and authorized staff unless a court order allows access. Juvenile delinquency, mental health, guardianship, and truancy cases are not public unless a court orders otherwise.

Online access

The Colorado Judicial Branch website has no public case search. Commercial vendors such as LexisNexis Colorado Courts Record Search and Background Information Services show register-of-actions data for a fee, and their data is not the official court record.

In-person access

Visit 13 West Third St., Room 207, La Junta, CO 81050 to ask about records, or contact the court location or probation department that handled the case. Written requests can use the online records request form.

Fees

The current district court record request form lists $0.25 per page for copies, $20 for certified copies, and $5 for a name search, and fees vary by court and form.

Colorado does not offer one official online search, so identify the case type and use the steps below.

1. Identify the case type, such as criminal, traffic, civil, small claims, domestic, probate, or juvenile.
2. Start at the Colorado Judicial Branch access guide for official records options.
3. Search a commercial vendor by name or case number if you accept its fees and register-of-actions results.
4. Review the register of actions for case status and scheduled dates.
5. Request documents that are not online through the online records request form or the court location.

Traffic and criminal payments for Otero County are made through the Colorado Judicial Payment System or through payment plans, and availability depends on the county.

1. Online: Pay fees, fines, and restitution through the Colorado Judicial Payment System by choosing the county and entering the case or ticket number or name. Accepted payment types vary by court.
2. Payment plans: Ask the court location handling your case whether a payment plan is available online, in person, or by mail or fax.

Parking tickets are handled by the citing city or agency, not by the county court.