Hon. Kelly LaFave is a judge for the Arapahoe County Court in Colorado. She was appointed to the bench by former Governor John Hickenlooper in 2016, filling the vacancy created by the retirement of the Hon. Dana Murray (Ret.).
During her judicial tenure, LaFave sits on a criminal docket, including misdemeanor and traffic cases in the County Court Criminal Division in Arapahoe County.
Prior to her appointment, LaFave was a senior deputy district attorney with the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office since 2012. Before that, she worked as an assistant district attorney with the Denton County District Attorney’s Office in Texas; a consultant for Paige-Wheatcroft, Inc.; a deputy county attorney in Pima County, Arizona; and a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
LaFave received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Arizona State University in 1987. She went on to complete a J.D. at Arizona State University, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law in 1991.
After graduating from law school, LaFave began her legal career as a law clerk for a District Court judge in Reno, Nevada. She was admitted to practice in Colorado (2002) and Texas.
LaFave has participated in the High School Mock Trial Competition in both Douglas and Arapahoe Counties and as a speaker on the judicial system retention process to high school students as a part of Our Courts.