Kato Crews

Shane Kato Crews (born 1975) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado since 2024. He previously served as a United States magistrate judge of the same court from 2018 to 2024.

Early life and education

Crews is a native of Pueblo, Colorado. He attended Rye High School in Rye, Colorado. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Northern Colorado in 1997 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Arizona in 2000, where he served on the Arizona Law Review.

Career

In 2000 and 2001, Crews served as a staff attorney for the National Labor Relations Board in Denver. He later worked as a lawyer at Rothgerber Johnson & Lyons LLP in Denver from 2001 to 2008, becoming partner from 2008 to 2010. He worked at Mastin Hoffman & Crews LLC from 2011 to 2013, and Hoffman Crews Nies Waggener & Foster LLP from 2013 to 2018. In private practice, Crews focused on labor, business, and real estate law. He served as a magistrate judge of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado from August 3, 2018 to January 2024. He was the court's first African-American magistrate judge. On February 22, 2023, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Crews to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. Crews was the third magistrate judge to be nominated for a district court vacancy in Colorado. During his confirmation hearing, he was unable to answer a question by Senator John Kennedy, in which the senator asked him to define a Brady motion, which is a tenet of criminal law.

On May 11, 2023, his nomination was reported out of committee by a party line 11–10 vote. On January 10, 2024, the United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 51–47 vote, with Senator Kyrsten Sinema voting against the motion to invoke cloture on his nomination. Later that day, his nomination was confirmed by a 51–48 vote, with Senator Sinema voting against his confirmation. He received his judicial commission on January 12, 2024.