Bio
A 50-year resident of Colorado Springs, Pete’s professional life has been characterized by public service and a passion for civil rights and social justice. A lawyer, businessman and community volunteer, Pete served 12 years in the Colorado Legislature, 8 as the Colorado State Representative for House District 18, in Colorado Springs and 4 as Senator for SD 11 He chaired the Senate and House Judiciary Committees and served on the Legal Services, Finance, Education Committee, Local Government, Transportation and Energy Committees. During his 12 years in Colorado’s General Assembly, he sponsored close to 200 bills, almost all receiving bipartisan support.
He was recognized for his service by the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition, ACLU Carle Whitehead Award, Mental Health America, Colorado Non-Profit Association, Colorado Juvenile Defenders Coalition, National Association of Social Workers, Mt Carmel Veteran Service Center, United Veterans Committee, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, the NAACP Freedom Fighter, National Association of Community and Restorative Justice, Colorado Restorative Justice Champion.
Committed to transforming the criminal and juvenile justice systems, Pete sponsored four bills establishing comprehensive restorative justice policies and programs in Colorado’s adult and juvenile criminal justice systems, as well as in prisons and schools. In addition, he has sponsored bills to reform the Division of Youth Services, prohibiting the use of solitary confinement, ending incarceration for truancy, and reforming drug sentencing, parole, bail and criminal records expungement. He has also sponsored economic development bills to help small business obtain access to capital, state contracts, apprenticeships and job training programs.
His community service includes serving on the boards of the Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind, Greenburg Center for Learning and Tolerance, Pikes Peak Restorative Justice Council, NAACP-Springs Branch, Community Prep School, Youth Transformation Center, USA Taekwondo Center, the Veterans Justice League, Citizens Project, and Aspen Point (formally Pikes Peak Mental Health), among others.
Pete graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University, attended the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and graduated from Akron, Ohio School of Law. Prior to election to the Colorado legislature, Pete worked for two fortune 500 sized corporations and practiced law, with an emphasis on business and criminal law, in Colorado Springs for 25 years.
He and his wife Lynn, a restorative justice facilitator and trainer, have lived in Colorado Springs for 50 years where they raised their three children and are active outdoor enthusiasts, hiking and skiing the Colorado Rockies.