(1) Every person charged with an offense shall be permitted to tender a plea of guilty to that offense if the following conditions have been satisfied:
(a) The court shall have advised the defendant that if the plea is accepted the defendant shall be determined to have waived his right to trial by jury on all issues including the determination of the penalty to be assessed, and the court shall also have advised the defendant as to the maximum and minimum penalties that the court may impose.
(b) In class 1 felonies or where the plea of guilty is to a lesser included offense, a written consent has been filed with the court by the district attorney.
(c) In all felony, level 1 drug misdemeanor, and class 1 misdemeanor cases, the defendant shall be represented by counsel or waive his right thereto in open court, and the guilty plea shall be tendered in open court by the defendant in the presence of counsel, if any.
(2) The refusal or consent of the district attorney or the court to accept a plea of guilty to the charge shall not be a basis for assignment of error, and such refusal or acceptance by the district attorney or court is final.
(3) The acceptance by the court of a plea of guilty acts as a waiver by the defendant of the right to trial by jury on all issues including the determination of the penalty to be assessed, and the acceptance of such plea also acts as a conviction for the offense.
Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 221, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 39-7-206. L. 2013: (1)(c) amended, (SB 13-250), ch. 333, p. 1930, � 43, effective October 1.
16-7-207. Court's duty to inform on first appearance in court and on pleas of guilty. (1) At the first appearance of the defendant in court or upon arraignment, whichever is first in time, it is the duty of the judge to inform the defendant and make certain that the defendant understands the following:
(a) The defendant need make no statement, and any statement made can and may be used against him or her.
(b) The defendant has a right to counsel.
(c) If the defendant is an indigent person, he or she may make application for a court-appointed attorney, and, upon payment of the application fee, he or she will be assigned counsel as provided by law or applicable rule of criminal procedure.
(d) Any plea the defendant makes must be voluntary on his or her part and not the result of undue influence or coercion on the part of anyone.
(e) The defendant has a right to bail, if the offense is bailable, and the amount of bail that has been set by the court.
(f) The defendant has a right to a jury trial.
(g) The nature of the charges against the defendant.
(2) The court shall not accept a plea of guilty or nolo contendere (no contest) without first determining that the defendant is advised of all the matters set forth in subsection (1) of this section and also determining:
(a) That the defendant understands the nature of the charge and the elements of the offense to which he is pleading and the effect of his plea;
(b) That the plea is voluntary on defendant's part and is not the result of undue influence or coercion on the part of anyone;
(c) That he understands the right to trial by jury;
(d) That he understands the possible penalty or penalties and the possible places of incarceration;
(e) That the defendant understands that the court will not be bound by any representations made to the defendant by anyone concerning the penalty to be imposed or the granting or the denial of probation, unless the representations are included in a formal plea agreement approved by the court and supported by the findings of the presentence report, if any; and
(f) That there is a factual basis for the plea. If the plea is entered as a result of a plea agreement, the court shall explain to the defendant and satisfy itself that the defendant understands the basis for the plea agreement, and the defendant may then waive the establishment of a factual basis for the particular charge to which he pleads guilty.
(3) This section applies to prosecutions for violations of municipal charters and prosecutions for violations of municipal ordinances, except for traffic infractions for which the penalty is only a fine and arrest is prohibited and for which a court shall not issue a bench warrant, including a warrant for failure to appear.
Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 222, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 39-7-207. L. 90: (1)(c) amended, p. 1039, � 2, effective July 1. L. 92: (1)(c) amended, p. 465, � 1, effective July 1. L. 2013: (1) amended, (HB 13-1210), ch. 306, p. 1623, � 2, effective January 1, 2014. L. 2016: (3) added, (HB 16-1309), ch. 366, p. 1541, � 3, effective (see editor's note). L. 2017: (3) amended, (HB 17-1083), ch. 128, p. 438, � 1, effective July 1, 2018 (see editor's note).
Editor's note: The effective date of subsection (3) was changed from May 1, 2017, to July 1, 2018, by H.B. 17-1316. (See L. 2017, p. 607.)
Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 16-1309, see section 1 of chapter 366, Session Laws of Colorado 2016.
16-7-207.5. Court's duty to inform defendants with current or prior military service on first appearance in court and on pleas of guilty. (1) At the first appearance of a defendant in court or upon arraignment, whichever is first in time, the court shall ascertain whether the defendant is serving in the United States armed forces or is a veteran of such forces. The court shall inform any such defendant that the defendant may be entitled to receive mental health treatment, substance use disorder treatment, or other services as a veteran. If the jurisdiction does not have a veterans treatment court, the court shall inform the defendant of the possibility of petitioning to transfer probation supervision after a plea or sentence in a case to a jurisdiction with a veterans treatment court pursuant to section 18-1.3-202.5.
(2) The court shall not accept a plea of guilty or nolo contendere without first determining whether the defendant is serving in the United States armed forces or is a veteran of such forces and, if so, informing the defendant as described in subsection (1) of this section.
(3) This section applies to, but is not limited to, prosecutions for violations of municipal charters and prosecutions for violations of municipal ordinances, except for traffic infractions for which the penalty is only a fine and arrest is prohibited.
Source: L. 2018: Entire section added, (HB 18-1078), ch. 135, p. 889, � 1, effective August 8. L. 2021: (1) amended, (HB 21-1016), ch. 214, p. 1135, � 1, effective September 7.