(1) All jurors entitled to compensation for mileage in accordance with the "Colorado Uniform Jury Selection and Service Act", article 71 of this title, and all witnesses shall receive, in counties of every class, the same base mileage allowance amount as provided for state officers and employees under section 24-9-104, C.R.S., for each mile actually and necessarily traveled in going from his or her place of residence to the place named in the summons or subpoena and in returning to such place of residence.
(2) No officer of the courts, in which the cause is pending and on which he is in actual attendance in his official capacity, including clerks, sheriffs, bailiffs, jurors, and police officers, shall be entitled to witnesses' fees or mileage as a witness in any criminal case.
(3) No witness before a coroner, commissioner, or magistrate shall be allowed fees unless such witness claims the same under oath before the adjournment of the court.
(4) No witness in any court of record shall be allowed fees unless such witness claims the same under oath, then only for the number of days such witness actually attended such court in the capacity of a witness.
(5) No witness testifying in more than one criminal case on the same day shall be entitled to receive fees as a witness for more than one day by reason thereof, nor more than one day's attendance on any day, though attending in several cases.
(6) The mileage fee shall not be paid to any witness who at the time of testifying is in the legal custody of any state or federal agency or any local law enforcement agency and whose transportation to court is provided at government expense.
Source: L. 1891: p. 215, § 12. R.S. 08: § 2543. C.L. § 7907. CSA: C. 66, § 47. CRS 53: § 56-6-3. C.R.S. 1963: § 56-6-3. L. 64: p. 387, § 20. L. 89: (1) amended, p. 775, § 7, effective January 1, 1990. L. 91: (3) amended, p. 359, § 18, effective April 9. L. 98: (6) added, p. 947, § 4, effective May 27. L. 99: (1) amended, p. 680, § 1, effective July 1.
ANNOTATION
Fees of witnesses either for attendance or mileage are purely statutory. Union Pac. R. R. v. Brower, 60 Colo. 579, 155 P. 312 (1916); Crawford v. French, 633 P.2d 524 (Colo. App. 1981).
There is no provision allowing a witness mileage from his residence outside of the state. Union Pac. R. R. v. Brower, 60 Colo. 579, 155 P. 312 (1916).
Witness cannot claim mileage unless he has been subpoenaed. It is clearly not the purpose of this section to compensate a witness for the expense of travel, unless incurred in obedience to the command of the court, and hence, it follows that a witness cannot claim mileage unless he has been subpoenaed. Union Pac. R. R. v. Brower, 60 Colo. 579, 155 P. 312 (1916); Welch v. George, 19 P.3d 675 (Colo. 2000).
Unsubpoenaed, out-of-state witness testifying at a deposition taken in the state is not entitled to any mileage fee. Crawford v. French, 633 P.2d 524 (Colo. App. 1981).
Mileage expense is determined by the number of miles necessarily traveled by the witness. It follows that the distance is to be measured, not in a direct line, but by the route that the witness is necessarily required to travel. Osborn v. People, 83 Colo. 4, 262 P. 892 (1927).
An expert witness is not entitled to a greater sum for mileage. Bd. of Comm'rs v. Lee, 3 Colo. App. 177, 32 P. 841 (1893); Osborn v. People, 83 Colo. 4, 262 P. 892 (1927).
Because appearance of incarcerated inmates to testify as witnesses at criminal trials was compelled by writs of habeas corpus ad testificandum rather than by subpoenas and since their transportation in response to the writs was furnished at state expense, trial court did not err in refusing to order payment of the statutory mileage allowance to them. Collins v. Bandy, 890 P.2d 266 (Colo. App. 1995).
Applied in In re C.R.A.H., 647 P.2d 239 (Colo. App. 1981); Carruthers v. Carrier Access Corp., 251 P.3d 1199 (Colo. App. 2010).