Title 16, Criminal Proceedings

(1) If the defendant intends to assert the affirmative defense of impaired mental condition, the defendant shall indicate that intention to the court and to the prosecution at the time of arraignment; except that the court, for good cause shown, shall permit the defendant to info…

(1) (a) A defendant who places the defendant's mental condition at issue by pleading not guilty by reason of insanity pursuant to section 16-8-103, or asserting the affirmative defense of impaired mental condition pursuant to section 16-8-103.5, or disclosing witnesses who may pr…

(1) (a) When, at the time of arraignment, the defense of insanity is raised pursuant to section 16-8-103, and the defendant asserts the defendant’s intention to raise the affirmative defense of impaired mental condition pursuant to section 16-8-103.5, the court shall order one ex…

The issues raised by the plea of not guilty by reason of insanity must be tried separately to different juries, and the sanity of the defendant must be tried first. This section applies to offenses committed before July 1, 1995. Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 226, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 39…

(1) The issues raised by the plea of not guilty by reason of insanity must be treated as an affirmative defense and must be tried at the same proceeding and before the same trier of fact as the charges to which not guilty by reason of insanity is offered as a defense. (2) This se…

(1) When a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity is accepted, the court shall forthwith order the defendant to undergo a sanity examination, specifying the place where the examination must be conducted. (2) Upon receiving the report of the sanity examination, the court shall i…

(1) (a) When a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity is accepted, the court shall forthwith order the defendant to undergo a sanity examination, specifying where the examination must be conducted. The court, in consultation with the department of human services and the parties…

(1) (a) All examinations ordered by the court in criminal cases must be accomplished by the entry of an order of the court specifying the place where the examination is to be conducted and the period of time allocated for the examination. The defendant may be committed for the ex…

C.R.S. 16-8-106.5Statutes current through Chapter 65 of the 2026 Regular Session, effective as of April 20, 2026. The text of this section is not final. It will not be final until compared to, and updated from, the text provided by the Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Service…

(1) (a) Except as provided in this subsection (1), evidence acquired directly or indirectly for the first time from a communication derived from the defendant's mental processes during the course of a court-ordered examination pursuant to section 16-8-106 or acquired pursuant to …

(1) (a) If the defendant wishes to be examined by a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other expert of the defendant's own choice in connection with any proceeding under this article 8, the court, upon timely motion, shall order that the examiner chosen by the defendant be given reas…

In any trial or hearing in which the defendant's mental condition is an issue, a witness not specially trained in psychiatry or psychology may testify as to the witness's observation of the defendant's actions and conduct, and as to conversations that the witness has had with the…

C.R.S. 16-8-110Statutes current through Chapter 65 of the 2026 Regular Session, effective as of April 20, 2026. The text of this section is not final. It will not be final until compared to, and updated from, the text provided by the Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Services …

Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 229, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 39-8-111. L. 2001: (1) amended and (4) added, p. 407, � 4, effective April 19. L. 2006: (1) amended and (3.5) added, p. 178, � 2, effective March 31. L. 2008: Entire section repealed, p. 1856, � 9, effective July 1. Editor's note: …

C.R.S. 16-8-112Statutes current through Chapter 65 of the 2026 Regular Session, effective as of April 20, 2026. The text of this section is not final. It will not be final until compared to, and updated from, the text provided by the Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Services …

Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 230, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 39-8-113. L. 2009: Entire section repealed, (HB 09-1253), ch. 128, p. 552, � 4, effective August 5.

(1) and (2) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2008, p. 1857, � 11, effective July 1, 2008.) (3) (a) Evidence of any determination as to the defendant's competency or incompetency is not admissible on the issues raised by the pleas of not guilty or not guilty by reason of insanity or the …

Source: L. 81: Entire section added, p. 937, � 3, effective January 1, 1982. L. 89: (2) amended, p. 867, � 1, effective April 27. L. 90: (1) amended, p. 954, � 20, effective June 7. L. 94: (1) amended, p. 2649, � 120, effective July 1. L. 2007: (2) amended, p. 1756, � 1, effectiv…

(1) (a) (I) Upon an initial commitment following a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity pursuant to section 16-8-105.5 (4)(b), or upon delaying final entry of the finding of not guilty by reason of insanity pursuant to section 16-8-105.5 (4)(a), the court shall schedule an…

(1) The terms and conditions imposed upon a defendant’s release pursuant to section 16-8-115 (3) or (4) may be enforced as are any other orders of court. (2) (Deleted by amendment, L. 94, p. 1423, §2, effective July 1, 1994.) (3) Whenever the director of forensic services in the …

(1) After a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity, when the chief officer of the hospital where a defendant has been committed, or the chief officer's designee, or the director of forensic services in the department of human services, or the director's designee, who has bee…

When a determination is to be made as to a defendant's eligibility for release, the court shall explain to the defendant the nature and consequences of the proceeding and the rights of the defendant pursuant to this section, including the defendant's right to a jury trial upon th…

(1) The chief officer of the institution where a defendant has been committed under this article 8 or article 8.5 of this title 16, or the chief officer's designee, may authorize treatment and rehabilitation activities involving temporary physical removal of the defendant from th…

In all proceedings brought pursuant to this article 8, upon motion of the defendant and proof that the defendant is indigent and without funds to employ physicians, psychologists, or attorneys to which the defendant is entitled under this article 8, the court shall appoint the ph…

(1) As to any person charged with any crime allegedly committed on or after June 2, 1965, the test for determination of a defendant's sanity for release from commitment, or the defendant's eligibility for conditional release, is: That the defendant has no abnormal mental conditio…

(1) If any defendant, confined in an institution for the care and treatment of persons with behavioral or mental health disorders or intellectual and developmental disabilities under the supervision of the executive director of the department of human services, escapes from the i…

Upon the termination of the period of observation of a defendant committed under section 16-8-106, the authorities shall present to the court their account, evidenced by a statement thereof based upon the established per diem rate of the place of confinement. If approved by the c…

(1) In every criminal case, the prosecuting attorney and the defendant have the right to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of tangible evidence by service upon them of a subpoena to appear for examination as a witness at any proceeding before the court. Servic…

As used in this part 2, unless the context otherwise requires: (1) State includes any territory of the United States and the District of Columbia. (2) Summons includes a subpoena, order, or other notice requiring the appearance of a witness. (3) Witness includes a person whose te…

(1) If a judge of a court of record in any state which by its laws has made provision for commanding persons within that state to attend and testify in this state certifies under the seal of the court that there is a criminal prosecution pending in such court or that a grand jury…

(1) If a person in any state which by its laws has made provision for commanding persons within its borders to attend and testify in criminal prosecutions or grand jury investigations commenced or about to commence in this state is a material witness in a prosecution pending in a…

(1) If a person comes into this state in obedience to a summons directing him to attend and testify in this state, he shall not while in this state pursuant to such summons be subject to arrest or the service of process, civil or criminal, in connection with matters which arose b…

The procedures set forth in this part 2 shall apply to both the compulsory attendance of witnesses and the production of tangible evidence by witnesses located in this state whose presence is required in an action in another state and to witnesses from another state whose presenc…

As used in this part 3, unless the context otherwise requires: (1) Summons includes a subpoena, order, or other notice requiring the appearance of a witness. (2) Witness includes a person whose testimony is desired or who is desired to produce tangible evidence in any proceeding …

(1) In order to secure the attendance of a material witness who either the prosecution or the defense has reasonable grounds to believe will absent himself from the jurisdiction of the requesting court, a judge of a court of record in any county in this state upon such showing ma…

When a person enters into or passes through any county in this state in obedience to a summons issued pursuant to section 16-9-302 (2) or when returning from testifying under the summons, he shall not be subject to arrest or the service of process, civil or criminal, in connectio…

If a defendant in a criminal proceeding files a motion or other pleading that includes a claim alleging a state statute or municipal ordinance is unconstitutional, the defendant shall serve the attorney general with a copy of the motion or pleading. The attorney general shall be …

(1) For purposes of this part 6, sexually exploitative material shall have the same meaning as provided in section 18-6-403 (2)(j), C.R.S. (2) For the reasons stated in section 18-6-403 (1) and (1.5), C.R.S., regarding the harm and victimization related to sexually exploitative m…

(1) (a) There is created the discovery project steering committee convened to assist in developing a request for proposal application and selection process to choose a vendor to develop a statewide discovery sharing system. The steering committee consists of: (I) The attorney gen…

(1) The Colorado district attorneys' council shall develop and maintain a statewide discovery sharing system integrated with its ACTION system. The statewide discovery sharing system must be operational by July 1, 2017. The Colorado district attorneys' council shall maintain and …

(1) (a) The defense has the right to view and inspect any tangible object held by law enforcement in connection with a case at any location designated and operated by or under contract with the law enforcement agency as soon as practicable, but no later than thirty-five days befo…

The right of a person who is accused of an offense other than a noncriminal traffic infraction or offense, civil infraction, or offense other than a municipal charter, municipal ordinance, or county ordinance violation as provided in section 16-10-109 (1), to have a trial by jury…

In all criminal cases where the panel of jurors is exhausted by challenge or otherwise, and whether any juror has been selected and sworn or not, the court may order the issuance of a venire for any number of jurors not exceeding twenty-four, returnable forthwith, out of which pe…

(1) The court shall sustain a challenge for cause on one or more of the following grounds: (a) Absence of any qualification prescribed by statute to render a person competent as a juror; (b) Relationship within the third degree, by blood, adoption, or marriage, to a defendant or …

(1) (a) In capital cases and in cases in which the defendant is charged with murder in the first degree, the state and the defendant, when there is one defendant, are each entitled to ten peremptory challenges. In all other cases where there is one defendant and the punishment ma…

The court may direct that a sufficient number of jurors in addition to the regular jury be called and impaneled to sit as alternate jurors. Alternate jurors in the order in which they are called shall replace jurors who, prior to the time the jury retires to consider its verdict,…

Where a jury of twelve has been sworn to try the case, and any juror by reason of illness or other cause becomes unable to continue until a verdict is reached, the court may excuse such juror. If no alternate juror is available to replace the juror, the parties at any time before…

A challenge to the panel is an objection to the entire panel of prospective trial jurors made by the defendant or by the prosecuting attorney. No challenge to the panel shall be made, except as provided by section 13-71-139, C.R.S. Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 238, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: �…

The verdict of the jury shall be unanimous. The jury shall return its verdict in open court, but a sealed verdict may be received as provided by rule of the supreme court of Colorado. Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 238, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 39-10-108.

(1) For the purposes of this section, petty offense means any crime or offense classified as a petty offense or, if not so classified, which is punishable by imprisonment other than in a correctional facility for not more than six months, or by a fine of not more than five hundre…