CRS 18-8-113 is the Colorado code section defining the offense of impersonating a public servant. A person commits this offense if he or she falsely pretends to be a public servant other than a peace officer, and then performs any act in the pretended capacity.
The language of 18-8-113 CRS states that:
(1) A person commits impersonating a public servant if he falsely pretends to be a public servant other than a peace officer and performs any act in that pretended capacity. (2) It is no defense to a prosecution under this section that the office the actor pretended to hold did not in fact exist. (3) Impersonating a public servant is a class 2 misdemeanor.
Penalties for Impersonating a Public Servant
This particular crime is a Class 2 misdemeanor in the State of Colorado. If convicted of the offense, a person faces:
- a maximum sentence of 120 days in jail;
- a fine of up to $750; or
- both.
Below, our Denver Colorado criminal defense lawyers discuss the following frequently asked questions about impersonating a public servant for Colorado residents:
- 1. What is the crime of impersonating a public servant in Colorado?
- 2. What is a public servant?
- 3. What is impersonation?
- 4. What are the penalties for this crime?
- 5. What defenses can I raise to this charge?
- 6. What related offenses exist?
CRS 18-8-113 is the Colorado code section defining the offense of impersonating a public servant.
1. What is the crime of impersonating a public servant in Colorado?
CRS 18-8-113 is the Colorado code section that defines the offense of impersonating a public servant.
A person commits this offense if he or she:
- falsely pretends to be a public servant other than a peace officer; and
- performs any act in the pretended capacity. 1
2. What is a public servant?
A public servant is defined as:
- any officer or employee of the government, whether elected or appointed; and
- any person participating as an advisor, consultant, process server; or
- any person who otherwise performs a governmental function. 2
Public servants include but are not limited to:
- mayors
- state senators
- city clerks
- judges
- publicly employed attorneys
- firefighters, or
- other employees of a city, county, state, or the federal government.
Police officers are also considered public servants, but as “peace officers” they are excluded from this section. Impersonation of a police officer is charged as a different criminal offense (see section 6 below).
A public servant would be a mayor, for instance.
3. What is impersonation?
Impersonation means to:
- act like;
- pretend to be;
- represent that he or she is; or
- create the belief in another
that the person is a public servant when he or she is not. Impersonation can come in a variety of forms, but must meet certain legal requirements to justify criminal charges.3
3.1 What are some examples of impersonation?
Some common examples of impersonating a public servant include:
- pretending to be a firefighter while fighting a fire;
- pretending to be a public defender and representing a person in court;
- acting as a county clerk and issuing legal documents; or
- acting as a member of the local board of elections and submitting paperwork on people’s behalf.
4. What are the penalties for this crime?
This particular crime is a Class 2 misdemeanor in the State of Colorado. If convicted of the offense, a person faces:
- a maximum sentence of 120 in jail;
- a fine of up to $750; or
- both.4
5. What defenses can I raise to this charge?
A defendant can argue certain defenses against this charge, including:
- No “Act”: The code section requires not only that a person impersonate a public servant, but also that he or she performs some action in that official capacity while impersonating. If the offender never actually commits an act, he or she cannot be charged with and subsequently convicted of this crime.
- False Identification: You may have been wrongly identified as the perpetrator of the crime but you are completely innocent. Many times the identification procedures police officers use are flawed, and can lead to mistaken identification.
- No Impersonation: An accused offender can argue that his or her actions never rose to the level of impersonation and that no offense under this code section has occurred.
6. What related offenses exist?
Certain offenses are closely related to impersonating a public servant, which include:
- Impersonating a Peace Officer (18-8-112); and
- Criminal Impersonation (18-5-113).
Legal References:
- CRS 18-8-113.
- CRS 18-1-901 (Definitions).
- CRS 18-8-113.
- CRS 18-1.3-501 (Misdemeanors Classified). Prior to March 1, 2022, impersonating a public servant was a class 3 misdemeanor carrying up to 6 months in jail and/or $50 to $750. SB21-271.