Colorado’s mandatory minimum sentencing law requires defendants convicted of certain high-level crimes to serve no less than the minimum allowable prison sentence. Crimes that carry mandatory minimums under Colorado law include: Class 1 felonies, drug felonies, crimes of violence, sex offenses, and habitual criminals. The sentencing court judges in these cases do not have the discretion to grant sentences lower than the mandatory minimum.
Class 1 felonies
The mandatory minimum penalty for class 1 felonies is a life sentence in the Colorado Department of Corrections (DOC) without the possibility of parole.1 If the defendant was under 18 (a juvenile) at the time of the offense, the mandatory minimum is life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after 40 years.2
Colorado’s class 1 felonies are:
- First-degree murder (CRS 18-3-102)
- First-degree kidnapping (CRS 18-3-301)
- Child abuse (CRS 18-6-401) causing death of a child under 12
- Assault during escape with intent to commit bodily injury with a deadly weapon or force (CRS 18-8-206(1)(a))
- Treason (CRS 18-11-101)
Drug felonies
Convictions for level 1 drug felony offenses carry a minimum mandatory sentencing scheme of:
- 8 years in prison, if there are no aggravating circumstances; or
- 12 years in prison, if there are aggravating circumstances.3
There is no mandatory minimum prison term for other controlled substance felonies unless the defendant has two or more previous felony convictions. In that case, the criminal justice system requires defendants to serve no less than the minimum sentence of the presumptive range for that drug offense:
| Colorado drug felony | Mandatory minimum if defendant has two or more prior felony convictions |
| Level 2 |
|
| Level 3 |
|
| Level 4 |
|
Crimes of violence
Colorado’s mandatory minimum sentences for crimes of violence (COVs) depend on the felony level:
| Colorado COV | Mandatory Minimum (in general) |
| Class 2 felonies | 16 years in prison |
| Class 3 felonies | 10 years in prison |
| Class 4 felonies | 5 years in prison |
| Class 5 felonies | 2.5 years in prison |
| Class 6 felonies | 1.5 years in prison5 |
Note that five years are added to the felony sentence for a violent crime if there was a dangerous or semiautomatic assault weapon involved.6
Colorado’s crimes of violence (COVs) include the following crimes if the defendant either used or threatened to use a deadly weapon or caused serious bodily injury or death:
- Murder
- Assault (first degree and some instance of second degree)
- Kidnapping
- Sexual offense
- Aggravated robbery (CRS 18-4-302)
- First degree arson (CRS 18-4-102)
- First degree burglary (CRS 18-4-202)
- Escape (CRS 18-8-208)
- Criminal extortion (CRS 18-3-207)
- Unlawful termination of a pregnancy (first- or second-degree)
- Any crime against an at-risk juvenile or at-risk adult7
Sex offenses
People convicted of Colorado sex crimes – such as sexual assault (CRS 18-3-402) – must serve at least the minimum in the presumptive sentencing range for the particular offense.8 But if the sex offense also qualifies as a crime of violence, the mandatory minimum sentence is the midpoint in the presumptive range for the particular offense.9
Note that if the sex offense conviction makes the defendant a habitual sex offender against children, the mandatory minimum is three times the upper limit of the presumptive range for the particular offense.10
Also note that if the defendant tested positive for HIV before committing the sex offense, the mandatory minimum is the upper limit of the presumptive range for the particular offense.11
Habitual criminals
The mandatory minimum for repeat offender sentencing turns on the type of habitual criminal they are adjudicated as:
| Habitual offender in Colorado | Mandatory minimum (in general) |
| Little habitual | For level 1 drug felonies, 48 years in prison. For other felonies, three times the maximum presumptive sentence.12 |
| Big habitual | For level 1 drug felonies, 64 years in prison. For other felonies, four times the presumptive maximum sentence13 |
| Bigger habitual | Life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years14 |
| People sentenced under the “three strikes” statute after a conviction for a third level 1 drug felony, a class 1 or 2 felony, or a class 3 felony crime of violence. | Life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years15 |
| Habitual burglary offender | Greater than the presumptive maximum term16 |
Other crimes with mandatory minimums
| Colorado crime | Mandatory minimum sentence |
| Robbery, if the victim is an at-risk adult or an at-risk juvenile | 4 years in prison17 |
| Felony theft from a store, and the defendant has at least two “felony from a store” convictions in the prior four years | The minimum of the presumptive range for the theft offense, which depends on the value of the items stolen18 |
| Escape from custody | The minimum of the presumptive range for the offense, which depends on what crime the defendant was originally incarcerated for19 |
| Removal of explosives or incendiary devices from the premises without express consent from the lawful user, vendor, transporter, or manufacturer | For explosives or incendiary devices, 2 years in prison20 For chemical, biological, or radiological weapons, 4 years in prison21 |
Is mandatory minimum sentencing a bad idea?
The pros of having mandatory minimum sentences – namely the consistency and deterrence effect – are far outweighed by its cons. These include:
- Prisons are overcrowded. Having mandatory minimum sentences ensures that prisons will remain at capacity.
- Innocent defendants may feel pressured to accept a plea bargain out of fear that they will face definite prison time if convicted of the original charge.
- Judges have no power to keep defendants out of prison, even if they believe that they do not deserve prison based on the unique facts of the case.
- Requiring prison only exacerbates already existing racial disparities in the criminal justice system.
Call our DUI and criminal law firm for legal advice. Our criminal defense attorneys offer free consultations.
Arrested for a felony or misdemeanor? Contact our Colorado criminal defense lawyers now. We may be able to negotiate with the District Attorney to get your criminal case reduced to lesser charges or dismissed. We fight to keep you out of state prison, county jail, and community corrections.
We have law offices in Denver, Greeley, and Colorado Springs, and we serve clients throughout the state.
Legal References
- Colorado Revised Statute (C.R.S.) 18–1.3–401 (4)(a).
- CRS 18–1.3–401(4)(b).
- CRS 18–1.3–401.5(7).
- CRS 18–1.3–401.5(2)(b)(V).
- CRS 18–1.3–406(1)(a). The mandatory minimum is the midpoint in the extraordinary risk crime presumptive range (with rare exceptions).
- CRS 18–1.3–406(7)(a).
- CRS 18-1.3-406(2)(a)(1). See also People v. Austin, (2018) CO 47, 419 P.3d 587. See also People v. Wiseman, (2017) COA 49M, 413 P.3d 233.
- CRS 18–1.3–1004(1)(a).
- CRS 18-1.3-1004(1)(b).
- CRS 18-1.3-1004(1)(c).
- CRS 18–1.3–1004 (1)(d); CRS 18–3–415.5 (5)(b).
- CRS 18–1.3–801(1.5). Colorado’s General Assembly decided not to apply “little habitual” laws to class 6 felonies. And note that a fourth conviction involving domestic violence labels the defendant as a habitual domestic violence offender.
- CRS 18–1.3–801(2).
- CRS 18–1.3–801(2.5).
- CRS 18–1.3–801(1).
- CRS 18-1.3-804(1).
- CRS 18–6.5–103(4).
- CRS 18–4–413(2).
- CRS 18–8–208.1(5); CRS 18-8-208(9).
- CRS 18–12–109(5)
- CRS 18–12–109(5.5).
