Colorado Revised Statute § 18-3-206 defines menacing as using threats or actions to place another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury or death. In short, you had to have intended to scare someone.
The language of Section 18-3-206 reads as follows:
(1) A person commits the crime of menacing if, by any threat or physical action, he or she knowingly places or attempts to place another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury. Menacing is a class 1 misdemeanor, but it is a class 5 felony if committed by the use of a firearm, knife, or bludgeon or a simulated firearm, knife, or bludgeon.
Penalties:
If no deadly weapon is involved, menacing is a class 1 misdemeanor carrying:
- Up to 364 days in jail, and/or
- Up to $1,000.
Otherwise, menacing is a class 5 felony, carrying:
- 1 to 3 years in prison, and/or
- $1,000 to $100,000.
Menacing is frequently charged along with assault and/or domestic violence.
To help you better understand Colorado’s criminal menacing laws, our Denver Colorado criminal defense attorneys discuss the following:
- 1. What is criminal menacing in Colorado?
- 2. What are the penalties under CRS 18-3-206?
- 3. What are the best defenses?
- 4. What is the federal law for menacing?
- 5. What is the difference between assault and menacing in Colorado?
- 6. Related offenses
- Additional resources
Menacing in Colorado is placing another in apprehension of imminent bodily harm.
1. What is criminal menacing in Colorado?
Section 18-3-206 of the Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.) provides:
(1) A person commits the crime of menacing if, by any threat or physical action, he or she knowingly places or attempts to place another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury. Menacing is a class 1 misdemeanor, but, it is a class 5 felony if committed:
(a) By the use of a deadly weapon or any article used or fashioned in a manner to cause a person to reasonably believe that the article is a deadly weapon; or
(b) By the person representing verbally or otherwise that he or she is armed with a deadly weapon.
See our related articles on domestic violence assault in Colorado and violating restraining orders.
Serious bodily injury
Under CRS 18-1-901(3)(p), “serious bodily injury” means bodily injury which, either at the time of the actual injury or at a later time, involves
- substantial risk of death,
- a substantial risk of serious permanent disfigurement,
- a substantial risk of protracted loss or impairment of the function of any part or organ of the body,
- or breaks, fractures, or
- burns of the second or third degree.
Use of a deadly weapon
For purposes of Colorado’s criminal menacing law, you use a deadly weapon when:
- You use or display a weapon (even if the victim does not see it),1 or
- You use or display any article that a reasonable person would believe is a deadly weapon.
Examples of deadly weapons include (but are not limited to):
- Guns,
- Knives,
- Baseball bats,
- Metal tools (such as hammers),
- Chainsaws,
- Blowtorches,
- Your fists (depending on the circumstances), and
- Any hidden object you represent to be a deadly weapon.
“Knowingly” placed someone in fear
The crime of menacing requires that you knowingly place or attempt to place another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury.
It doesn’t matter whether you actually intended to cause fear. Simply being aware that the other person would be placed in fear of imminent serious bodily injury is enough to satisfy the requirement.2
The prosecutor doesn’t even need to prove that the victim was actually afraid. All that is necessary is that you were aware that your conduct was practically certain to cause fear.3
Conversely, however, the fact that the victim was afraid does not prove that you were aware your actions would put that person in fear. The alleged victim’s reaction is simply one element for a jury to consider in deciding whether had the requisite intent to place the victim in fear.4
Violating CRS 18-3-206 can be a felony or a misdemeanor in Colorado.
2. What are the penalties under CRS 18-3-206?
Misdemeanor menacing
Making a criminal threat is misdemeanor criminal menacing in Colorado if no deadly weapon was involved.
Consequences of Colorado misdemeanor menacing can include:
- Up to 364 days in jail, and/or
- A fine of up to $1,000.
Felony menacing
When you display or use a deadly weapon or an article a person would reasonably believe is a deadly weapon, menacing becomes a class 5 felony, even if the other person did not see it.
A conviction for a Colorado felony menacing charge carries:
- 1 – 3 year prison sentence, and/or
- A fine of $1,000-$100,000.5
3. What are the best defenses?
Here at Colorado Legal Defense Group, we have represented literally thousands of people accused of violent crimes such as menacing. In our experience, the following three defenses have proven very effective with judges, juries, and prosecutors.
Your statements were not threats.
As long as you had no intention to scare anyone – and reasonably did not realize that what you said would scare anyone – then you are not responsible for how people took your words.
This is a powerful defense because words can be very subjective. We can usually show that what was said had a benign intent and therefore cannot justify criminal charges.
You did not have a deadly weapon.
Depending on the facts of your case, this defense could get a felony charge reduced down to a misdemeanor or dismissed outright. Evidence we rely on to show you had no deadly weapon includes video surveillance footage and eyewitness accounts.
You acted in self-defense.
Menacing someone may be perfectly justifiable self-defense under Colorado law if it was a proportional response to the aggressor’s threats or violence.6
Example: A homeless man threatens to punch Max if he does not give him his wallet. Max then holds up his fists to the homeless man and says he will punch him if he does not go away right now. Here, Max was acting in reasonable self-defense to prevent the homeless man from hurting him.
As with the last defense, we would rely on video surveillance footage and eyewitness accounts as evidence that you acted as any reasonable person would in the same situation.
4. What is the federal law for menacing?
It is against United States federal law to transmit a threatening communication in interstate or foreign commerce. Under 18 U.S.C.A. 875, this includes threats made in any medium, including on the internet.
Examples of making a criminal threat in foreign or interstate commerce include:
- Mailing a threat to someone in another state,
- Emailing a threat to someone in another state,
- Posting a threat on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc), or
- Threatening someone in another state over the phone.
Penalties under 18 U.S.C.A. 875 can include both heavy fines and:
- Up to 20 years in federal prison if the threat includes a ransom or reward demand,
- Up to 20 years in federal prison if the communication includes threatened kidnapping with an extortion attempt,
- Up to 5 years in federal prison for a threat to kidnap or injure someone,
- Up to 2 years in federal prison for the attempt to extort someone by threatening to injure someone’s property or reputation.7
5. What is the difference between assault and menacing in Colorado?
In Colorado, menacing is putting someone in fear of imminent bodily harm. Assault is actually inflicting that bodily harm by making physical contact.
Assault is divided into three degrees in Colorado depending on the severity of the case:
- First-degree assault (CRS 18-3-202): Deliberately causing serious injury with a deadly weapon.
- Second-degree assault (CRS 18-3-203): Deliberately causing serious injury with no deadly weapon.
- Third-degree assault (CRS 18-3-204): Negligently causing injury with a deadly weapon.
Penalties range from 6 months to 32 years behind bars.8
See our related article, What’s the difference between assault and menacing in Colorado?
6. Related offenses
Harassment
Harassment (CRS 18-9-111) is intentionally bothering, annoying, or alarming a person through repeated contact, obscene gestures, hitting, taunting, or following in public. A conviction is a misdemeanor or a petty offense depending on the case.
False imprisonment
False imprisonment (CRS 18-3-303) is unlawfully detaining a person without their consent. An example is locking a person in a room. False imprisonment can be a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the seriousness of the case.
Stalking
Stalking (CRS 18-3-602) is harassing a person in a manner that involves a credible threat and repeated behavior, and the person is reasonably fearful or suffers emotional distress as a result. Stalking is always prosecuted as a felony.
Additional resources
If you are a crime victim, you may be eligible for assistance. Refer to the following for more information:
- Crime Victim Compensation – Colorado Division of Criminal Justice.
- Victim Assistance – Colorado Attorney General.
- Crime Victim Emergency Fund – Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance (COVA).
- Colorado Crime Victims – Office for Victims of Crime.
- Find Help and Information for Crime Victims – U.S. Department of Justice.
Legal references:
- People v. Lopez, (2015) 2015 COA 45, 399 P.3d 129, rehearing denied, certiorari denied.
- People v. Saltray (1998) 969 P.2d 729, rehearing denied, certiorari denied.
- People v. District Court of Colorado’s Seventeenth Judicial Dist. (1996) 926 P.2d 567.
- People v. Gagnon (1985) 703 P.2d 661; Margerum v. People, (2019) 2019 CO 100, 454 P.3d 236.
- CRS 18-3-206. Prior to March 1, 2022, menacing without a weapon was a class 3 Colorado misdemeanor. Penalties included up to 6 months in jail, and/or a fine of $50 to $750. SB21-271.
- People v. Koper, (2019) 2018 COA 137.
- 18 USC 875.
- People v. Procasky, (2019) 2019 COA 181, 467 P.3d 1252.