Colorado Springs Criminal Law Blog

Colorado’s criminal laws name two different kinds of crimes: misdemeanors and felonies. Misdemeanors are crimes that are generally considered less severe than felonies. A person who is convicted of a misdemeanor may face up to a year in a county jail, but cannot be sent to prison. A misdemeanor conviction might also require the convicted person to serve probation, pay fines, perform community service, or meet other requirements.

A felony, on the other hand, may be punished by one or more years in a state prison. A person may even face life imprisonment or the death penalty if they are convicted of one of the most serious felonies, such as first-degree murder. Those who are convicted of a felony may also have to serve time on parole, pay fines, or meet other requirements.

Many crime are simply classified as either a misdemeanor or a felony. Some crimes, however, may be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the circumstances of each particular case. For instance, simple assault is often charged as a misdemeanor, but it may become a felony charge if a weapon was used.

While a misdemeanor is still a crime, a misdemeanor conviction carries much lighter penalties than a felony conviction. If you have been charged with either type of crime in Colorado, experienced Colorado Springs criminal defense lawyer Timothy Bussey can help. As a former Colorado county prosecutor, Mr. Bussey knows the details of state law for both felonies and misdemeanors, and he can help you build an aggressive defense no matter where the charges against you fall. For a free consultation, all The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. today at 719-475-2555.

Colorado’s criminal laws include instructions for sentencing people who are convicted of violating any of the criminal statutes. Most Colorado crimes are organized into one of six classes, with Class 1 felonies being the most serious and Class 6 being the least serious. The law sets a maximum amount of prison time a court can impose, depending on which class the conviction falls into. Judges can add time to the maximum sentence, however, if Colorado law defines the crime as an “extraordinary risk crime.”

An “extraordinary risk crime” is one that, according to the Colorado legislature, “present[s] an extraordinary risk of harm to society.” Some of the crimes that fall into this category are armed robbery, child abuse, selling illegal drugs, and “any crime of violence.” If a person is convicted in court of an extraordinary risk crime, the maximum prison sentence may be increased by six months to four years, depending on the class the crime falls in. The person who is convicted of an extraordinary risk crime may also be required to pay heavy fines and other penalties in addition to a prison sentence.

The price of a felony conviction is steep, and the consequences may last for years. That’s why experienced Colorado felony defense attorney Timothy Bussey fights for the best possible outcome in each case he handles. At The Bussey Law Firm, P.C., we have the legal resources and courtroom experience to build an aggressive defense based on the facts of your case. To learn more, call us today at 719-475-2555 for a free and confidential case evaluation.

Breath testing machines are commonly used to estimate a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) before an arrest. Colorado law enforcement officers typically use an Intoxilyzer 5000, which is a particular brand of breath-testing machine.

All breath testing machines work on the principle that alcohol, once it’s ingested, enters the bloodstream through the walls of the digestive tract. Once it’s there, the alcohol travels with the blood throughout the body, including into the lungs, where the blood drops off carbon dioxide and picks up oxygen as you breathe. Some of the alcohol in your blood leaves the body as you breathe out, along with the carbon dioxide.

The Intoxilyzer uses infrared (IR) spectroscopy to sense the number of alcohol molecules in a breath sample. Since alcohol molecules have a different weight and shape than carbon dioxide or any other molecule in human breath, the IR spectroscope inside the Intoxilyzer machine can be calibrated to “see” these molecules while ignoring others in the sample. The machine then measures the number of alcohol molecules it “sees” against the total sample size to determine what percentage of the sample is alcohol. This number estimates the percentage of the test-taker’s blood that is alcohol. A person with a BAC percentage of 0.08 or higher is prohibited from driving under Colorado law.

The Intoxilyzer is a piece of precision equipment that must be calibrated, tested, and maintained regularly in order to give accurate test results. If you have been charged with drunk driving in Colorado, the experienced Colorado DUI lawyers at The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. can help you build an aggressive defense that fights for the best possible outcome in your case. For a confidential consultation, call us today at 719-475-2555.

The number of robberies reported in Colorado in 2010 was lower than the number reported in 2009, according to data collected by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The 2010 robbery rate, or number of robberies per 100,000 Colorado residents, also decreased in 2010. However, the number of other types of thefts, including burglary and larceny, increased overall in 2010 but had only a small impact on the rate of these crimes per 100,000 people.

In 2009, 3,310 robberies were reported in Colorado, while 3,131 robberies were reported in 2010, a decrease of 5.4 percent, according to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. These numbers represent 65.1 robberies per 100,000 residents in 2009 and 60.1 robberies per 100,000 residents in 2010, or a decrease in the robbery rate of 6.8 percent. Robberies differ from other thefts because they typically involve violence, like assault, or the threat of violence, such as the use of a dangerous weapon.

In these same years, the number of burglaries reported went up by 0.5 percent (from 25,647 in 2009 to 25,769 in 2010), but the number of burglaries per 100,000 people actually dropped, due to changes in population during those years. Only larcenies went up both in the number of thefts reported and the number divided by 100,000 residents - but both increases were less than 3 percent.

Theft crimes are among the most common crimes in the U.S., but the type of theft charges depend on the facts of each case. If you have been charged with theft in Colorado, the experienced Colorado Springs theft defense attorneys at The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. can help. Call us today at 719-475-2555 for a free and confidential consultation.

An SR-22 is an insurance policy rider that guarantees a car owner’s auto insurance will remain in effect for a certain period of time. Like most U.S. states, Colorado law requires drivers who have their licenses suspended or revoked for driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or drugs obtain an SR-22 before the state returns their driver’s licenses. Other convictions that require a license suspension or revocation may also require an SR-22.

An SR-22 is purchased separately from an auto insurance policy, although an insurance agent can provide both. The SR-22 itself is not an insurance policy; rather, it is a promise that a driver will keep their auto insurance policy in effect. If the driver fails to keep up their insurance policy, the insurance company will notify the state of Colorado that the SR-22 is no longer in effect, which can result in additional penalties for the driver. If a driver changes insurance companies, it’s important to make sure an SR-22 for the new policy is in place before the old policy expires.

The cost of an SR-22 is just one of the many expenses that follow a Colorado drunk driving conviction. The conviction may also require the driver to pay fines, pay for substance abuse treatment, pay to have an ignition interlock device (IID) installed on their car, and pay other costs related to the conviction.

If you have been charged with a DUI in Colorado, experienced Colorado Springs DUI defense lawyer Timothy Bussey can help you seek the best possible outcome in your case by fighting aggressively to defend your legal rights in court. To learn more, call the Bussey Law Firm, P.C., today at 719-475-2555 for a confidential consultation.

Drivers who are convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) may be required to have an ignition interlock device (IID) installed on their vehicles. The ignition interlock device requires the driver to provide a breath sample before starting the car and at certain intervals while driving. If the device senses alcohol on the driver’s breath, the car will not start. The device automatically logs times, dates, and blood alcohol content (BAC) results, which are downloaded periodically.

For a driver who is convicted of DUI in Colorado for the first time and had a BAC below 0.17 percent, an IID is one option for the driver to get their license back more quickly. After serving 30 days, the driver may have the license returned if the ignition interlock device stays on the car for at least eight months.

Drivers who are convicted of subsequent DUI offenses face a longer IID requirement. Most will have the device on their cars for two years, but a driver who is categorized as a “habitual traffic offender” faces up to four years of using the device.

All drivers who have an ignition interlock device placed on their cars as part of the penalties for a DUI in Colorado receive a restricted license that prohibits them from driving any vehicle without an ignition interlock device. Any driver who is found to have disobeyed this requirement or tampered with an ignition interlock device faces an additional license suspension of up to one year.

Ignition interlock devices are just one of the many penalties a Colorado driver faces if they are convicted of drunk driving. Experienced Colorado drunk driving attorney Timothy Bussey is committed to fighting for the best possible outcome in each case he handles. For a free and confidential consultation, call The Bussey Law Firm, P.C., today at 719-475-2555.

Colorado’s driving under the influence (DUI) laws prohibits drivers from operating a motor vehicle if they have a certain amount of alcohol in their blood. These laws also prohibit “drugged driving,” or driving under the influence of a wide range of illegal drugs, as well as some legal prescription and over-the-counter medications. The rate of deaths from drugged driving has increased in the past few years, according to the Colorado State Patrol, prompting lawmakers to take another look at the legal limits for drugs.

One drug under particular scrutiny is marijuana, which is now used by many Colorado residents as a medication for severe pain, nausea, and other conditions. The Colorado legislature is currently considering a bill that would set the legal limit for THC, marijuana’s active ingredient, at five nanograms per milliliter of blood. A driver who had five or more nanograms per milliliter of THC is in their blood would be prohibited from driving a vehicle under the new law.

Supporters of this bill say that, since many drivers who cause fatal drugged-driving accidents had THC in their bodies at the time, the limit will decrease the number of DUID-related deaths. Opponents, however, point out that patients using marijuana for medical reasons will regularly have this much THC in their systems, putting them at constant risk for arrest, even if they can drive safely.

A DUI conviction comes with serious penalties in Colorado, whether alcohol or other drugs are involved. If you have been charged with a DUI in Colorado, experienced Colorado Springs DUI defense lawyer Timothy Bussey can help you put up an aggressive defense that protects your legal rights and will work diligently for the best possible outcome in your drunk driving case. For a free and confidential consultation, call The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. today at 719-475-2555.

A married couple from Aurora, Colorado, has been accused to stealing as much as $140,000 from state workers’ compensation funds after the husband was injured in a workplace accident in 2008, according to an article in Insurance and Financial Advisor.

The man, who worked for a roofing company, was injured when he fell from a ladder that year. He received workers’ compensation payments to cover medical care and lost wages. His doctors informed him he was fully functional and could go back to work in 2009, but the man instead began to allegedly complain of ever-worsening symptoms and eventually began appearing at doctor’s appointments, accompanied by his wife, reportedly with symptoms of catatonia. However, investigators claim that they recorded video of the man driving and shopping during the same time period in which he and his wife were telling doctors that he was catatonic. He is also suspected to have passed a driving test during this same period, when both he and his wife were telling insurers that he was totally unable to function.

The Attorney General has accused both people with eighteen counts of theft in Colorado. If convicted, both the husband and the wife face up to $750,000 in fines and 12 years in prison.

Theft charges in Colorado come with a wide range of penalties if the accused person is convicted, but even a so-called “minor” theft charge can have serious consequences. If you have been charged with theft, experienced Colorado theft defense lawyer Timothy Bussey can help protect your legal rights while fighting for the best possible outcome in your case. To learn more, call The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. today at 719-475-2555 for a confidential consultation.

In 2006, three brothers opened the largest liquor store in the world with a store area of over 100,000 square feet. Now in 2011, after a routine check in 2008, the owners are facing indictment for various white collar crime charges in Colorado, according to The Denver Post.

The 52-count indictment includes charges of racketeering, violating the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act, and tax violations. The brothers allegedly falsified merchandise returns for millions of dollars worth of products that never existed, some of which they even created names for. After some investigation, it was determined that the brothers performed at least 4,400 fake product returns as well as conducted over $5 million of business outside of normal business hours and in cash. Furthermore, the family allegedly violated Colorado liquor laws by running a second store in Highlands Ranch under “hidden ownership.”

By under-reporting their sales, the owners allegedly underpaid city and state taxing authorities a total of $470,000 during the 18 month period between January 2007 and August 2008, according to the Denver District Attorney’s Office. Arrest warrants have been issued.

Aggressive prosecution and harsher penalties have accompanied the increasing incidents of white collar crime in Colorado and across the nation. Though white collar crimes are not violent crimes, they tend to involve people who abuse the position or privileges they hold for their own gain and at the expense of others.

If you have been accused of committing a white collar crime in Colorado, reputed Colorado Springs white collar crime defense attorney Timothy Bussey, of The Bussey Law Firm, P.C., can help you build a strong and aggressive defense in order to protect your financial and professional future. Do not hesitate to contact Mr. Bussey today to learn more about your legal options at 719-475-2555.