Colorado Springs Criminal Law Blog

In a new book entitled One for the Road that chronicles drunk driving in the United States during the past century, author and professor of Medicine and Public Health at Columbia Barron Lerner acknowledges progress in the reduction of impaired driving — but also looks for more innovative approaches. While drunk driving killed approximately 25,000 individuals each year in this country by the middle of the 1900s, that number has decreased substantially since (current estimates are around 10,000 to 11,000 fatalities annually), according to Lerner.

However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calculates that a minimum of 110 million alcohol-related incidents and infractions currently occur in the country each year. In a recent interview with National Public Radio (NPR), the author looked to technological advancement for possible direction.

Due to legislative and cultural road blocks, Lerner told NPR that he doesn’t foresee the blood alcohol content (BAC) limit enforced by law to drop anytime soon, even though many insist it is set too high at 0.08 percent (Sweden’s BAC legal limit is 0.02 percent). However, a number of U.S. states are utilizing technology for DWI and DUI offenders that the author thinks should become standard for all cars and drivers. Ignition interlock devices essentially wire a Breathalyzer for the ignition of a car, if an individual blows into it and registers a reading above the legal limit, the car will not start. Further into the future, Lerner sees more technological advances, potentially in infrared steering wheels that will read a driver’s BAC to control car ignition in the same manner.

However, standardizing these tech measures on a judicial level may be equally if not more difficult than lowering the BAC. Using a designated driver is the easiest and most effective first line of offense against drunk driving violations and accidents, according Lerner, but the practice is still unfortunately begrudged in the U.S. due to cultural perceptions.

Drunk driving charges can result in license suspension, thousands of dollars in fines, and other charges if connected to an accident. If you’re facing drunk driving charges in Colorado, contact the Colorado Springs drunk driving lawyers with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a free and confidential consultation.

Holidays are a time for celebration. Unfortunately, sometimes the festivities lead to problems on the highway. Just as local law enforcement officials cracked down on drunk driving in October with a special campaign by the Colorado Department of Transportation, those initiatives will continue throughout the holiday season in November and December.

As part of the state transportation department’s special campaign named “The Heat Is On,” 447 drunk driving arrests were made during the initiative’s period from October 28 to November 1. Across the state, 95 departments and agencies contributed to the efforts. According to data collected by officials, Colorado Springs ranked second highest for the most driving under the influence (DUI) arrests. The municipalities that saw the most activity during the clampdown were:

1. Denver (58 arrests)
2. Colorado Springs (39 arrests)
3. Aurora (21 arrests)
4. Adams County (20 arrests)
5. Thornton (16 arrests)

As with all DUI violations, the individuals arrested faced DUI penalties including the potential suspension of driver’s licenses, over $10,000 in fines, and possible insurance premium increases. Tragically, there were ten alcohol-related accidents in October this year. However, the amount of fatalities has decreased since 2009 when there were 26 deaths, and this may be related to increased enforcement efforts.

Local agencies in Colorado Springs, and across the state, are now preparing for another campaign against drunk driving during Thanksgiving week from November 22 to November 28. If you’ve facing drunk driving charges in Colorado, contact the Colorado DUI defense attorneys with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a complimentary and confidential review.

Colorado juvenile court is designed to assist minors in realizing a pattern of damaging behavior while providing guidance for positive future changes. The Colorado juvenile court system handles a broad range of charges for minors between the ages of 10 and 17 years old, from lighter infractions like school expulsions and suspensions to weighty juvenile felony crimes.

All 22 judicial districts in Colorado have their own county and district courts. The juvenile court system operates as a part of the state’s district courts, with the exception of Denver, which has its own. If a minor is taken into custody by law enforcement officials for criminal charges (on the state or local level), his or her parents/guardian must be notified. At that time, the minor may be freed to his or her parents, screened for more preliminary information, or held further in a juvenile facility after a proper screening, all depending on the nature of the crime. The courts are required to hold a hearing within 48 hours of detainment for those held in a state facility.

To determine whether an individual will be tried at the juvenile or, in more serious cases, district level, the district attorney will review the details and nature of the charges. Less severe cases may be decided more informally between the district attorney, the minor’s family, and their juvenile defense attorney. Again, those sorts of remediation usually are not related to a string of delinquent activity but rather in regard to singular offenses, an isolated instance of poor judgment, or a mistake on the offender’s part.

An experienced juvenile defense attorney ensures that the facts of the case are properly addressed and the minor’s interests are protected. Contact the Colorado juvenile crime lawyers with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a complimentary case review.

Criminal mischief is described under Colorado state law to include any act that involves knowing destruction to another person’s property during one criminal offense. The law, found under Criminal Mischief (18-4-501), also covers a property owned together by a party.

Regularly seen offenses of Colorado criminal mischief are vandalism and property destruction, which may also include trespassing charges and others depending on the circumstances of the act. In Colorado, young people (or “juveniles” ages 10 to 17 years old) accused of criminal mischief usually face accounts of vandalizing or damaging property. These types of charges can either be misdemeanors or felonies, again depending on the conditions of the crime and the determined value of the managed property.

Usually, the crime is tried as a misdemeanor if the property worth is below $1,000 and as a felony for offenses damaging property valued higher than that amount. Criminal mischief by a minor that causes $20,000 or more in destruction to another party’s property is a class 3 felony, which may result in imprisonment of up to 12 years if the juvenile is prosecuted as an adult in the state. If convicted, the individual may also be held responsible for remunerating repairs or property replacement costs.

The main difference in penalties is that a misdemeanor holds a maximum charge of under one year in county prison, while a felony may result in one year or more in a state penitentiary. Juveniles facing criminal mischief charges in Colorado should align with an experienced criminal defense attorney that will provide strong guidance and vigilance to protect the minor’s future. Contact the Colorado Springs juvenile crime defense attorneys with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a free and confidential consultation.

In Colorado, a person under the age of 18 years old is deemed a juvenile by state law. That means, if charged with a criminal offense, he or she will be viewed and handled in a different manner by the justice system than those older than 18. In fact, according to Colorado state law section 19-2-104, C.R.S., the Colorado juvenile court and justice system has exclusive authority over any juvenile case involving a minor older than 10 years of age that involves certain offenses and circumstances. However, whether or not a case is handled by juvenile court depends entirely on the nature of the offense and circumstances of the crime.

Generally, offenses involving violations classified on the less severe side of the criminal scale, or those that would be otherwise legal if they were an adult (status offenses), are often handled in juvenile court. But a serious crime, such as a felony (delinquency offenses), can cause a case to be transferred to a district court, which holds a much more severe capacity for punishment. Typically, the older an offender is and the more severe the crime committed increase the level of punishment.

Four elements that may dictate whether a juvenile is tried as an adult are:

• The minor’s age;
• The nature of the charge;
• Criminal record; and
• History of delinquent activity.

Felony charges that involve harming another individual, theft, drug trafficking, vandalism, property destruction, or vehicular manslaughter, all carry serious, lasting repercussions.

These penalties can remain on a juvenile’s record and negatively affect his or her life for years to come, impacting future educational and employment opportunities, as well as other judicial matters. If your child is facing juvenile felony charges in Colorado, contact the Colorado juvenile crime attorneys with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a complimentary consultation.

Many reasons may warrant a police officer or highway patrolman to pull over a driver operating a motor vehicle, as long as that cause is within the legal confines of The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The amendment rules that individuals shall not be subjected to “unreasonable search and seizure.” A police officer must exhibit “probable cause” in order to pull someone over, which is considered seizure under the amendment. Probable cause means the officer has substantial reason to believe that an individual has violated the law and the situation requires further investigation and intervention on the officer’s behalf.

Reasons for being pulled over range from smaller infractions like failing to signal when changing lanes, to larger implications like reasonable suspicion of organized crime activity. That said, the most common grounds for an officer to pull over a driver are traffic infractions.

Some common Colorado traffic violations which you may be pulled over for include:

• Speeding;
• Use of a cell phone or texting;
• Evidence of drunk or impaired driving (DUI); and
• Failure to adhere to traffic rules or reckless driving.

In many of these situations, it is an officer’s responsibility to objectively judge and determine what constitutes probable cause to pull an individual over. With the exception of excessive speeding caught on radar, he or she must evaluate other behavioral patterns of a driver in a split seconds time to determine whether an infraction is likely. If you’re facing DUI charges in Colorado that you believe to be false, contact the Colorado Springs drunk driving defense attorneys with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a free and confidential case review.

To determine an individual’s sobriety, highway officers use what is known as the Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST). The SFST is a combination of three exams conducted and judged by police officers in a uniform method to secure evidence of an individual’s potential intoxication or impairment and to gain “probable cause” for an arrest. The three exams are the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN), the Walk-and-Turn (WAT) and the One-Leg Stand (OLS).

Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus
Nystagmus is the spontaneous jerk of the eye that happens inherently as the eyes move from side to side. When a person is intoxicated by alcohol (and numerous drugs and controlled substances), this movement is typically exaggerated. An officer will test for this by asking a suspect to follow an object with their eyes as it moves across his or her field of vision.

Walk & Turn
For this test, a person is told to take nine steps, toe to heel, in a straight line. After completion of those steps, the individual is asked to pivot on a single foot and walk back to the point of origin in the same fashion. Officers judge impairment based on factors including:

• Lack of attention;
• Failure to maintain balance; and
• Failure to follow physical instructions in an exact or satisfactory manner.

One Leg Stand
In this component of the SFST, the suspect is asked to stand on one foot (with the other about six inches from the floor) and count by thousands (one thousand one, one thousand two, etc.) until instructed to stop by the officer. This test is typically administered for around 30 seconds, and officers may judge based on physical mistakes or counting errors.

Of course, there are many personal conditions that do not involve impairment that may inhibit a person’s ability to perform these tests. For experienced DUI representation in Colorado Springs, contact the Colorado drunk driving lawyers with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a free case review.

Driving a vehicle while impaired by any substance carries serious legal repercussions in Colorado. But charges involving a fatal DUI (driving under the influence) are understandably the most severe. When an individual is charged with driving while intoxicated and causing another person’s death, the result is a felony DUI charge.

In particular, Colorado’s vehicular homicide law covers fatal DUI accidents under section 18-3-106(1)(b)(I) of the criminal code. It states that when an individual drives impaired by alcohol or other drugs, and causes a fatality, “such person commits vehicular homicide.” Typically, an alcohol-related DUI is determined by the driver’s blood alcohol level (BAC). If an individual’s BAC is 0.08 percent or more, he or she is considered impaired by law. However, a BAC reading of 0.05 percent or above, while not implicit, can be used against a defendant by a prosecutor if evidence of mechanical, mental, or physical impairment can be demonstrated.

Conversely, a defense attorney can present evidence that shows the defendant was not impaired at the time of the accident. In the case of DUIs involving drugs or both drug and alcohol use, judging impairment is a bit trickier for officials. A combination of breath, blood, urine, and other field sobriety tests may be administered to determine the type and degree of potential intoxication. The law also stipulates that an individual can be charged and convicted of drug impairment for drugs that were legally prescribed by a physician.

A fatal DUI is a class 3 felony and penalties in Colorado may include a four to sixteen year prison sentence, thousands of dollars in fines, and numerous years of mandatory parole once prison time is completed. A convicted driver may also be responsible for paying punitive damages to the victim(s).

If you’re facing a fatal DUI charge in Colorado, contact the Colorado Springs DUI defense attorneys with the Bussey Law Firm, P.C. at (719) 475-2555 for a complimentary and confidential consultation.