SB 17-010

Senate Bill 17-010, which has been signed into law in Colorado, changes how the state handles habitual criminals. The bill states that convictions for certain lower-level felonies (class 4, 5, and 6) and drug offenses (levels 2, 3, and 4) cannot be used to label someone as a repeat offender unless the crime involved violence. This means fewer people will receive harsher sentences based on these less serious crimes. The law affects individuals who have been convicted of felonies or certain drug offenses but limits how past convictions can be used against them when determining future sentencing.

Official Summary

Current law provides that, with certain exceptions, every person convicted of any class 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 felony or level 1, 2, or 3 drug felony who, within 10 years of the date of the commission of the felony, has been twice previously convicted of a felony or a crime which, if committed within this state, would be a felony is an habitual criminal and shall receive an aggravated sentence. The bill states that: A conviction for any class 4, 5, or 6 felony may not be used for the purpose of adjudicating a person as an habitual criminal unless the conviction was for a crime of violence; and A conviction for any level 2, 3, or 4 drug felony may not be used for the purpose of adjudicating a person as an habitual criminal.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

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