Domestic Violence Isn't Your Own Criminal Crime in Colorado. Instead, it is an improvement that increases the penalties of any other crime in which the defendant and the victim are, or were, in an intimate relationship. Whether a crime related to domestic violence is a felony depends on that underlying crime. If your domestic violence case involves something of this nature, it is likely to be considered a criminal case.
Once again, domestic violence is not a crime in and of itself. Domestic violence is an improvement (defense lawyers and judges sometimes call it a “label”). After conviction, domestic violence improvement brings additional considerations for sentencing, including mandatory treatment of the perpetrator. Domestic violence is not a crime in and of itself.
Domestic violence is an improvement on other criminal offenses such as harassment, assault, illegal entry and destruction of property. The prosecutor must notify a family law court of a family violence arrest if the family law court had previously issued temporary orders. For a crime to be considered for domestic violence improvement, it must be committed against someone with whom the defendant has had an intimate relationship or with whom he is currently in a relationship. As a “lifelong left-wing liberal,” Bobbi Spicer, who heads Jefferson County District Attorney's diversion services and wrote the proposal that gave the county a large federal grant for domestic violence programs, says she, too, has had concerns about whether domestic violence laws tend to test the American legal maxim that it is better for ten guilty men to go free than to deprive an innocent person of his liberty.
While it's easy to understand why this is part of the domestic violence protocol for police in Colorado, it has the impact of placing one of the parties involved in the criminal justice system, and they may face criminal charges that can affect the rest of their lives. Earlier that afternoon, two hours before Bob and the other men were scheduled to appear in court, Sharon met with Peggy, a victim advocate who works for Jefferson County's fast-track domestic violence program. Here's a complete guide to everything that's important to know about domestic violence laws in Colorado and how they can affect your life. However, it's important to note that under Colorado law, domestic violence is not a crime in and of itself.
Domestic violence means an act or threat of an act of violence against a person with whom the actor is or has been involved in an intimate relationship. So, for example, if a girlfriend breaks her boyfriend's Sony Playstation when he's not even home, but because she's mad that he was going out with another girl to the movies, it could be said that it's an act of domestic violence. If a protective order is violated, then that is a crime in and of itself, apart from charges stemming from the crime of domestic violence. If you are determined to be in a domestic violence offense, this acts as a sentencing enhancer and will add additional terms to your probation, such as 36 kinds of domestic violence (these are mandatory, and even the judge does not have the power to waive them).
The prosecutor can have a domestic violence expert testify at your trial and say that every victim who now says it didn't happen is lying, and that this is a predictable part of what they call the cycle of violence, and the victim is now lying to protect you, the defendant, at trial. The prosecutor must notify the family law court of an arrest for domestic violence if temporary orders are in place regarding the custody or possession of a child. It is common for the alleged victim to use the criminal justice system to gain influence over their partner in the relationship. .
