On February 20, 2012, Rep. Bob Gardner and Sen. Morgan Carroll introduced HB 12-1310 – Concerning Changes to Statutory Provisions Relating to Criminal Proceedings. This summary is published here courtesy of the Colorado Bar Association’s e-Legislative Report.

This is an omnibus bill that makes changes to numerous procedural criminal law statutes.

The bill creates standards and a procedure for the admissibility of commercial packages for evidence.

The bill defines “earnings” for garnishment purposes to collect court fines, fees, costs, restitution, and surcharges. When a garnishment is ordered to collect court fines, fees, costs, restitution, and surcharges, it has priority over all other orders except those for child support, maintenance, or a previous garnishment related to court assessments.

Under current law, the judicial department makes an annual report regarding the state’s pretrial services programs. The bill expands the information that would be included in the report.

Under current law, a surety must consent to the continuation of bond after the defendant pleads guilty. The bill allows a surety to indicate on the initial bond documents whether the surety consents to continuation of the bond after a guilty plea. If the surety does not indicate consent in the initial documents, it may still consent at the time of the plea or within a reasonable time thereafter.

Under current law, a witness to a grand jury proceeding is given notice of his or her rights. The bill clarifies that the witness has a right to have a court appoint an attorney for him or her, but that the witness may not consult with the public defender.

The bill gives a party the right to have the court impanel an alternate juror if the case involves a class 1, 2, or 3 felony or a felony listed under the victim’s rights provisions.

Under current law, a presentence report for each offense committed by a sex offender must contain a sex-offender evaluation if one has not been completed in the last six months. The bill extends that timeline to two years. A sex offender evaluation would not have to be done if the new offense is a traffic misdemeanor or if the history of sex offending was a juvenile misdemeanor offense, unless the court requires the sex-offender evaluation.

Under current law, when a defendant defaults on a restitution order, the collection investigator must ask the clerk of the court to issue an attachment of earnings. The bill would allow the collection investigator to issue the attachment.

Under current law, a deferred judgment may last up to four years from the date of the plea for a felony. The bill changes the calculation from the date of the plea if no presentence report is ordered or to the date when the court considers the presentence report. The deferred period maybe extended for an additional two years if the deferred judgment is for a sex offense and good cause is shown. The bill extends the time period for a juvenile deferral of adjudication for a sex offense from one year to two years with the opportunity to extend it up to five years with good cause shown.

Under current law, when a person is convicted of a third felony, he or she is not eligible for probation unless the district attorney consents. The bill clarifies that a plea to a deferred judgment and sentence does not become a conviction until the deferred judgment and sentence is revoked.

The bill clarifies that the court cannot charge a probationer for the costs of returning the probationer to Colorado. If a probationer applies to transfer his or her probation to another state, the probationer must pay a $100 filing fee that is deposited into a fund to cover the costs associated with returning probationers to Colorado.

Under current law, a court may convert a determinate sentence to an indeterminate sentence for certain crimes related to child prostitution and child pornography. The bill repeals that authority.

The bill clarifies what “under color of his or her official authority” means as it relates to a peace officer.

The bill clarifies the record-sealing rights of a person convicted of minor in possession of alcohol.

Under current law, the interest earned by the money in the sex offender surcharge fund is deposited into the general fund. The bill allows the interest to remain in the fund.

Under current law, if a sentencing juvenile court deviates from the recommendation of the placement report, the court must make specific findings and record for the decision. The bill eliminates this requirement.

Under current law there is a crime of converting trust funds and the penalties correspond to the amount of money converted. The bill clarifies that adjustments to trust funds based on simple accounting errors is not a crime. The bill changes the penalties and amounts to correspond to the penalties and amounts for theft.

Under current law, the court must sentence a person who is convicted of a second, third, or subsequent DUI to probation in order to complete certain court-ordered programs and treatment. Under the bill, if the defendant is sentenced to the department of corrections, the court does not sentence the defendant to probation and the defendant must complete the court-ordered programs and treatment while on parole.

On March 8, the Judiciary Committee amended the bill and referred it to the Finance Committee. On March 21, the Finance Committee referred the bill to the Appropriations Committee. The bill is scheduled to go before the Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, April 10 at 7:30 a.m.

Since this summary, the bill was amended in the Appropriations Committee and referred to the House Committee of the Whole.

Summaries of other featured bills can be found here.