Aurora’s top police official is worried about the impact of a Colorado Supreme Court decision about penalties on the city’s crime rate, while progressive councilmembers see an opening to reverse decisions made by previous city councils.

The court ruled on Monday that municipalities may not subject defendants to sentences that are harsher under their own ordinances than for identical offenses under state law.

Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain said police officials worry the decision will impact community safety.

“When accountability is weakened, the same crimes that harm our neighborhoods tend to repeat themselves,” Chamberlain told The Denver Gazette on Tuesday. “Aurora is tough on crime because we refuse to accept victimization as inevitable.”

In Aurora, the “tough on crime” approach has resulted in a 26% reduction in crime, Chamberlain said.

“Our expectation is that penalties across the state remain consistent with the seriousness of the crimes being committed,” he said. “Accountability matters.”

Police officials are still reviewing the full scope of the ruling and how it affects municipal ordinances, Chamberlain said. Regardless, he added, his team will “continue to enforce the law, work with our partners and remain focused on victims.”

In the Dec. 22 opinion, Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez noted localities are free to go after defendants in municipal court for crimes that could also be prosecuted in state court but they cannot create penalties that conflict with Colorado law.

“In so doing, the municipal penalty materially impedes the state’s interest in ensuring that maximum penalties for such conduct are consistent and uniform across Colorado,” she wrote. “Thus, the municipal provisions create an operational conflict with state law.”

Over the last several years, Aurora’s conservative-majority City Council approved several ordinances that seek to crack down on crime in the city.

The city’s lawmakers adopted a “tough on crime” mentality, enacting mandatory minimum jail sentences and harsher penalties.

In March 2024, Aurora City Council finalized two ordinances making the penalties for retail theft convictions higher.

The ordinance added to an original ordinance passed in 2023, which set a three-day mandatory minimum jail sentence for retail theft of $300 or more. In March, the council lowered the threshold that qualifies someone for the mandatory sentence from $300 to $100 in stolen goods and added provisions for increased jail time of 90 days minimum for repeat offenders.

In cases where defendants have been convicted of retail theft at least twice, they face a mandatory minimum sentence of 180 days under the ordinance.

Colorado state law penalizes retail theft under $300 as a petty offense, resulting in up to 10 days in jail and up to $300 in fines.

In Aurora, this would mean a theft incident of less than $300 would still result in the same three-day mandatory minimum jail sentence, since state law allows up to 10 days.

Aurora City Attorney Pete Schulte said city officials are still trying to figure out what this means for municipal law.

“There are a lot of variables here that all municipalities will have to consider,” Schulte said.

The ruling could cause the state system to get busier as an unintended consequence, he added.

New Aurora City Councilmember Gianina Horton said the ruling will allow the council to reevaluate the harsher penalties for crimes enacted by the previous conservative-majority City Council.

“As advocates have stated, mandatory minimums do not promote fairness and just rulings, particularly on crimes that are exacerbated by poverty,” Horton said. “As the new City Council member for Ward 1, I am looking forward to supporting the elimination of this harmful policy that the previous City Council passed.” 

The ACLU of Colorado commended the ruling in a social media post Monday, calling it “the correct and fair decision.”

“Sentencing disparities harmed people living in extreme poverty, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups,” the group said in a Facebook post.

Mayor Mike Coffman told The Denver Gazette on Tuesday that he is “disappointed” in the ruling.

“I feel that our sentencing guidelines have been helpful in deterring crime,” Coffman said. “However, staff is analyzing the actual sentences that have been handed down by our municipal courts to see to what extent, if any, we have gone beyond the state’s criminal code sentencing limits.”