crisis
-
District attorneys offer contrasting takes on new fentanyl law’s felony charge
—
by
District attorneys are offering divergent interpretations of the compromise that finally broke the gridlock and facilitated passage of the legislative response to Colorado’s fentanyl crisis, with some insisting the new language burdens prosecutors while others maintaining it does the contrary. At issue is an amendment to House Bill 1326 that says a person caught with 1…
-
Colorado Senate passes fentanyl bill, sets felony threshold at 1 gram
—
by
The Senate Friday, on bipartisan lines, approved a sweeping measure that seeks to confront Colorado’s fentanyl crisis by making it a felony to possess 1 gram of an illicit substance that contains the deadly drug. The full Senate approved House Bill 1326 on a 24-8 vote, a day after the chamber decided that prosecutors shouldn’t have…
-
Senate advances fentanyl bill, adopts law enforcement’s key request on felony language
—
by
The Colorado legislature’s struggle on how to deal with fentanyl possession took another turn Thursday, when the state Senate decided that prosecutors shouldn’t have to prove that users knowingly possessed the drug in order to charge them with a felony. The revision is the most significant and far-reaching change to come out of the Senate’s work…
-
Law enforcement coalition calls fentanyl bill’s felony provision ‘practically meaningless’
—
by
A coalition of law enforcement groups on Tuesday described state fentanyl legislation’s current felony provision for simple possession as “practically meaningless,” while a group representing district attorneys said that language renders the intended teeth in the legislation “almost useless.” The coalition, composed of the County Sheriffs of Colorado, the Colorado Association of Chiefs of…
-
As families recount stories of heartbreak, legislators mull contours of response to fentanyl crisis
—
by
There were few constants through Keith’s short life. His family – his parents Trisha and Jason Davidson, and sister Shaelynn – was one. His curiosity – constantly tinkering with electronics, fascination with space, admiration for Elon Musk – was another. But so, too, was the failure of institutions that were in a position to help him as…
-
Garnett’s gambit: House speaker fights for legacy-defining fentanyl bill in final year as legislator
—
by
When House Speaker Alec Garnett sat down with Colorado Politics in January to reflect on his last year in office, he said he always prefers taking on “one tough one than a bunch of consensus-driven ideas.” “I always tell Emily that I’m going to focus on one big thing,” said Garnett, one of the youngest to…
-
Felony for expungement: Arapahoe sheriff offers compromise on fentanyl bill
—
by
Law enforcement advocates are pursuing a compromise to make possession of any amount of fentanyl a felony but allow for the expungement of the criminal record upon completion of certain programs, such as drug treatment or diversion. Arapahoe County Sheriff Tyler Brown told Colorado Politics that offer was “met with resistance” when he and others…
-
Colorado House committee advances bill that lowers felony threshold for fentanyl possession
—
by
A panel of Colorado legislators advanced a bill Wednesday that increases criminal penalties for possessing small amounts of fentanyl, a middle-of-the-road approach between factions who want harsher penalties and those who decry going back to the tough-on-crime strategy of the past. The House Judiciary Committee advanced House Bill 1326, the legislature’s sweeping attempt to address…
-
Advocates diametrically disagree on imprisonment’s role in response to fentanyl crisis
—
by
Fighting through tears, Jessica Chavez recounted before a panel of Colorado lawmakers how her daughter, Yesenia, fatally overdosed in July after taking a fentanyl pill she thought was Percocet. Before her death, Yesi, as her friends called her, had texted her family’s pastor, Chavez told lawmakers. The 21-year-old told him that she wanted “to do…
-
Law enforcement groups, harm reduction advocates clash over fentanyl possession
—
by
A coalition of law enforcement organizations on Thursday criticized a sweeping approach to the fentanyl crisis in Colorado, saying it doesn’t do enough to crack down on those who possess the deadly drug. But harm reduction and addiction experts have taken the opposite position, warning that proposed changes to the state’s drug code would have…
