How Plea Bargaining Works in Denver Criminal Court Cases
July 29, 2026
The year 2020 has been a long one already. Violence has all but dominated the news cycle in one way or another. It’s not just the news media covering negativity, though. According to Denver’s most recent crime report, assault is up 23 percent in 2020.
Moreover, assault isn’t the only violent crime on the rise, either. Colorado’s rate of aggravated assault is the highest it’s been since 2011. Acts of assault are not only becoming more common, these acts are [...]
A Morgan County man is currently in police custody facing first-degree assault charges for allegedly assaulting a 76-year-old man.
The Morgan County Sheriff’s Office responded to a medical emergency on February 14, but at the scene, officers quickly realized that this victim’s medical emergency wasn’t related to an accident or fall, but rather, he was an assault victim.
If convicted, the defendant could serve 24 years in prison. That’s a far cry from simple assault, which usually is not initially [...]
Every day, there are many instances of assaults taking place across our state. Some of these assaults are more serious than others, and the law has been formulated with this in mind. Commit a more serious assault and you will be subject to more severe penalties.
When an assault is considered “more serious,” it is commonly referred to as an “aggravated” assault. What exactly makes an assault “aggravated,” though? How is it different from a regular assault?
Colorado Aggravated Assault[...]We can all admit that tensions in our country are high right now. No matter who you voted for or what you look like, it’s hard to turn a blind eye to the rising levels of violence through both large-scale and short-scale incidents.
Unfortunately, Colorado has the numbers to prove that hate crimes and other forms of violence are truly more prevalent than in the past.
Data from Colorado law enforcement shows that reports of hate crimes doubled from 2017 [...]
The various “Stand Your Ground” statutes are some of the most controversial laws that exist in the United States. Different states call the different things, but they’re all fairly similar to the law made most famous during the Trayvon Martin shooting in Florida.
Essentially, they allow someone to “stand their ground” and use physical force on a person if they believe that the person is going to cause them physical harm. Supporters of “Stand Your Ground” laws argue that they [...]
Most criminal cases in Denver do not end with a jury verdict. They end with a decision: whether to accept a plea agreement, reject the offer, keep negotiating, or prepare for trial. That decision can shape your record, your freedom, your sentence, your probation terms, and your future long after the court date.
A plea bargain is not just “taking a deal.” It is a legal agreement that may involve reduced charges, dismissed counts, sentencing limits, probation terms, restitution, treatment [...]
A police crash report can make a serious collision look settled before the defense has examined the evidence. It may assign fault, estimate speed, describe the point of impact, and frame the driver’s conduct as reckless or impaired. In a Denver vehicular assault case, those early conclusions can influence charging decisions, plea negotiations, and how prosecutors present the case.
The problem is that a police report is not proof. Officers often prepare crash reports based on witness statements, final vehicle [...]
Assault charges in Colorado can range from a misdemeanor accusation after a physical confrontation to a serious felony carrying years in prison. The difference usually depends on the alleged intent, the level of injury, whether a weapon was involved, and whether the alleged victim falls into a protected category under Colorado law.
That distinction matters immediately. A misdemeanor assault case may still carry jail time, fines, a permanent criminal record, and collateral consequences for employment, housing, licensing, and your reputation. [...]