How Colorado Extradition Works for Out-of-State Criminal Charges
September 22, 2026
The abuse of prescription drugs is an emerging epidemic that’s now recognized as a significant threat to public health. The death toll from prescription drug abuse is huge, and even includes a number of celebrities, like Prince, Tom Petty, and Anna Nicole Smith.
As the number of deaths from prescription drugs continues to rise sharply across the US, the federal government has commissioned various agencies to combat the prescription drug epidemic. Many states, including Colorado, augment the federal government’s efforts [...]
When someone is charged with a criminal offense on TV, the defendant usually goes to trial in a dramatic courtroom battle. However, while some cases do go to trial in the real-life criminal justice system, most defendants don’t ever end up in the midst of a courtroom battle.
This is because the vast majority of cases – over 90% – end in plea bargains. That means that fewer than 1 in 10 people facing either state or federal charges go [...]
In 2017, the number of drug overdose deaths in Colorado was the highest it has ever been – 959 people lost their lives to different controlled substances. Overdoses happen for many reasons, but in order to survive almost everyone needs the same thing – serious medical attention.
Unfortunately, the laws against drug use and the heavy punishments for drug crimes prevent many people from reaching out when they notice the signs of an overdose. In many cases, they don’t want [...]
Drug-free zone laws are a longstanding sentencing policy intended to increase criminal penalties for drug crimes committed near places where children are likely to be present. For example, near schools and parks. The first drug-free zone laws took effect in the 1970s, and they were ramped up as the “War on Drugs” really took hold during the Reagan presidency.
The principle of drug-free zone laws is pretty simple and straightforward: keep dangerous drugs and violence related to drug trafficking away [...]
On May 9, several law enforcement agencies collaborated to arrest 25 individuals for drug trafficking and to issue charges to 12 others in a huge methamphetamine drug bust. The drug ring was in operation as early as July 2015. Police arrested the alleged drug dealers in Colorado, Arizona, and California.
With a big bust like this one, there are almost always an array of charges involved. Below, we’re going to detail just a little bit about what those arrested will [...]
Extradition is about where a criminal case will be handled—not whether the person is guilty. If someone is arrested in Colorado on another state’s warrant, the immediate questions are usually whether to waive extradition, whether bail is available, how long the process may take, and what can actually be challenged before the person is returned.
The same issue can run in the other direction. A person may be arrested in another state because Colorado issued the warrant. In that situation, [...]
A confidential informant almost never speaks to the judge who signs the warrant. Instead, the judge reads a detective’s sworn summary of what an unnamed person allegedly said. That gap can become one of the most important issues in a Denver drug, weapons, theft, or other criminal case.
The defense does not cross-examine the informant when the warrant is issued. At that stage, the focus is on the affidavit itself: what the informant allegedly knew, how police verified the information, [...]
Colorado fentanyl possession charges can become serious felonies at relatively low weight thresholds. The law focuses on the weight of the material, compound, mixture, or preparation containing fentanyl rather than only the amount of pure fentanyl inside it. That means a small-looking quantity of powder or counterfeit pills can result in a much more serious charge once the substance is tested and weighed.
Weight is only part of the case. What the accused person knew, whether the state can prove [...]