The Difference Between Misdemeanor and Felony Assault Charges in Colorado
June 30, 2026
Criminal justice in Colorado has undergone some drastic changes since the state legalized the recreational use and sale of marijuana in 2012.
According to a report from the Drug Policy Alliance, the number of marijuana charges for possession, distribution, and cultivation fell by 95 percent between 2010 and 2014. Possession charges dropped from 30,428 in 2010 to 1,922 in 2014, while distribution and cultivation charges have become nearly nonexistent.
However, though possession, distribution, and cultivation charges have dropped, there has [...]
In the past few years, Colorado has been receiving a lot of national media attention for becoming the first state to legalize recreational marijuana use. Despite the fact that plenty of popular news outlets have been playing up this new legislation and pointing out its positive aspects, the legalization of marijuana has not been without negative side effects.
According to the Durango Herald, Colorado schools saw a record number of drug use violations in the months following marijuana legalization. [...]
While our nation’s youth crime rates have declined considerably in the last 20 years, the US continues to put more children and teenagers in juvenile detention centers than any other developed country. Our juvenile incarceration rate is seven times higher than Britain’s, and 18 times higher than France’s rate. Each year, we spend millions of taxpayer dollars keeping children and teens behind bars.
While these numbers are frightening on their own, it’s even more frightening to consider the effects of [...]
Your teen is an honors student. She aces all her classes. She’s involved in all kinds of extra-curricular activities. She has an impeccable driving record. You’ve done a great job as a parent.
And then you get the shocking call: your teen has been busted for a minor in possession (MIP). How can this have happened? Where did you go wrong? You know that she’s a good kid, but now it seems like that doesn’t matter. What’s going to happen [...]
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. [...]
A preliminary hearing in a felony case in Colorado is one of the earliest opportunities for the prosecution’s evidence to be tested before a judge. It happens after charges have been filed and the defendant has made an initial appearance, but before the case moves into trial court. The hearing is not about deciding guilt or innocence. Instead, the court is checking whether the prosecution has sufficient evidence to move the case forward.
In Colorado, this stage is often [...]
Only one drug felony level in Colorado carries a true mandatory prison sentence. The other three carry presumptive ranges where a judge still has discretion, meaning the defense strategy in a DF2, DF3, or DF4 case looks completely different from that in a DF1 case. At the Law Office of Jacob Martinez, our Denver drug crimes attorney has spent more than a decade in Denver courts, working to achieve better outcomes for clients facing felony drug charges.
Only One Drug[...]