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Current as of January 01, 2025 | Updated by Findlaw Staff
(1) If a prosecution is for a violation of the same provision of law and is based upon the same facts as a former prosecution, it is barred by the former prosecution under the following circumstances:
(a) The former prosecution resulted in an acquittal. There is an acquittal if the prosecution resulted in a finding of not guilty by the trier of fact or in a determination that there was insufficient evidence to warrant a conviction. A finding of guilty of a lesser included offense is an acquittal of the greater inclusive offense even though the conviction is subsequently set aside.
(b) The former prosecution was terminated by a final order or judgment for the defendant that has not been set aside, reversed, or vacated, and that necessarily required a determination inconsistent with a fact or a legal proposition that must be established for conviction of the offense.
(c) The former prosecution resulted in a conviction. There is a conviction if the prosecution resulted in a judgment of conviction that has not been reversed or vacated, a verdict of guilty that has not been set aside and that is capable of supporting a judgment, or a plea of guilty accepted by the court. In the latter two instances, failure to enter judgment must be for a reason other than a motion of the defendant.
(d) The former prosecution was improperly terminated. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2) of this section, there is an improper termination of a prosecution if the termination is for reasons not amounting to an acquittal, and it takes place after the jury is sworn if the case is tried by a jury or after the first prosecution witness is sworn if trial is by court following waiver of jury trial.
(2) Termination is not improper under any of the following circumstances:
(a) The defendant consents to the termination or waives his right to object to the termination. The defendant is deemed to have waived all objections to a termination of the trial unless his objections to the order of termination are made of record at the time of the entry thereof.
(b) The trial court finds that:
(I) The termination is necessary because it is physically impossible to proceed with the trial in conformity with the law; or
(II) There is a legal defect in the proceedings that would make any judgment entered upon a verdict reversible as a matter of law; or
(III) Prejudicial conduct has occurred in or outside the courtroom making it unjust either to the defendant or to the state to proceed with the trial; or
(IV) The jury is unable to agree upon a verdict; or
(V) False statements of a juror on voir dire prevent a fair trial.
Cite this article: FindLaw.com - Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18. Criminal Code § 18-1-301. Second trial barred by former prosecution for same offense - last updated January 01, 2025 | https://codes.findlaw.com/co/title-18-criminal-code/co-rev-st-sect-18-1-301/
FindLaw Codes may not reflect the most recent version of the law in your jurisdiction. Please verify the status of the code you are researching with the state legislature before relying on it for your legal needs.
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