Colorado § 16-3-404 - Duty of officers to admit attorney.

§ 16-3-404. Duty of officers to admit attorney.

(1) All peace officers or persons having in custody a person committed, imprisoned, or arrested for any alleged cause shall forthwith admit an attorney-at-law in this state or the attorney's authorized representative, upon the demand of the confined person or of a friend, relative, spouse, or attorney of the confined person, to see and consult the confined person, alone and in private, at the jail or other place of custody, if the confined person expressly consents to see or to consult with the attorney or the attorney's authorized representative.

(1.5) In addition to in-person communication, a peace officer or person employed at a place of confinement shall provide an attorney-at-law in this state or the attorney's authorized representative the ability to initiate communication with the confined person through telephone calls, interactive audiovisual conferencing, or any other reasonable method of electronic communication, as determined by the jail or correctional facility administration, that allows the confined person and the attorney or authorized representative to speak to each other. The communication must be private, unrecorded, and without cost to the confined person and attorney or the attorney's representative. Peace officers or persons having custody of the confined person shall allow the communication described in this section on a forthwith basis, subject to all reasonable administrative and operational procedures and in the manner as determined by the facility administration.

(2) Any peace officer or person violating the duty imposed by this section or section 16-3-403 shall forfeit and pay not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars to the person imprisoned or to his attorney for the benefit of the person imprisoned, to be recovered in any court of competent jurisdiction.

Source: L. 72: R&RE, p. 203, § 1. C.R.S. 1963: § 39-3-404. L. 2025: (1) amended and (1.5) added, (HB 25-1049), ch. 331, p. 1717, § 4, effective August 6.

Cross references: For the crime of official oppression for denial of opportunity to consult an attorney, see § 18-8-403 (1)(b).

ANNOTATION

Law reviews. For article, "Criminal Procedure in Colorado — A Summary and Recommendations for Improvement", see 22 Rocky Mt. L. Rev. 221 (1950).

Annotator's note. Since § 16-3-404 is similar to repealed laws antecedent to CSA, C 48, § 560, relevant cases construing those provisions have been included in the annotations to this section.

Language of this section and § 16-3-403 does not confer a statutory right to private attorney-client consultation which is broader than the corollary constitutional right. People v. Dehmer, 931 P.2d 460 (Colo. App. 1996).

This section is a general statute, and in an action against a sheriff for refusing to permit counsel to consult a prisoner, it is not necessary to specifically declare upon the statute, but a complaint which states the facts is sufficient. McConathy v. Deck, 34 Colo. 232, 82 P. 702 (1905).

It is intended for benefit of prisoner. There is but one aggrieved person, either the attorney or the prisoner, and the section is plainly intended for the exclusive protection and benefit of the prisoner. The object is to give the individual restrained of his liberty the opportunity to see and consult an attorney, to determine whether he is unlawfully imprisoned, and to prepare for and properly make defense against whatever charge is preferred. McPhail v. Delaney, 48 Colo. 411, 110 P. 64 (1910).

Only remedy for violation of statutory provision is the fine provided for in subsection (2). People v. Parsons, 15 P.3d 799 (Colo. App. 2000).

Applied in Nees v. Bishop, 524 F. Supp. 1310 (D. Colo. 1981).