Colorado § 18-1.3-302 - Legislative declaration - offenders who may be sentenced to the specialized restitution and community service program.

§ 18-1.3-302. Legislative declaration - offenders who may be sentenced to the specialized restitution and community service program.

(1) The general assembly hereby finds that:

(a) The taxpayer costs to incarcerate nonviolent offenders, most of whom have committed property-related offenses, usually outbalances the need to incarcerate such persons to protect the public's safety and that imprisonment generally renders offenders less able to compensate their victims. Therefore, the general assembly declares that the purpose for enacting this article regarding specialized restitution and community service programs is to increase the cost-efficiency and the effectiveness of Colorado corrections. This article authorizes the establishment of an intermediate sanction whereby nonviolent offenders, at less taxpayer cost than imprisonment, would be required to work under strict supervision in a highly structured program in order to compensate their victims and society for the damage they have caused; and

(b) Using incarceration as a routine punishment for nonviolent offenders, either upon sentencing or upon the revocation of parole or probation, punishes Colorado's taxpayers. The general assembly finds that limiting the pool of offenders eligible for the specialized restitution and community service program to first-time offenders unreasonably restricts entrance into the program and that the level of supervision mandated for repeat offenders by this article is adequate to ensure public safety from such offenders. The general assembly further finds that the vast majority of repeat offenders do not possess the requisite skills to obtain legitimate employment and that the specialized restitution and community service program will train such repeat offenders for legitimate employment. Therefore, it is in the best interests of the people of the state of Colorado to allow nonviolent repeat offenders and offenders with technical violations of parole or probation into such program.

(2) Any offender shall be eligible to be placed in a specialized restitution and community service program if:

(a) The offender is not eligible for probation pursuant to section 18-1.3-201, and has been convicted of an offense other than a crime of violence, as described in section 18-1.3-406 (2)(a), or any felony offense committed against a child set forth in articles 3, 6, and 7 of this title, or an offense that requires incarceration or imprisonment in the department of corrections or community corrections, or any sexual offense as defined in section 18-1.3-1003; and

(b) (I) A determination is made by the court that the offender would be incarcerated, either pursuant to section 18-1.3-104 (1)(b) or pursuant to a probation revocation, if such offender is not placed in the specialized restitution and community service program; or

(II) A determination is made by the parole board that the offender would be incarcerated pursuant to a parole violation.

(3) Prior to sentencing an eligible offender to a specialized restitution and community service program pursuant to this section, the court shall make the determinations required in subsection (2) of this section and such offender must have been accepted by both of the following:

(a) The provider of the specialized restitution and community service program in which it is proposed that the offender be placed; and

(b) The community corrections board, as defined in section 17-27-102 (2), C.R.S., of the community in which the program is located.

(4) If an eligible offender is accepted by a provider pursuant to subsection (3) of this section, the court may sentence an offender to pay restitution or perform community service, or both, in an amount commensurate with the seriousness of the crime and to the custody of any specialized restitution and community service program adopted pursuant to this section or article 27.9 of title 17, C.R.S. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a minimum of full restitution may be imposed in an amount that exceeds any actual losses or damages suffered by a victim of the crime. An offender shall be supervised in accordance with and subject to the provisions of article 27 of title 17, C.R.S.

(5) The parole board may place parole violators who meet the eligibility criteria of subsection (2) of this section and who have been accepted pursuant to paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (3) of this section in specialized restitution and community service programs. Such parole violators shall be supervised in accordance with and subject to the provisions of article 27 of title 17, C.R.S.

Source: L. 2002: Entire article added with relocations, p. 1390, § 2, effective October 1. L. 2003: (2)(a) amended, p. 1430, § 15, effective April 29.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former §§ 17-27.9-101 and 17-27.9-103 as they existed prior to 2002.