Colorado § 42-4-1610 - Reports by interested parties confidential.

§ 42-4-1610. Reports by interested parties confidential.

All crash reports and supplemental reports required by law to be made by any driver, owner, or person involved in any crash are without prejudice to the individual so reporting and are for the confidential use of the department; except that the department may disclose the identity of a person involved in a crash when such identity is not otherwise known or when such person denies the person's presence at such crash. Except as provided in section 42-7-504 (2), no such report may be used as evidence in any trial, civil or criminal, arising out of a crash; except that the department shall furnish, upon demand of any person who has, or claims to have, made such a report or upon demand of any court, a certificate showing that a specified crash report has or has not been made to the department solely to prove a compliance or failure to comply with the requirement that such a report be made to the department. This section shall not be construed to mean that reports of investigation or other reports made by sheriffs, police officers, coroners, or other peace officers are confidential, but the same are public records and are subject to the provisions of section 42-1-206.

Source: L. 94: Entire title amended with relocations, p. 2403, § 1, effective January 1, 1995. L. 2026: Entire section amended, (HB 26-1237), ch. 117, p. 485, § 68, effective August 12.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 42-4-1410 as it existed prior to 1994, and the former § 42-4-1610 was relocated to § 42-4-1810.

ANNOTATION

Annotator's note. Since § 42-4-1610 is similar to § 42-4-1410 as it existed prior to the 1994 amending of title 42 as enacted by SB 94-1, relevant cases construing that provision have been included with the annotations to this section.

Reports confidential in order to encourage compliance. The provisions of this section are based upon a declared public policy announced by the general assembly. Public policy requires that motorists be encouraged to make full and frank compliance with the requirement for filing the reports under the uniform motor vehicle statutes, and makes any information therein contained unavailable for use except by the department, and the limited exceptions embraced in this section. Clark v. Reichman, 130 Colo. 329, 275 P.2d 952 (1954).

Distinction between confidential reports and police reports. The confidentiality provision of this section distinguishes between reports required to be made "by any driver, owner, or person involved in any accident", which are not admissible in evidence, and police investigation reports, which are public records and which are admissible. People v. Reyes, 42 Colo. App. 73, 589 P.2d 1385 (1979).

Inculpatory statements not covered by this section. Inculpatory statements made to police officers by a party are not part of either the notice or report requirements of § 42-4-1406, and are not protected by the confidentiality provision of this section, and law enforcement officers' testimony as to those statements are properly admissible at trial. People v. Reyes, 42 Colo. App. 73, 589 P.2d 1385 (1979).