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Strong Representation In Kidnapping Cases

If you have been charged with kidnapping in Colorado, you can hire an experienced criminal defense attorney to help you fight the charges.

At Pearson & Paris, P.C., we have more than 50 years of combined legal experience that we will use on your behalf. Perhaps more importantly, our top criminal defense attorney is a former senior prosecutor who knows how district attorneys handle these cases. That knowledge allows us to create effective strategies ranging from negotiation to courtroom battles.
Call us at 303-872-4719 in the Greater Denver area or toll free at 303-872-4719 across Colorado for an initial consultation at reduced Rates.

Definition Of Kidnapping

In Colorado, kidnapping is committed when a person knowingly seizes and carries any person from one place to another, without his or her consent and without lawful justification.

The kidnapping statute does not define how far a person must be transported before kidnapping charges may be filed. Kidnapping has been charged when a person merely compels another to move from one room in a house to another room. This type of kidnapping is often charged in connection with a domestic violence case and is certainly a way for a prosecutor to seek to gain leverage in a case.

Possible Consequences For Kidnapping

Kidnapping, so long as it not accompanied by any aggravating circumstances, is a class 4 felony. If convicted of kidnapping, a person faces sentencing of: (1) probation, with a possible jail sentence as a condition of probation of up to 90 days, or up to a two-year work release sentence as a condition of probation, or (2) a sentence to the Department of Corrections of two to six years, but as much as 12 years if the court finds the presence of exceptional circumstances, with a mandatory parole period of three years.

If kidnapping occurs with the use of a deadly weapon, it is a class 3 felony and is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence to prison.

Possible Defenses For Kidnapping

In the case of kidnapping, the defense may center on consent. Kidnapping can be conducted only when the victim does not consent to the transportation. Many times, however, kidnapping is charged in the context of domestic violence, when the victim alleges that during an argument, he or she was forcefully removed from one location in the house to another or was not allowed to leave during an argument. When an argument is accompanied by grabbing the other person’s arms or shoulders, a prosecutor may be inclined to charge felony kidnapping in an otherwise misdemeanor case.

Given the fact that a case is often “overcharged” by adding a kidnapping charge, it is important to interview as many witnesses as possible to clarify what actually happened.

The remaining defenses that may be applied in a kidnapping case apply with equal force to those that may apply in any other criminal case. This includes an analysis of any violation of constitutional rights, such as the right to remain silent, the right to counsel, the right to have any searches and seizures based on probable cause, a proper warrant, and the right to due process in the proper preservation of evidence that may be used against you. Many other defenses are available that rely on scrutinizing and exposing weaknesses in the prosecutor’s case, such as biased or incompetent witnesses, flawed crime scene investigation, flawed administration and procedures in collecting breath, blood or urine for forensic testing, incompetent computer evidence, flawed photo lineups and inaccurate crime scene/accident reconstructions.

It is important that you hire a skilled and experienced criminal defense lawyer to defend you in a kidnapping case in Evergreen, Jefferson County, or across Colorado.

Call us at 303-872-4719 in the Greater Denver area or toll free across Colorado at 303-872-4719 for an initial consultation at reduced Rates. You can also contact us online.