What is considered felony theft charges in Colorado?
Felony Theft, sometimes called felony grand theft in Colorado is typically defined by the amount of the property or money involved and is found in C.R.S. 18-4-401. If the amount allegedly to have been taken is over $2,000, than you may be charged with felony theft or felony grand theft in Colorado. Here are a listing of the potential felony theft charges in Colorado:
Class 6 felony – amount is over $2,000 but less than $5,000
Class 5 felony - amount involved is $5,000 but less than $20,000.00
Class 4 felony – amount involved is $20,000 but less than $100,000
Class 3 felony – amount involved is $100,000 but less than $1 million
Class 2 felony – amount involved is over $1 million dollars
The difference between the Classes of felony is the severity of the punishment. Please see our post, felony punishment for more information.
Other charges with felony theft charges in Colorado
It is common for the DA to charge other felonies and/or misdemeanors in connection with the felony theft charge. Some of the most common are breaking and entering, assault, fraud, and/or forgery.
In addition, felony grand theft can be charged even if the person did not physically take the property or money. This is most common cases are fraud cases, in which the DA alleged that a person stole by defrauding or coning a person out of the money.
Ways DA increases severity of felony grand theft in Colorado
If two or more thefts alleged occur within a period of six months, all may be treated as one incident, thus allow for a higher level of charges. Depending on the amount involved, this could allow a DA to charge felony grand theft instead of several smaller petty and/or misdemeanor thefts. This “bundling” allows the DA to charge a higher level of crime for several acts.
If a person is accused of committing theft two or more times against the same person pursuant to the same scheme or course of conduct – the DA could charge a higher level of felony grand theft or felony theft in Colorado. All thefts would be bundled together to get the highest felony charge possible.
The consequences of being charged with felony theft or felony grand theft in Colorado are harsh. If you or a loved one are accused of felony theft in Colorado – don’t wait, contact us today at (303) 747-4686 for a free case evaluation.