(1) Any person who is in custody, and for whom the court has not set bond and conditions of release pursuant to the applicable rule of criminal procedure, and who is not subject to the provisions of section 16-4-101 (5), has the right to a hearing to determine bond and conditions of release. A person in custody may also request a hearing so that bond and conditions of release can be set. Upon receiving the request, the judge shall notify the district attorney immediately of the arrested person's request, and the district attorney has the right to attend and advise the court of matters pertinent to the type of bond and conditions of release to be set. The judge shall also order the appropriate law enforcement agency having custody of the prisoner to bring him or her before the court forthwith, and the judge shall set bond and conditions of release if the offense for which the person was arrested is bailable. It is not a prerequisite to bail that a criminal charge of any kind has been filed.
(2) (a) The chief judge of each judicial district shall develop, in conjunction with representatives from sheriffs' offices, public defenders' offices, district attorneys' offices, county commissioners, and any other agencies determined necessary by the chief judge, a plan for setting bond for all in-custody defendants within forty-eight hours of arrest. In developing the plan, the county commissioners, sheriffs, and district attorneys shall provide the chief judge cost estimates of feasibility as well as any potential savings from the proposal, including jail bed costs and savings. In developing the plan, the chief judge shall evaluate the potential of utilizing new or existing audiovisual conference technology. In areas where a lack of broadband coverage makes audiovisual conferencing impossible or unreliable, the chief judge may evaluate the potential of utilizing telephonic hearings. No later than November 1, 2019, the state court administrator's office shall report to the judiciary committees of the house of representatives and the senate, or any successor committees, the plans for all twenty-two judicial districts, not including the Denver county court. The report must include an estimate of resources necessary to implement this subsection (2)(a).
Unless extraordinary circumstances exist, a defendant, a surety on behalf of the defendant, or another third party on behalf of the defendant must be allowed to post bond within two hours after the sheriff receives the bond information from the court. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a sheriff may allow an individual to choose to stay in jail overnight after release when extenuating circumstances exist, including inclement weather, lack of transportation, or lack of shelter.
The custodian of a jail shall ensure the defendant, a surety on behalf of the defendant,or another third party on behalf of the defendant is not charged more than a ten-dollar bond processing fee.
The custodian of a jail shall also ensure the defendant, a surety on behalf of thedefendant, or another third party on behalf of the defendant is not charged any additional transaction fees including kiosk fees; except that the standard credit card processing fee that the credit card company charges may be charged when a credit card is used, or, when a third-party vendor provides defendants the option to pay monetary bond with a credit card, the defendant can be required to pay up to a three-and-one-half percent credit card payment processing fee.
Unless extraordinary circumstances exist, the custodian of a jail shall release a defendant as soon as practicable but no later than four hours after the defendant is physically present in the jail and the defendant's bond has been posted. A supervisory condition of release does not serve as a legal basis to continue to detain the defendant; except that, if the defendant is ordered released upon condition of being subject to electronic monitoring, the defendant may be held up to as long as practicable but no longer than twenty-four hours after the defendant is physically present in the jail and the defendant's bond has been posted, if such delay is necessary to ensure the defendant is fitted with electronic monitoring and the court has authorized the defendant to be held until the electronic monitor is fitted. If the court orders electronic monitoring for the protection of a specific individual, and the defendant is ordered to have no contact with that specific individual, and the judge orders that the defendant not be released without electronic monitoring based on finding that the electronic monitoring is necessary for public safety, then the time limits regarding release of the defendant in this subsection do not apply. However, if a defendant is held more than twenty-four hours after posting bond awaiting electronic monitoring fitting, the sheriff shall bring the defendant to the court the next day the court is in session and explain the reason for the delay.
A defendant who has posted bond must be released regardless of whether the defendant has paid any outstanding fee, cost, or surcharge, including bond processing fees, booking fees, pretrial supervision fees, or electronic monitoring supervision fees.
For purposes of this section, "extraordinary circumstances" includes an emergencythat renders staff unable to process bonds and release defendants, but it does not include a lack of staffing resources or routine administrative practices.
Source: L. 2013: Entire part R&RE, (HB 13-1236), ch. 202, p. 822, § 2, effective May
11. L. 2019: Entire section amended, (SB 19-191), ch. 288, p. 2666, § 1, effective August 2.