Petition form and content.

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(1) The petition and all subsequent court documents in any proceedings brought under section 19-1-104 (1)(a) or (1)(b) shall be entitled "The People of the State of Colorado, in the Interest of ........, a juvenile (or juveniles) and Concerning ........, Respondent." The petition may be filed using the language of the statutes defining the offense, including either conjunctive or disjunctive clauses. Pleading in either the conjunctive or the disjunctive shall place a respondent on notice that the prosecution may rely on any or all of the alternatives alleged.

  1. The petition shall set forth plainly the facts that bring the juvenile within the court'sjurisdiction. If the petition alleges that the juvenile is delinquent, it shall cite the law or municipal or county ordinance that the juvenile is alleged to have violated. The petition shall also state the name, age, and residence of the juvenile and the names and residences of his or her parents, guardian, or other legal custodian or of his or her nearest known relative if no parent, guardian, or other legal custodian is known.

  2. (a) Pursuant to section 19-1-126, in those delinquency proceedings to which the federal "Indian Child Welfare Act", 25 U.S.C. sec. 1901 et seq., as amended, applies, including but not limited to status offenses such as the illegal possession or consumption of ethyl alcohol or marijuana by an underage person or illegal possession of marijuana paraphernalia by an underage person, as described in section 18-13-122, and possession of handguns by juveniles, as described in section 18-12-108.5, the petition must:

  1. Include a statement indicating what continuing inquiries the district attorney or thedistrict attorney's representative has made in determining whether the juvenile is an Indian child;

  2. Identify whether the juvenile is an Indian child; and

  3. Include the identity of the Indian child's tribe, if the child is identified as an Indianchild.

(b) If notices were sent to the parent or Indian custodian of the child and to the Indian child's tribe, pursuant to section 19-1-126, the postal receipts shall be attached to the petition and filed with the court or filed within ten days after the filing of the petition, as specified in section 19-1-126 (1)(c).

Source: L. 96: Entire article amended with relocations, p. 1637, § 1, effective January 1, 1997. L. 2002: (3) added, p. 785, § 4, effective May 30. L. 2003: (1) amended, p. 973, § 3, effective April 17. L. 2014: IP(3)(a) amended, (SB 14-129), ch. 387, p. 1939, § 10, effective June 6. L. 2020: IP(3)(a) amended, (HB 20-1001), ch. 302, p. 1517, § 15, effective July 14.

Editor's note: (1) This section was formerly numbered as 19-2-305. Prior to relocation in 1996, the said section 19-2-305 was contained in a title that was repealed and reenacted in 1987. Provisions of that section, as it existed in 1987, are similar to those contained in 19-3-102 as said section existed in 1986, the year prior to the repeal and reenactment of this title.

(2) Section 19 of chapter 302 (HB 20-1001), Session Laws of Colorado 2020, provides that the act changing this section applies to offenses committed on or after July 14.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration contained in the 2002 act enacting subsection (3), see section 1 of chapter 217, Session Laws of Colorado 2002.


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