“Harassment” – Colorado Laws & Penalties – CRS § 18-9-111

Colorado Revised Statute § 18-9-111 makes harassment a crime. Harassment is intentionally bothering, annoying, or alarming someone through repeated contact, obscene gestures, hitting, taunting, or following in public.

Depending on the case, harassment can be a petty offense or a misdemeanor carrying up to 364 days in a Colorado jail. However, it is often possible to get probation instead of incarceration.

There are many ways to violate Colorado harassment laws, such as:

• Spitting on someone else
• Calling a person repeatedly and then hanging up
• Following someone closely for several blocks
• Sending threatening text messages
• Repeatedly insulting someone to egg that person on to fight

In the article below, our Denver criminal defense lawyers will address the following key issues regarding Colorado harassment laws:

• 1. Elements of CRS 18-9-111
• 2. Penalties
• 3. Defenses
• 4. Record Seals
• 5. Kiana Arellano’s Law
• 6. Stalking
• 7. Workplace Harassment
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Additional Reading

1. Elements of CRS 18-9-111

For you to be convicted of harassment in Colorado, prosecutors have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt two elements.

The first element is that you intended to harass, annoy, or alarm another person (the victim). The second element is that you took one of the following seven actions:

1. Struck, shoved, kicked, or subjected the victim to physical contact;
2. Made an obscene gesture or remark to the victim in public;
3. Followed the victim in a public place;
4. Called the victim repeatedly for no legitimate purpose;
5. Initiated communication repeatedly at inconvenient hours that invaded the victim’s privacy;
6. Repeatedly taunted the victim in a way likely to provoke an unlawful response (“fighting words”); or
7. Made obscene or threatening comments over the phone or internet (“cyber-bullying”).¹

Therefore, harassment is a broad offense that can occur in person or online, through words or actions.

Example: 18-year-old Jeffrey is the high-school bully. One day he:

• throws Tom against the lockers,
• pantomimes having sex to Jennifer,
• makes 20 telephone calls with obscene language to Victoria,
• follows Noah all the way home just to make him nervous,
• texts Avery all through the night while she should be asleep,
• keeps calling Henry the R-word at school to taunt him, and
• through instant message threatens to beat up Zack the next day during lunch.

Each of these actions qualifies as harassment under CRS 18-9-111.

Note you can be charged with harassment over the telephone even for phone calls you receive. Examples include sexually harassing a bill collector or blowing an air horn into the mouthpiece when a telemarketer calls.

Cyber-bullying is generally a misdemeanor under Colorado law.

2. Penalties

The punishment for violating Colorado harassment laws turns on the specific scenario.

The least serious form of harassment is directing obscene language or making an obscene gesture to or at the victim in a public place. This is just a petty offense carrying up to 10 days in jail and/or $300 in fines.

The most serious form of harassment is following the victim in a public place or unlawfully touching the victim. This is a class 1 misdemeanor carrying up to 364 days in jail and/or $1,000 in fines.

All other forms of harassment are prosecuted as a class 2 misdemeanor, which carries up to 120 days in jail and/or $750 in fines.

However, any form of harassment is automatically prosecuted as a class 1 misdemeanor if the purpose behind it was victim’s actual or perceived:

• race,
• color,
• religion,
• ancestry,
• national origin,
• physical or mental disability,
• sexual orientation, or
• or transgender identity.

As a class 1 misdemeanor, discrimination-based harassment carries up to 364 days in jail and/or $1,000 in fines.

Domestic Violence Harassment

The above penalties all apply to Colorado cases of domestic violence harassment, which is harassment between past or present spouses, lovers, or co-parents.

Note that anytime you are charged with a domestic violence-related crime, the court will issue a protection order against you. Violating restraining orders is a crime in itself, so be sure to follow the rules.²

Harassment victims can bring civil lawsuits against the alleged harasser, especially if there is bodily injury or property damage.

3. Defenses

Here at Colorado Legal Defense Group, we have represented literally thousands of people charged with harassment. In our experience, the following six defenses have proven very effective with district attorneys and judges at getting CRS 18-9-111 charges dismissed through negotiation or a trial.

1. You had no intent to harass, annoy, or alarm anyone. We find this is the strongest defense because prosecutors have no way of getting inside your head to prove what you were thinking.
2. You were falsely accused by the victim or someone else. We can often find the accuser’s motivations to lie by poring over their text messages, voicemails, etc.
3. The victim misidentified you as the real harasser. In these cases, we rely on such evidence as GPS records, video surveillance footage, and eyewitnesses.
4. You did not touch or threaten anyone. These cases often come down to “he said/she said” scenarios, and prosecutors may not have sufficient evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
5. The victim had no reasonable expectation of privacy. Even if the victim felt harassed, you committed no crime if we can show the victim’s expectation of privacy was unreasonable.
6. The First Amendment protected your actions. Examples we often see are taking part in a lawful protest or making a consumer complaint.

Note that free speech crosses the line to criminal harassment when the victim reasonably expects to be left alone. As the Colorado Supreme Court explained:

“The … offense is the thrusting of an offensive and unwanted communication on one who cannot ignore it.”³

Example: Jeremy stands on the street in front of his ex-girlfriend’s house and yells for hours. This is not free speech because his girlfriend has a reasonable expectation of privacy in her home, and his yelling intruded on her ability to enjoy her private property. He could be charged with violating Colorado harassment laws.

A common harassment defense is false accusations.

4. Record Seals

If you get convicted of harassment in Colorado, there is a waiting period before you can ask the court to seal your criminal record. The wait time depends on your case:

• Class 1 misdemeanor conviction:  3 years after the case closes.
• Class 2 misdemeanor conviction:  2 years after the case closes.
• Petty offense conviction:  1 year after the case closes.

If your harassment charge gets dismissed, then there is no wait: You can petition for a record seal immediately.

You are strongly advised to seek a record seal as soon as you are eligible. Having a clear background check greatly increases your employment, housing, and educational prospects.⁴

Harassment can happen in person or electronically.

5. Kiana Arellano’s Law

Kiana Arellano’s law refers to CRS 18-9-111(3), which specifically prohibits cyber-bullying.

In 2013, Kiana Arellano was a high school sophomore who tried to hang herself after being bullied online by her classmates. The lack of oxygen left her brain damaged, paraplegic, and without the ability to talk.

At the time, there was no Colorado harassment law criminalizing cyber-bullying. To address this, the state legislature passed Kiana Arellano’s Law, which took effect in July of 2015.⁵

6. Stalking

In Colorado, stalking is a more serious and specific crime than harassment. Stalking occurs when you:

1. make a credible threat against the victim and
2. engage in repeated behavior, such as contacting or following the victim.

Stalking is a felony and extraordinary risk crime punishable by up to four years in prison and $100,000 in fines. In some cases, stalking charges can be reduced to harassment as part of a plea bargain.⁶

CRS 18-9-111 prohibits harassment if done with the intent to annoy or alarm.

7. Workplace Harassment

Workplace sexual harassment and hostile work environments are usually civil rather than criminal matters. Though if the victim claims unwanted sexual touching occurred, you could face charges for unlawful sexual contact.

In most cases, unlawful sexual contact is an extraordinary risk class 1 misdemeanor carrying up to 18 months in jail and/or $1,000 in fines. Plus you have to register as a Colorado sex offender.

Defendants often face charges of both harassment and stalking.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between harassment and stalking in Colorado?

Harassment is intentionally bothering, annoying, or alarming someone through repeated contact or actions. Stalking is more serious and requires making a credible threat against someone while repeatedly contacting or following them.

Stalking is a felony with up to four years in prison, while harassment is typically a misdemeanor with up to 364 days in jail.

How long do I have to wait to seal my harassment conviction record?

The waiting period depends on your conviction level: 1 year for petty offense convictions, two years for class 2 misdemeanor convictions, and three years for class 1 misdemeanor convictions.

If your charges were dismissed, you can petition to seal your record immediately with no waiting period.

Can I be charged with harassment for something I said online or over the phone?

Yes, Colorado’s “Kiana Arellano’s Law” makes cyber-bullying a form of harassment. You can be charged for making obscene or threatening comments online, through text messages, or over the phone.

You can also be charged for repeatedly calling someone with no legitimate purpose, even if you hang up each time.

What happens if I am convicted of domestic violence harassment?

Domestic violence harassment carries the same penalties as regular harassment, but the court will automatically issue a protection order against you. Violating this restraining order is a separate crime.

Domestic violence harassment applies to cases between current or former spouses, romantic partners, or people who share children.

Additional Reading

For more in-depth information, our criminal defense attorneys suggest you refer to these scholarly articles:

• Where Do We Draw the Line between Harassment and Free Speech: An Analysis of Hunter Harassment Law – Animal Law.
• Identifying Stalking: The Relevance of Intent in Commonsense Reasoning – Law and Human Behavior.
• Unregulating Online Harassment – Denver University Law Review.
• Cyber Harassment: Its Forms and Perpetrators – Law Enforcement Technology.
• Hacking and Harassment—Do They Have Something in Common? Comparing Risk Factors for Online Victimization – Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice.

See our related article Colorado’s Harassment Statute – What You Need To Know.

Legal References: