DUI Causing Injury in Colorado – Laws, Penalties, Defenses

Under Colorado CRS 18-3-205, vehicular assault can be charged when you (a) are driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and (b) cause an accident in which someone is injured. The penalties and consequences of DUI causing injury in Colorado include:

• up to 6 years of prison time,
• a fine of up to $500,000.00, as well as
• a driver’s license suspension and victim restitution.

“If a person operates or drives a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or one or more drugs, or a combination of both alcohol and one or more drugs, and this conduct is the proximate cause of a serious bodily injury to another, such person commits vehicular assault.” C.R.S. 18-3-205(1)(b)(I).

Were you involved in a DUI accident where another person was injured or killed? Our Colorado DUI attorneys are available to here to help. In this article, we will address:

• 1. What is the law as to DUI causing injury?
• 2. What are the penalties?
• 3. How do I fight the charges in court?
• 4. Related offenses

What is the law as to DUI causing injury?

In order to be convicted of DUI causing injury in Colorado, the prosecutor must show two elements:

1. You were operating the motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or a combination of alcohol and drugs; and
2. Your conduct is the proximate cause of serious bodily injury to another.

Unlike some other states, the prosecutor does not have to show that you were operating the vehicle in a reckless or negligent manner above and beyond the effects of alcohol. This is a strict liability crime: Simply being impaired by alcohol or drugs, which is a proximate cause of the injury, is sufficient to establish the crime of DUI causing injury.

You are “under the influence” if you consume alcohol, drugs, or a combination of drugs, and the alcohol and/or drugs affect you to a degree that you are substantially incapable, either mentally or physically, of exercising

• clear judgment,
• sufficient physical control, or
• due care

in the safe operation of a vehicle.¹

The presumption of intoxication depends on your blood alcohol content (BAC) test after the accident.

• If your BAC was 0.05% or lower, you are presumed to not be under the influence.
• If your BAC was over 0.05% but under 0.08%, your alcohol level may be considered with other evidence to determine whether you were under the influence.
• If your BAC is 0.08% or higher, it gives rise to a permissible inference that you were under the influence.²

For the purpose of vehicular assault charges, “drugs” are not limited to street drugs.

• Prescription drugs,
• medical marijuana,
• inhaled vapors, and
• even over-the-counter drugs

can qualify if they had an impairing effect on you.³

DUI vehicular assault is considered a class 4 felony in Colorado.

2. What are the penalties?

DUI causing injury is considered a Class 4 felony in Colorado. Penalties may depend on your criminal history and history of drunk driving offenses.

A conviction for DUI causing injury can result in

• 2 to 6 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum 3-year parole period, and
• a fine of up to $500,000.

Additional penalties may include revocation of your Colorado driver’s license for one year and restitution payments to the injury victim.

3. How do I fight the charges in court?

Depending on the specific factors involved in your case, there are several possible defenses to DUI with injury charges. Your Colorado DUI defense attorney will

• examine the evidence,
• conduct an investigation of the accident, and
• identify all available defenses in your case.

Possible defenses may include:

• You were not under the influence of alcohol.
• You were not under the influence of drugs.
• The Colorado DUI blood test or Colorado DUI breath test was not properly conducted.
• You were not the one operating the vehicle.

Depending on the accident involved, your attorney may also dispute that the influence of drugs or alcohol caused the accident. This could involve an investigation and an accident reconstruction expert who testifies that the accident was caused by

• the other driver,
• the weather conditions, or
• hazardous road conditions.

4. Related offenses

Other offenses may be charged instead of vehicular assault, depending on the type of accident involved.

If there were no serious injuries or the accident only involved property damage, you may face a standard DUI charge under C.R.S. 42-4-1301.

However, if another person was killed in the accident involving drugs or alcohol, you could face the more serious charge of vehicular homicide.

DUI Vehicular homicide, C.R.S. 18-3-106

In order to be convicted of a DUI vehicular homicide under Colorado Revised Statutes 18-3-106, the prosecutor must show two elements:

1. You were operating the motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or a combination of alcohol and drugs; and
2. Your conduct is the proximate cause of death to another.⁵

Vehicular homicide is a Class 3 felony. As with a DUI causing injury, the penalties may depend on your criminal history and history of drunk driving offenses. A conviction for DUI vehicular homicide can result in

• 4-12 years in prison and
• a fine of up to $750,000.

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