24-31-309. Profiling - officer identification - training - definition.

Statute text

(1) (a) The general assembly finds, determines, and declares that profiling is a practice that presents a great danger to the fundamental principles of our constitutional republic and is abhorrent and cannot be tolerated.

(b) The general assembly further finds and declares that motorists who have been stopped by peace officers for no reason other than the color of their skin or their apparent race, ethnicity, age, or gender are the victims of discriminatory practices.

(c) The general assembly further finds and declares that Colorado peace officers risk their lives every day. The people of Colorado greatly appreciate the hard work and dedication of peace officers in protecting public safety. The good name of these peace officers should not be tarnished by the actions of those who commit discriminatory practices.

(d) It is therefore the intent of the general assembly in adopting this section to provide a means of identification of peace officers who are engaging in profiling, to underscore the accountability of those peace officers for their actions, and to provide training to those peace officers on how to avoid profiling.

(2) Definitions. For purposes of this section:

(a) "Legal basis" means any basis authorized by statute or that the Colorado supreme court or United States supreme court has determined is lawful pursuant to section 7 of article II of the state constitution or the fourth amendment to the United States constitution.

(b) "Profiling" means the practice of relying solely on race, ethnicity, gender, national origin, language, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, or disability in:

(I) Determining the existence of probable cause to place in custody or arrest an individual or in constituting a reasonable and articulable suspicion that an offense has been or is being committed so as to justify the detention of an individual or the investigatory stop of a vehicle; or

(II) Determining the scope, substance, or duration of an investigation or law enforcement activity to which a person will be subjected.

(3) Profiling practices prohibited. Profiling as defined in subsection (2) of this section is prohibited; except that a peace officer may use age when making law enforcement decisions if the peace officer is investigating a juvenile status offense.

(3.5) A peace officer, as defined in section 24-31-901 (3), shall have a legal basis for making a contact, as defined in section 24-31-901 (1), whether consensual or nonconsensual, with a member of the public for purposes of enforcing the law or investigating possible violations of the law. After making a contact, a peace officer, as defined in section 24-31-901 (3), shall report to the peace officer's employing agency:

(a) The perceived demographic information of the person contacted, provided that the identification of these characteristics is based on the observation and perception of the peace officer making the contact and other available data;

(b) Whether the contact was a traffic stop;

(c) The time, date, and location of the contact;

(d) The duration of the contact;

(e) The reason for the contact;

(f) The suspected crime;

(g) The result of the contact, such as:

(I) No action, warning, citation, property seizure, or arrest;

(II) If a warning or citation was issued, the warning provided or violation cited;

(III) If an arrest was made, the offense charged;

(IV) If the contact was a traffic stop, the information collected, which is limited to the driver;

(h) The actions taken by the peace officer during the contact, including but not limited to whether:

(I) The peace officer asked for consent to search the person, vehicle, or other property, and, if so, whether consent was provided;

(II) The peace officer searched the person, a vehicle, or any property, and, if so, the basis for the search and the type of contraband or evidence discovered, if any;

(III) The peace officer seized any property, and, if so, the type of property that was seized and the basis for seizing the property;

(IV) A peace officer unholstered or brandished a weapon during the contact, and, if so, the type of weapon; and

(V) A peace officer discharged a weapon during the contact.

(4) (a) A peace officer certified pursuant to this part 3 shall provide, without being asked, the peace officer's business card to any person whom the peace officer has detained in a traffic stop but has not cited or arrested. The business card must include identifying information about the peace officer, including but not limited to the peace officer's name, division, precinct, and badge or other identification number; a telephone number that may be used, if necessary, to report any comments, positive or negative, regarding the traffic stop; and information about how to file a complaint related to the contact. The identity of the reporting person and the report of any such comments that constitute a complaint must initially be kept confidential by the receiving law enforcement agency, to the extent permitted by law. The receiving law enforcement agency shall be permitted to obtain some identifying information regarding the complaint to allow initial processing of the complaint. If it becomes necessary for the further processing of the complaint for the complainant to disclose the complainant's identity, the complainant shall do so or, at the option of the receiving law enforcement agency, the complaint may be dismissed.

(b) The provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection (4) shall not apply to authorized undercover operations conducted by any law enforcement agency.

(c) Each law enforcement agency in the state shall compile on at least an annual basis any information derived from telephone calls received due to the distribution of business cards as described in paragraph (a) of this subsection (4) and that allege profiling. The agency shall make such information available to the public but shall not include the names of peace officers or the names of persons alleging profiling in such information. The agency may also include in such information the costs to the agency of complying with the provisions of this subsection (4).

(5) The training provided for peace officers shall include an examination of the patterns, practices, and protocols that result in profiling and prescribe patterns, practices, and protocols that prevent profiling. On or before August 1, 2001, the P.O.S.T. board shall certify the curriculum for such training.

(6) No later than six months after June 5, 2001, each law enforcement agency in the state shall have written policies, procedures, and training in place that are specifically designed to address profiling. Each peace officer employed by such law enforcement agency shall receive such training. The written policies and procedures shall be made available to the public for inspection during regular business hours.

History

Source: L. 2001: Entire section added, p. 934, 2, effective June 5. L. 2016: (2) and (3) amended, (HB 16-1263), ch. 340, p. 1388, 2, effective June 10. L. 2020: (3.5) added and (4)(a) amended, (SB 20-217), ch. 110, p. 459, 16, effective June 19. L. 2021: (2), IP(3.5), (3.5)(h)(II), (3.5)(h)(IV), and (3.5)(h)(V) amended, (HB 21-1250), ch. 458, p. 3067, 16, effective July 6; IP(2) amended, (HB 21-1108), ch. 156, p. 894, 31, effective September 7.

Annotations

Editor's note: Amendments to subsection IP(2) by HB 21-1108 and HB 21-1250 were harmonized and amendments made to subsection IP(2) by HB 21-1108 were relocated to subsection IP(2)(b) on revision.

Annotations

Cross references: (1) For the legislative declaration in HB 16-1263, see section 1 of chapter 340, Session Laws of Colorado 2016.

(2) For the legislative declaration in SB 20-217, see section 1 of chapter 110, Session Laws of Colorado 2020.

Annotations

 

ANNOTATION

Annotations

Law reviews. For article, "House Bill 1114: Eliminating Biased Policing", see 31 Colo. Law. 127 (July 2002).