Colorado Criminal Lawyer Blog
Colorado Automatic Record Sealing: What the Clean Slate Laws Mean for You in 2026
Colorado Criminal Defense | Record Sealing
Colorado Automatic Record Sealing: What the Clean Slate Laws Mean for You in 2026
Who qualifies, how long the wait is, how the process really works, and what sealing does (and does not) do under SB 22-99 and HB 24-1133.
What Happens After an Arrest in Colorado? Misdemeanor vs. Felony Timeline
Introduction
An arrest is the moment most people remember, but it is only the first page of a much longer story. The handcuffs, the booking photo and the night in a holding cell are over quickly. What follows can stretch across days, weeks and months, and the path it takes depends heavily on one question: is the charge a misdemeanor or a felony?
I have practiced criminal defense in Colorado for more than forty years, and the same scene repeats itself in my office. A frightened client, or more often a frightened parent or spouse, sits down and asks the same questions.
What Happens If You Violate a Colorado Criminal Protection Order?
Introduction
It usually starts small: a text that says “I just want to explain,” a wave across a parking lot, a message passed along through a mutual friend. Under Colorado law, any of these can be treated as a violation of a protection order, and the consequences can arrive faster than the case that produced the order.
A violation of a Colorado criminal protection order can lead to arrest, a new criminal charge, possible jail and fines, contempt of court, and serious consequences in the underlying criminal case.
Second Look Sentencing Will a Colorado Judge Reconsider My Sentence? Crim. P. 35(b)
By H. Michael Steinberg, A Colorado Criminal Defense Lawyer – Practicing Colorado Criminal Law in the courts of Colorado for over 40 years.
Introduction:
A sentence feels final the moment a judge announces it. In Colorado, it is not always. Colorado Rule of Criminal Procedure 35(b) gives the sentencing judge a narrow window to take a second look and reduce a sentence they have already imposed.
Can Police Recover Your Deleted Text Messages?
By H. Michael Steinberg, A Colorado Criminal Defense Lawyer – Practicing Colorado Criminal Law in the courts of Colorado for over 40 years.
Introduction
People delete texts for normal reasons all the time. Clearing space. Cleaning up a messy thread. Panic deleting after an argument. Switching phones. Or just… not wanting old stuff sitting there forever.
What Happens If You Violate a Colorado Criminal Protection Order- In Depth
Introduction
The Ten Biggest Mistakes People Make After Learning They Are Under Criminal Investigation
Introduction
The call usually comes without warning. A detective leaves a voicemail asking you to “come in and clear a few things up.” Officers knock at 6 a.m. with a search warrant. A relative mentions that police have been asking questions about you. Or you simply learn — from a text, a subpoena, an employer, a former friend — that someone has made an accusation.
In that moment, most people do what feels natural: they try to fix it. They explain, apologize, reach out, delete, post, or wait and hope. Nearly every one of those instincts is understandable. Many of them are also the precise moves that turn a defensible situation into a difficult one — and sometimes into a second, separate crime.
I have nothing to hide – Part 2 of 2 – Why You DO NOT Want To Talk To The Police
By H. Michael Steinberg, A Colorado Criminal Defense Lawyer
Introduction
In part 1 of this article, we did a kind of surface review of this difficult and complex area.
“I have nothing to hide “- Part 1 of 2 – Why You DO NOT Want To Talk To The Police
“I have nothing to hide” is the most natural sentence in the world — and one of the riskiest.