Colorado statute
C.R.S. § 18-4-401 — Theft.
Current through 2025 Regular Session
Part of Part 4: THEFT, Colorado Revised Statutes.
Criminal charges under this statute
Full text of C.R.S. § 18-4-401
Statutory text current through the 2025 Regular Session. This is an officially sanctioned publication using the official text of the Colorado Revised Statutes; it is not the official statutes of the State of Colorado.
(1) A person commits theft when he or she knowingly obtains, retains, or exercises control over anything of value of another without authorization or by threat or deception; receives, loans money by pawn or pledge on, or disposes of anything of value or belonging to another that he or she knows or believes to have been stolen, and: (a) Intends to deprive the other person permanently of the use or benefit of the thing of value; (b) Knowingly uses, conceals, or abandons the thing of value in such manner as to deprive the other person permanently of its use or benefit; (c) Uses, conceals, or abandons the thing of value intending that such use, concealment, or abandonment will deprive the other person permanently of its use or benefit; (d) Demands any consideration to which he or she is not legally entitled as a condition of restoring the thing of value to the other person; (e) Knowingly retains the thing of value more than seventy-two hours after the agreed-upon time of return in any lease or hire agreement; or (f) Intentionally misrepresents or withholds a material fact for determining eligibility for a public benefit and does so for the purpose of obtaining or retaining public benefits for which the person is not eligible. (1.5) For the purposes of this section, a thing of value is that of "another" if anyone other than the defendant has a possessory or proprietary interest therein. (2) Except as provided in subsection (2.3) of this section, theft is: (a) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2007, p. 1690, § 3, effective July 1, 2007.) (b) A petty offense if the value of the thing involved is less than three hundred dollars; (b.5) Repealed. (c) A class 2 misdemeanor if the value of the thing involved is three hundred dollars or more but less than one thousand dollars; (d) Repealed. (e) A class 1 misdemeanor if the value of the thing involved is one thousand dollars or more but less than two thousand dollars; (f) A class 6 felony if the value of the thing involved is two thousand dollars or more but less than five thousand dollars; (g) A class 5 felony if the value of the thing involved is five thousand dollars or more but less than twenty thousand dollars; (h) A class 4 felony if the value of the thing involved is twenty thousand dollars or more but less than one hundred thousand dollars; (i) A class 3 felony if the value of the thing involved is one hundred thousand dollars or more but less than one million dollars; and (j) A class 2 felony if the value of the thing involved is one million dollars or more. (2.3) Theft in violation of subsection (1) of this section of a firearm, as defined in section 18-12-101, is a class 6 felony, regardless of the value of the firearm. (3) and (3.1) Repealed. (4) (a) When a person commits theft twice or more within a period of six months, two or more of the thefts may be aggregated and charged in a single count, in which event the thefts so aggregated and charged shall constitute a single offense, the penalty for which shall be based on the aggregate value of the things involved, pursuant to subsection (2) of this section. (b) When a person commits theft twice or more against the same person pursuant to one scheme or course of conduct, the thefts may be aggregated and charged in a single count, in which event they shall constitute a single offense, the penalty for which shall be based on the aggregate value of the things involved, pursuant to subsection (2) of this section. (5) Theft from the person of another by means other than the use of force, threat, or intimidation is a class 5 felony without regard to the value of the thing taken. (6) In every indictment or information charging a violation of this section, it shall be sufficient to allege that, on or about a day certain, the defendant committed the crime of theft by unlawfully taking a thing or things of value of a person or persons named in the indictment or information. The prosecuting attorney shall at the request of the defendant provide a bill of particulars. (7) Repealed. (8) A municipality shall have concurrent power to prohibit theft, by ordinance, where the value of the thing involved is less than one thousand dollars. (9) (a) If a person is convicted of or pleads guilty or nolo contendere to theft by deception and the underlying factual basis of the case involves the mortgage lending process, a minimum fine of the amount of pecuniary harm resulting from the theft shall be mandatory, in addition to any other penalty the court may impose. (b) A court shall not accept a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to another offense from a person charged with a violation of this section that involves the mortgage lending process unless the plea agreement contains an order of restitution in accordance with part 6 of article 1.3 of this title that compensates the victim for any costs to the victim caused by the offense. (c) The district attorneys and the attorney general have concurrent jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute a violation of this section that involves making false statements or filing or facilitating the use of a document known to contain a false statement or material omission relied upon by another person in the mortgage lending process. (d) Documents involved in the mortgage lending process include, but are not limited to, uniform residential loan applications or other loan applications; appraisal reports; HUD-1 settlement statements; supporting personal documentation for loan applications such as W-2 forms, verifications of income and employment, bank statements, tax returns, and payroll stubs; and any required disclosures. (e) For the purposes of this subsection (9): (I) "Mortgage lending process" means the process through which a person seeks or obtains a residential mortgage loan, including, without limitation, solicitation, application, or origination; negotiation of terms; third-party provider services; underwriting; signing and closing; funding of the loan; and perfecting and releasing the mortgage. (II) "Residential mortgage loan" means a loan or agreement to extend credit, made to a person and secured by a mortgage or lien on residential real property, including, but not limited to, the refinancing or renewal of a loan secured by residential real property. (III) "Residential real property" means real property used as a residence and containing no more than four families housed separately. (10) Upon a conviction for theft as described in subsection (1)(e) of this section, the court shall consider as part of any restitution ordered the loss of revenue proximately resulting from the failure of the defendant to timely return the property involved. (11) (a) If the item of value involved is a public benefit, then for purposes of determining the offense level for subsection (2) of this section, the value is the difference between the value of the public benefit received and the value of the public benefit for which the recipient was eligible. (b) As used in this subsection (11), "public benefits" means services or aid, or both, including food, cash, and medical assistance, provided through an appropriation of federal, state, or local government money to individuals or households that, because of their economic circumstances or social condition, are in need of and may benefit from such services or aid. (12) A person's conduct that is limited to the elements of subsection (1)(f) of this section is not subject to prosecution pursuant to any other provision of this section.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
Questions this section answers
Is theft a felony or a misdemeanor in Colorado?
It depends on the circumstances: theft ranges from a petty offense to a class 2 felony in Colorado under C.R.S. § 18-4-401.
Theft (<$300): petty offense (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(b)) · Theft ($300–$1,000): class 2 misdemeanor (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(c)) · Theft ($1,000–$2,000): class 1 misdemeanor (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(e)) · Theft ($2,000–$5,000): class 6 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(f)) · Theft ($5,000–$20,000): class 5 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(g)) · Theft ($20,000–$100,000): class 4 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(h)) · Theft ($100,000–$1,000,000): class 3 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(i)) · Theft ($1,000,000 or more): class 2 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2)(j)) · Theft of a firearm: class 6 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(2.3)) · Theft from the person: class 5 felony (C.R.S. § 18-4-401(5))
Which Colorado statute covers theft?
Theft is governed by C.R.S. § 18-4-401 (Theft).
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.