Create, implement, and fund a process that will permit the automatic sealing of criminal conviction records for drug offenses. The State Court Administrator's Office (SCAO), the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI), and each district attorney's office will implement procedures to evaluate cases that qualify for automatic sealing and will automatically seal eligible cases without associated fees, a Motion or a Petition to Seal being filed by the defendant.

 

[See the "Recommendation Text" for a description of the recommended automatic sealing process.]

 

[Statute may require revision to accommodate this automatic sealing process; however, no proposed statutory language was prepared for this recommendation.]

Fund public health interventions that strengthen community resources and expand alternatives to filing criminal charges against adults and youth with substance use issues who are at risk of justice involvement. By aspiring to a public health approach — which redirects adults and youth with substance abuse issues engaging in behaviors that can lead to incurring criminal charges from the justice system entirely — this recommendation shifts priorities in funding upstream, supporting the still inadequate system for care coordination and treatment. Recognizing that funding diversion programs that are post-arrest continues to inadvertently reinforce the justice system as the point of intervention for many adults and youth with substance use disorder treatment needs, notwithstanding potential for co-occurring mental health needs, true alternatives are still needed to avoid the justice system operating as a healthcare system of intervention and care.

 

To facilitate this approach, implement the following:

- Priority #1: Provide funding and improve access to coordinated treatment provider and care coordination systems so that adults, youth and families can access services, interventions, supports, and treatment modalities within their community, leading to a decrease in call volume for first responders and reliance on the justice system as a point of intervention and to improved community wellness.

- Priority #2: Continue to improve training and to enhance service provider collaboration with law enforcement including but not limited to expanding co-responder and law enforcement diversion programs and deflection models that also include the critical component of care coordination, treatment when and where necessary and community engagement. Without community supported and appropriately funded alternative case management and treatment options, first responders will continue to be left without options that match the complexity of needed care.  

- Priority #3: Continue to increase post-arrest diversion opportunities to create multiple "off-ramps" from criminal and juvenile justice system entanglement and prioritize programs using a harm-reduction approach to address the underlying needs of individuals, the community, and victims.