How easy is it to get charged with Menacing (C.R.S. 18-3-206) in Jefferson County? According to Denverpost.com, if you were mowing your lawn in early October near Firefighters Park, you could be the guy Arvada Police are looking for. A woman claimed a man that looked like a “slow large gorilla” was watching her and started to push his lawn mower toward her. She ran and called the police. Apparently, the slow gorilla is still at large.
The Colorado Menacing statue has very few elements, and if someone claims they were frightened by you in Denver or Arapahoe County, you might find yourself under arrest. The statute reads: “A person commits the crime of Menacing if, by any threat or physical action, he or she knowingly places or attempts to place another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury.” For the most part, police do not consider whether a suspect knows he or she is trying to scare someone. It is usually enough for police in Westminster or Aurora to make an arrest if the “alleged victim” claims they were frightened. If you shake your fist at a person, and someone says they were in fear of serious injury and call the police, you may be arrested.
There are two types of Menacing. The Misdemeanor version is charged when there is no deadly weapon involved. However, if there is a weapon, even if the weapon is just something that looks like a deadly weapon, or even if the defendant just tells someone he has a deadly weapon, then it is charged as a class 5 felony – C.R.S. 18-3-206(1)(a) and (b).
Felony Menacing cases come into our office when good people, who have every right to either “open carry” or have a concealed weapon (CW) permit, come into contact with timid people that do not understand or like gun laws. When these people who feed on drama see a weapon on a person, they over react. I was in a restaurant with an Arapahoe County detective once when another patron saw a firearm under my friend’s jacket. I wonder what would have happened if my friend would not have been able to produce his badge after the woman began to say in a loud voice, “he’s got a gun!”
It is very easy to be accused of Menacing in Douglas, or Weld County, or anywhere in Colorado. If you are arrested, remain calm and do not argue with anyone in law enforcement. You should be cooperative without making any statements. Be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and call us at 303-731-0719. Together we can protect your future.