Aggravated robbery in Colorado

What the charge means

Aggravated robbery starts with the elements of robbery: knowingly taking anything of value from the person or presence of another by force, threats, or intimidation. Prosecutors must then prove that during the robbery, or in immediate flight from it, at least one aggravating fact was present:

• The person was armed with a deadly weapon and intended, if resisted, to kill, maim, or wound;
• The person wounded or struck someone with a deadly weapon, or used the weapon with force, threats, or intimidation to put someone in reasonable fear of death or injury;
• An accomplice present was armed with a deadly weapon; or
• The person possessed an object made or used to look like a deadly weapon, or said or suggested in any way that they were armed.

That last point surprises many people. A hand in a jacket pocket, a note claiming a gun, or a toy pistol can support an aggravated robbery charge even though no real weapon existed. Common scenarios include store and bank robberies, street robberies where a weapon is displayed or claimed, and drug deals or private disputes that turn into an armed taking. Identification, what was actually said or shown, and whether a taking by force really occurred are frequent battlegrounds.

Classification and sentencing

Aggravated robbery is a class 3 felony. It is also an extraordinary risk crime, which raises the top of the presumptive range. Under C.R.S. 18-1.3-401, the presumptive prison range is 4 to 12 years, and the extraordinary risk label extends the maximum to 16 years.

In most cases the charge also carries crime of violence sentencing under C.R.S. 18-1.3-406. When that rule applies, the court must impose a prison sentence of at least the midpoint of the range and may go up to twice the maximum. For aggravated robbery that works out to 10 to 32 years in the Department of Corrections, followed by mandatory parole. Fines can reach $750,000.

The if-prison-is-ordered caveat that softens many felony charges usually does not apply here: when crime of violence sentencing attaches, probation is off the table and prison is mandatory. That is exactly why the early defense work matters. Whether the crime of violence allegation holds, and whether the case can be resolved as simple robbery or another lesser charge, often decides whether mandatory prison is in play at all.

What else it touches

The consequences reach past the prison sentence:

• Firearms. A felony conviction permanently bars firearm possession under Colorado and federal law.
• Immigration. Aggravated robbery is generally an aggravated felony for immigration purposes, which for a noncitizen can mean mandatory detention, removal, and permanent inadmissibility.
• Record sealing. A dismissal or acquittal can generally be sealed. An aggravated robbery conviction is generally not eligible for sealing because of its crime of violence status.
• Everything else. Housing, employment, and professional licensing checks treat a violent felony conviction as one of the most serious marks a record can carry.

We defend aggravated robbery cases, and a free consultation is the place to get answers about a specific situation. Calls and emails are returned the same business day.