The residents of each of Colorado’s judicial districts elect a District Attorney to represent “the People” of the State of Colorado in all criminal proceedings through the trial stage of a case. Clear Creek, Eagle, Lake and Summit Counties comprise the Fifth Judicial District. The District Attorney’s Office does not handle civil matters or divorce proceedings.

You may be able to plea by mail if you live outside the four counties of the Fifth Judicial District and you are not facing jail time. For information on whether or not you are eligible to do a plea by mail and instructions on how to request a plea by mail, please visit our Plea by Mail section (top of page).

A district court handles criminal cases where there is a felony charge or where a juvenile is charged. The county court handles all misdemeanor and traffic offenses. The initial stages of a case with felony charges are also handled in county court.

Although the procedures are different in each court, generally, you will be advised of your rights by the judge and be allowed to see the Deputy District Attorney. The DDA will offer you a plea agreement. It is your decision on whether you take the plea agreement or not. If you take the plea agreement, you can plead guilty on that date and depending on the crime you can be sentenced. If you decide not to take the plea agreement, you can set the case for trial. At the first appearance in Court you also have the right to set the case over to talk to a defense attorney. Your plea agreement that is offered does not get worse if you talk to a defense attorney.

Discovery is governed by Rule 16 of the Colorado Rules of Criminal Procedure.

Prosecutor’s Obligations.

(1) The prosecuting attorney shall make available to the defense the following material and information which is within the possession or control of the prosecuting attorney, and shall provide duplicates upon request, and concerning the pending case:

(I) Police, arrest and crime or offense reports, including statements of all witnesses;

(II) With consent of the judge supervising the grand jury, all transcripts of grand jury testimony and all tangible evidence presented to the grand jury in connection with the case;

(III) Any reports or statements of experts made in connection with the particular case, including results of physical or mental examinations and of scientific tests, experiments, or comparisons;

(IV) Any books, papers, documents, photographs or tangible objects held as evidence in connection with the case;

(V) Any record of prior criminal convictions of the accused, any codefendant or any person the prosecuting attorney intends to call as a witness in the case;

(VI) All tapes and transcripts of any electronic surveillance (including wiretaps) of conversations involving the accused, any codefendant or witness in the case;

(VII) A written list of the names and addresses of the witnesses then known to the district attorney whom he or she intends to call at trial;

(VIII) Any written or recorded statements of the accused or of a codefendant, and the substance of any oral statements made to the police or prosecution by the accused or by a codefendant, if the trial is to be a joint one.

(2) The prosecuting attorney shall disclose to the defense any material or information within his or her possession or control which tends to negate the guilt of the accused as to the offense charged or would tend to reduce the punishment therefor.

(3) The prosecuting attorney’s obligations under this section

(a) extend to material and information in the possession or control of members of his or her staff and of any others who have participated in the investigation or evaluation of the case and who either regularly report, or with reference to the particular case have reported, to his or her office.

Matters not Subject to Disclosure.

(1) Work Product. Disclosure shall not be required of legal research or of records, correspondence, reports, or memoranda to the extent that they contain the opinions, theories, or conclusions of the prosecuting attorney or members of his legal staff.

(2) Informants. Disclosure shall not be required of an informant’s identity where his or her identity is a prosecution secret and a failure to disclose will not infringe the constitutional rights of the accused. Disclosure shall not be denied hereunder of the identity of witnesses to be produced at a hearing or trial.

*Note: This is a summary of Rule 16. For full text please visit www.cobar.org.

In order to request discovery, you will need to call the main number for the appropriate office and talk to the administrative contact (information below). You will have two choices on how to receive discovery pages. By mail:  You will be sent a letter with the cost of the reports. When you send your payment, they will send you the reports. In person: You can come to the appropriate District Attorney’s Office and pick up the relevant discovery.

DA Office Contacts:

Clear Creek- (303) 679-2316

Eagle- (970) 328-6947

Lake- (719) 486-4170

Summit- (970) 453-3520

Please note: If you have been assigned a public defender or have hired an attorney, discovery must be ordered and delivered via your court representation.