Driving Under the Influence Attorney in Fort Collins
DUI Stop Turns into Assault on a Cop Car

A woman was charged with Driving Under the Influence after a rollover crash, resisting arrest and then biting a cop car. Read more here.

Driving Under the Influence (DUI) is charged in Fort Collins and Larimer County when a person operates a vehicle while impaired by drugs or alcohol. A woman is facing this charge, along with some others, after she ended up in her car sideways in a drainage ditch. According to the report, the woman’s driving had been reported after she backed into a pole and parking stakes at a bar. When police caught up to her, she had been in a rollover crash and was in the drainage ditch. She was removed from the car and officers noted signs of impairment. She then became combative and kicked one of the officers. Her culminating act was kicking and biting (yes, biting) the police cruiser. Needless to say, the Assault on a Peace Officer charge is now the top charge in her case, a felony in Colorado, but she’s still facing the DUI charge as well.

Larimer County Driving Under the Influence Lawyer: Definition of DUI in Colorado

The Larimer County, Colorado law definition of Driving Under the Influence – C.R.S. 42-4-1301 – is:

(1) (a) A person who drives a motor vehicle or vehicle under the influence of alcohol or one or more drugs, or a combination of both alcohol and one or more drugs, commits driving under the influence. Driving under the influence is a misdemeanor, but it is a class 4 felony if the violation occurred after three or more prior convictions, arising out of separate and distinct criminal episodes, for DUI, DUI per se, or DWAI; vehicular homicide, as described in section 18-3-106 (1)(b), C.R.S.; vehicular assault, as described in section 18-3-205 (1)(b), C.R.S.; or any combination thereof.
Driving under the influence means driving a motor vehicle or vehicle when a person has consumed alcohol or one or more drugs, or a combination of alcohol and one or more drugs, that affects the person to a degree that the person is substantially incapable, either mentally or physically, or both mentally and physically, to exercise clear judgment, sufficient physical control, or due care in the safe operation of a vehicle.

Legislators have decided that a BAC of .08 or higher means the person is substantially incapable of operating a motor vehicle.

Sentence for Driving Under the Influence in Loveland and Estes Park

In Fort Collins, Loveland, and Estes Park the sentence for a Driving Under the Influence is dependent on the number of DUI or DWAI offenses on the person’s record. For a first offense, the accused faces 5 days to 1 year in Larimer County Jail. If the person has multiple offenses on their record, then the amount of incarceration goes up and can even be filed as a felony.


If you or someone you love has been charged with Driving Under the Influence or DUI, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the best criminal defense attorneys from the O’Malley Law Office at 970-658-0007 for a free initial consultation. Together, we can protect your future.

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