False Imprisonment is charged in Fort Collins and Larimer County when a person keeps another from leaving without their consent. A northern Colorado man was recently charged with this crime after holding two door to door salesmen at gunpoint. According to the report, the men were doing their job trying to sell new roofs to members of the community, traveling from neighbor to neighbor making their sales pitch. The man saw them, and called police to report that members of antifa were in his neighborhood. He put on tactical gear, grabbed his gun and went to approach the salesmen. He ordered them to the ground and they complied. When police arrived, the man was arrested and charged with multiple counts of felony Menacing and False Imprisonment.
Attorney for False Imprisonment Charges: Definition of False Imprisonment in Colorado
The Larimer County, Colorado law definition of False Imprisonment – C.R.S. 18-3-303 – is:
When the man told the men to get down on the ground and held them there until law enforcement arrived, he was detaining them without consent and with no authority to do so.
Sentence for False Imprisonment in Loveland and Estes Park
In Fort Collins, Loveland, and Estes Park, False Imprisonment is a class 2 misdemeanor. However, it can be charged as a class 5 felony if:
- The person uses force or threat of force to confine or detain the other person; and
- The person is detained for twelve hours or longer; or
- The person confines or detains another person less than eighteen years of age in a locked or barricaded room under circumstances that cause bodily injury or serious emotional distress; and The person confines or detains another person less than eighteen years of age in a locked or barricaded room under circumstances that cause bodily injury or serious emotional distress; and
- The person confines or detains another person less than eighteen years of age in a locked or barricaded room under circumstances that cause bodily injury or serious emotional distress; and
- Such confinement or detention was part of a continued pattern of cruel punishment or unreasonable isolation or confinement of the child; or
- The person confines or detains another person less than eighteen years of age by means of tying, caging, chaining, or otherwise using similar physical restraints to restrict that person’s freedom of movement under circumstances that cause bodily injury or serious emotional distress.
While, yes, it could be argued the man used force to confine the men, his actions do not meet any of the other criteria, so he would be facing the misdemeanor False Imprisonment charge.
If you or someone you love has been charged with False Imprisonment, 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 to schedule your free initial consultation. Together, we can protect your future.
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