False Imprisonment is charged in Fort Collins and Larimer County when a person is accused of detaining someone without their consent. A school superintendent was recently charged with this crime after multiple students reported being confined in a small bathroom and strip searched. According to the report, the superintendent and nurse ordered the students into bathroom (without their consent) and would not allow them to leave until the strip search was complete. The students were told to get undressed down to their underwear because they were accused of having a vaping device. While no charges were filed related to requiring the students to take their clothes off, the superintendent is facing 6 charges for False Imprisonment.
Larimer County False Imprisonment Lawyer: Definition of False Imprisonment in Colorado
The Larimer County, Colorado law definition of False Imprisonment – C.R.S. 18-3-303 – is:
Based on the information provided in the article, law enforcement deemed the students did not give consent to be detained and the superintendent did not have authority to call and hold them in the bathroom.
Sentence for Superintendent False Imprisonment in Loveland and Estes Park
In Fort Collins, Loveland and Estes Park, False Imprisonment can be a misdemeanor or felony depending on the circumstances. False Imprisonment is a class 2 misdemeanor unless the following aggravators are present:
(I) The person uses force or threat of force to confine or detain the other person; and
(II) The person confines or detains the other person for twelve hours or longer; or
(b)
(I) 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
(II) Such confinement or detention was part of a continued pattern of cruel punishment or unreasonable isolation or confinement of the child; or
(c) 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.
If the aggravating circumstances apply, then False Imprisonment is a class 5 felony. It’s likely the superintendent would be facing the misdemeanor False Imprisonment charges.
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 a free initial consultation. Together, we can protect your future.
Photo by Jonathan Petersson