SB 72: Increased Penalty for Vehicular Homicide & Assault - Colorado

Final Act → Signed Act · 4 edits · May 30, 2026

MODERATE

This bill amends Colorado statutes to increase criminal penalties for deaths caused by driving with criminal negligence and clarifies license revocation rules for such offenses. It also updates definitions and penalties related to mobile electronic device use and involuntary blood tests in DUI cases. The changes ensure that causing death while driving negligently is treated more severely and that license revocations and evidence collection apply consistently across related charges.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of criminally negligent homicide to explicitly include causing death while operating a motor vehicle with criminal negligence, and it broadens the application of license revocation and blood test provisions to cover these specific vehicular offenses.

REQUIREMENT

Amended the definition of criminally negligent homicide to explicitly include causing death while operating or driving a motor vehicle with criminal negligence.

ENFORCEMENT

Updated license revocation rules to ensure they apply to drivers convicted of criminally negligent homicide while operating a motor vehicle.

Revised provisions regarding involuntary blood tests to include criminally negligent homicide and related vehicular offenses as prosecutable charges.

DEFINITION

Adjusted definitions and penalty classifications for habitual offenders and mobile electronic device use to align with updated vehicular homicide standards.

Rerevised → Final Act · 4 edits · May 20, 2026

MODERATE

This bill amends Colorado laws to increase penalties for causing death while operating a motor vehicle with criminal negligence, specifically adding this conduct to the crime of criminally negligent homicide. It also expands license revocation rules and allows for involuntary blood tests in these specific cases. The changes aim to strengthen accountability for dangerous driving that results in fatalities.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of criminally negligent homicide to explicitly include causing death while operating a motor vehicle with criminal negligence, and extends license revocation and blood test provisions to cover this new scenario.

DEFINITION

Added a specific provision stating that causing the death of another person by operating a motor vehicle with criminal negligence constitutes criminally negligent homicide.

ENFORCEMENT

Modified license revocation rules to include convictions for criminally negligent homicide while operating a motor vehicle as a ground for immediate license revocation.

Added authority for law enforcement to physically restrain a person and require a blood test if they refuse testing while facing charges of criminally negligent homicide while operating a motor vehicle.

REQUIREMENT

Modified the penalty for using a mobile electronic device while driving causing death, changing it from a class 1 misdemeanor to a class 5 felony (criminally negligent homicide).

Revised → Rerevised · 3 edits · May 13, 2026

MINOR

The bill was re-revised to include additional House sponsors and updated the legislative status to reflect all amendments adopted in the Second House. Substantive policy changes include expanding the list of House sponsors and modifying the legal text to clarify that evidence from involuntary blood tests is admissible in prosecutions for vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and other specified offenses resulting from driving under the influence.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding criminal liability remains focused on DUI-related offenses, but the specific list of prosecutable offenses involving involuntary blood test evidence was expanded to include vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, manslaughter, and criminally negligent homicide.

ELIGIBILITY

Added Boesenecker, Duran, Gonzalez R., Lieder, McCluskie, Paschal, Richardson, and Soper to the list of House sponsors.

ENFORCEMENT

Updated the text to explicitly state that evidence from involuntary blood tests is admissible in prosecutions for vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, manslaughter, and criminally negligent homicide, in addition to standard DUI charges.

TECHNICAL

Changed the document header from 'REVISED' to 'REREVISED' and updated the amendment status description.

Reengrossed → Revised · 3 edits · May 12, 2026

MINOR

The bill title and header were updated from 'Reengrossed' to 'Revised' to reflect that amendments were adopted during the second reading in the second house rather than the house of introduction. The list of Senate sponsors was shortened, while the House sponsorship list was expanded to include a new co-sponsor. The document now includes a '2nd Reading Unamended' date stamp from May 12, 2026, indicating the bill's legislative status. These are primarily procedural and formatting changes rather than substantive policy shifts.

TECHNICAL

The bill status header was changed from 'Reengrossed' to 'Revised' to accurately reflect the legislative stage where amendments were adopted on second reading in the second house.

The Senate sponsorship list was reduced, removing several co-sponsors, while the House sponsorship list was updated to add a new co-sponsor.

A date stamp indicating '2nd Reading Unamended' on May 12, 2026, was inserted into the text.

Engrossed → Reengrossed · 4 edits · Apr 10, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was reengrossed to include additional co-sponsors and updated the bill summary to reflect that it has passed third reading in the House of Introduction. The substantive text regarding criminal negligence and DUI penalties remains unchanged in this specific diff, though the summary indicates the bill now applies to prosecutions for criminally negligent homicide and vehicular homicide.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on penalties for criminally negligent homicide and related offenses while operating a motor vehicle, but the procedural status has advanced to include all amendments adopted in the House of Introduction.

TECHNICAL

Added three new co-sponsors to the Senate sponsorship list (Coleman, Frizell, Kirkmeyer, Marchman, Mullica, Pelton B., Roberts, Simpson).

Changed the bill status header from 'ENGROSSED' to 'REENGROSSED' and updated the summary note to indicate amendments were adopted in the House of Introduction.

Removed a blank line between the list of offenses and the beginning of Section 7.

TIMELINE

Added a date stamp of April 10, 2026, and a '3rd Reading Unamended' label to the bill summary.

Introduced → Engrossed · 4 edits · Apr 9, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was reclassified from 'Introduced' to 'Engrossed' after passing the House, incorporating amendments that expand criminal liability and license revocation rules. The changes add 'criminally negligent homicide' to the list of crimes that trigger mandatory license revocation and include it as a crime of violence, while also updating definitions related to habitual offenders and DUI penalties.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include 'criminally negligent homicide' alongside 'vehicular homicide' and 'vehicular assault' as offenses that trigger mandatory license revocation and are classified as crimes of violence.

ELIGIBILITY

Added 'criminally negligent homicide' to the list of offenses requiring immediate driver's license revocation.

DEFINITION

Updated the definition of 'crime of violence' to include vehicular homicide and criminally negligent homicide.

REQUIREMENT

Amended statutes regarding habitual offenders to include vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, manslaughter, and criminally negligent homicide resulting from vehicle operation.

ENFORCEMENT

Expanded the list of offenses for which evidence from involuntary blood tests is admissible in court to include criminally negligent homicide.

Increased Penalty for Vehicular Homicide & Assault

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