By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice
Occasionally, there is a concept with such merit that it transcends party lines in Colorado’s General Assembly.
House Bill 25-1116 is one of those, Denver Democrat Rep. Jennifer Bacon says.
“It is such a good idea that Rep. Ryan Armagost and Jennifer Bacon would be on the same bill,” Bacon noted.
She is the assistant majority leader in the Colorado House for the Democrats. Armagost, a Republican representing Larimer and conservative Weld County, is the minority party’s whip. Together, they are the House sponsors of the bill that would help Department of Corrections inmates have a more successful reintegration into society.
“When an inmate is getting released, they are notified [of release] just prior to their release,” Armagost said, explaining the Department of Corrections process.
It is then, and only then, that an inmate learns they may have warrants that occurred during their incarceration, but not with enough time to address them before release. The bill, initiated by a sheriff with Armagost, would seek to have specific timelines during an inmate’s incarceration when warrant checks are performed and inmates are notified.
The bill received a favorable 11-0 vote Tuesday to clear the House Judiciary Committee and advance to appropriations.
It easily got Bacon’s support, she said, for reasons of helping inmates re-enter society and for its common sense solutions.
“If you know where someone is going to be for a period of time, maybe that might be a good time to have them handle some of these issues,” Bacon said. “The bill doesn’t say you are guilty or [not guilty] of anything. The bill says let’s figure it out while you are here.”
Then, Armagost says, a person who has successfully served their time for Department of Corrections doesn’t “throw up their hands” and find themself right back in the criminal justice system.
Crowley County Sheriff Terry Reeves additionally spoke in support of the bill.
“Very commonly, these people have no Earthly idea about the warrant or where it came from,” he said.
A warrant check would be performed three to six months before an inmate’s release, the bill reads, and at other points during incarceration.
“They will have more opportunity to handle the court case,” Armagost said, noting the post-COVID opportunities for remote court attendance. “It not only benefits the sheriffs and the offenders, but also our society and taxpayers.”
The bill would require an expenditure of $76,000 in the first fiscal year, something it was noted in committee might be addressed by legislators. The bill is sponsored in the Senate by Republican Sen. Rod Pelton of Cheyenne Wells.