Coloradans have the right to safe, humane and lawful jail facilities, regardless of where they’re held. However, the state law requiring jails in Colorado to meet those basic standards doesn’t apply to all the jail facilities in our state including the jail located in my home city of Aurora. That’s why I’m sponsoring HB26-1039, which requires municipal jails to follow the same standards as their county jail counterparts.
I’ve spent my legal career in Colorado’s jails, defending the accused and fighting for their constitutional rights. For years, when I visited loved ones back home, those visits were to a local jail. I have witnessed the unlawful conditions our fellow Coloradans are often subjected to when they are held inside those jail walls, and I’ve seen the effects of the state’s decision certain people shouldn’t have the protection of common decency. Many people who are detained are faced with roadblocks when trying to reach their counsel, and many are cut off from accessing health care.
Prior to 2022, Colorado’s county jails operated under a largely independent patchwork of standards. To increase equitable treatment throughout the county system, Gov. Jared Polis signed HB22-1063 into law, which established a statewide Jail Standards Commission to issue uniform guidelines for the safe and just operation of county jails. The bill, however, did not include municipal-level jails…