The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday upheld the $2,394 in restitution a Boulder thief owed for damaging his victim’s car as he fled, rejecting the argument that the victim’s actions actually caused the damage.
In the process, the justices also clarified defendants have to clear a high threshold when challenging a trial judge’s finding that their actions caused monetary harm to their victim.
Arnold Roman Martinez stole a bicycle from his victim’s garage and rode away, but the victim reacted quickly enough to give chase. Driving alongside Martinez, the victim turned in front of him, causing Martinez to crash the bicycle into the car. The collision caused over $2,000 in damage to the vehicle, which a Boulder County judge ordered Martinez to pay.
Colorado’s restitution law generally requires judges to consider financial compensation criminal defendants may owe their victims for injuries caused by their conduct. The state’s Court of Appeals agreed the decision by Martinez’s victim to turn in front of him to cut off his escape was a foreseeable consequence of the bike theft.