2016 Colorado Revised Statutes
Title 16 - Criminal Proceedings
Code of Criminal Procedure
Article 8.5 - Competency to Proceed
§ 16-8.5-112. Venue for collateral hearings

(1) If a defendant committed to the custody of the department for evaluation or for restoration treatment meets the constitutional requirements for the administration of involuntary medication, the defendant's treating physician may petition the court for an order requiring that the defendant accept the treatment or, alternatively, that the medication be forcibly administered to the defendant. The department shall, prior to the hearing on the petition, deliver a copy of the petition to the court that committed the defendant to the custody of the department, the prosecuting attorney, and the defendant's legal representation in the criminal case, if such representation exists, and to the defendant directly if he or she does not have legal representation. A physician shall assess and document the defendant's mental status prior to the administration of medication.

(2) A petition for involuntary treatment shall be heard in the court of the jurisdiction where the defendant is located. The department shall promptly deliver a copy of the order granting or denying the petition to the court that committed the defendant to the custody of the department, the prosecuting attorney, and the defendant's legal representation in the criminal case, if such representation exists, and to the defendant directly if he or she does not have legal representation.

(3) If the committing court elects to transfer venue for medication hearings to the court of the jurisdiction in which the defendant is located, the committing county shall reimburse the county in which the proceeding is heard for the reasonable costs incurred in conducting the proceeding. Alternatively, the district attorney for the committing county, or in any county or any city and county having a population exceeding fifty thousand persons the county attorney for the committing county, may prosecute the proceeding as the proponent of the physician's petition.

(4) If a defendant committed to the custody of the department for evaluation or for restoration treatment is ordered by a court to accept treatment as set forth in subsection (1) of this section and is subsequently returned to jail for pending court proceedings, the county jail may require the defendant to continue to receive the same court-ordered treatment that was administered by the department before the defendant was discharged from inpatient care, or, alternatively, appropriate medical personnel provided by the jail may forcibly administer such court-ordered medication to the defendant.