Colorado Springs Harassment Lawyer
COLORADO SPRINGS HARASSMENT DEFENSE ATTORNEY
On This Page
- Charged With Harassment in Colorado Springs?
- What Counts as Harassment Under Colorado Law
- Harassment Penalties
- Texts, Calls, and Social Media
- Harassment as a Domestic Violence Charge
- Civil Protection Orders Based on Harassment
- Harassment Compared With Related Charges
- Stalking Charges
- How a Harassment Case Moves Through Court
- How Harassment Charges Are Defended
- Consequences Beyond the Sentence
- Working With a Colorado Springs Harassment Lawyer
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Sources
Charged With Harassment in Colorado Springs?
Harassment is one of the most frequently filed charges in Colorado, and one of the broadest. It can be based on a shove during an argument, a string of angry text messages, repeated phone calls, or following someone in a parking lot. Many harassment cases come out of breakups, family conflicts, neighbor disputes, and workplace tension.
The charge is usually a misdemeanor, but it often carries more weight than people expect. Harassment between current or former partners is charged as domestic violence, which brings mandatory arrest, a protection order, and firearm consequences.
This page explains what counts as harassment under Colorado law, the penalties, how electronic communications are treated, and how harassment charges are defended in El Paso County and the surrounding counties.
What to Do After a Harassment Charge
- Stop all contact with the alleged victim, including texts, social media, and messages through friends. A protection order is almost always in place.
- Do not delete messages. Your full message history may show context the other side left out, and deleting it can create new problems.
- Do not post about the case or the other person online.
- Do not explain your side to police without a lawyer.
- Write down the history of the relationship and the dispute for your lawyer only.
What Counts as Harassment Under Colorado Law
Under C.R.S. 18-9-111, a person commits harassment if, with intent to harass, annoy, or alarm another person, the person does any of the following:
- Strikes, shoves, kicks, or otherwise touches a person or subjects them to physical contact
- In a public place, directs obscene language or makes an obscene gesture at another person
- Follows a person in or about a public place
- Initiates communication by phone, text, email, social media, or another electronic medium in a manner intended to harass or threaten bodily injury or property damage, or makes obscene comments or requests through those channels
- Makes a phone call or causes a phone to ring repeatedly with no purpose of legitimate conversation
- Makes repeated communications at inconvenient hours that invade another person's privacy and interfere with the use and enjoyment of their home
- Repeatedly insults, taunts, challenges, or uses offensively coarse language toward someone in a manner likely to provoke a violent or disorderly response
- Wrongfully interferes with a transit worker performing a lawful duty, a category added in 2025
Intent Is Required
Every form of harassment requires intent to harass, annoy, or alarm. An accidental bump, a heated but legitimate conversation, or a message sent for a real purpose, such as arranging child exchanges, does not meet that standard. Intent is often the central issue in a harassment case.
The First Amendment
Colorado courts have narrowed parts of the harassment statute over the years because of free speech concerns. Speech that is offensive or upsetting is not automatically criminal. Whether particular words are protected depends on what was said, how, and in what context.
Harassment Penalties
For offenses committed on or after March 1, 2022, the penalty depends on the type of harassment:
| Conduct | Charge | Possible Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Obscene language or gestures in public | Petty offense | Up to 10 days in jail and a fine of up to $300 |
| Harassing electronic communications, repeated calls, late-night communications, repeated taunts | Class 2 misdemeanor | Up to 120 days in jail and a fine of up to $750 |
| Harassment motivated by race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or transgender identity | Class 1 misdemeanor | Up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000 |
The statute's penalty section was amended in 2024 and 2025. As currently written, physical contact, following, and interfering with a transit worker are listed in the class 1 misdemeanor subsection, though many practitioners read that subsection as applying only when the conduct is bias-motivated. The charging document shows which level the prosecutor is alleging, and that classification can be challenged.
The sentencing ranges come from C.R.S. 18-1.3-501 and C.R.S. 18-1.3-503.
These are maximums. First-time harassment cases are often resolved with probation, classes, a deferred judgment, or a reduced charge.
Texts, Calls, and Social Media
A large share of harassment cases today are built on electronic communications. Prosecutors use screenshots, phone records, and social media posts, and a single message can be enough to file a charge if it threatens bodily injury or property damage.
Several points matter in these cases:
- Location. Under the statute, harassing electronic communications can be prosecuted where the message was sent or where it was received. A message sent from another state to someone in Colorado Springs can be charged here.
- Anonymous accounts. The statute covers messages sent anonymously. The prosecution still has to prove who sent them, which can require account records, IP data, and device evidence.
- Context. Screenshots often show only one side of a conversation. The full thread may show a mutual argument, a legitimate purpose, or messages initiated by the other person.
- Volume and timing. Charges based on repeated calls or late-night messages depend on the number and timing of the communications, which phone records can confirm or contradict.
Harassment as a Domestic Violence Charge
When harassment involves a current or former spouse, dating partner, or someone with whom the accused shares a child, it is charged with a domestic violence designation. That changes the case significantly:
- Police must make an arrest when they have probable cause.
- A mandatory protection order is issued at the first appearance, usually barring contact with the alleged victim.
- A conviction requires a domestic violence evaluation and treatment.
- A domestic violence conviction can trigger a federal firearm ban.
- Prior domestic violence convictions can lead to habitual domestic violence offender charges, which are felonies.
See our domestic violence page for more about how these cases work.
Civil Protection Orders Based on Harassment
A harassment allegation can lead to two separate cases. The criminal case is brought by the prosecutor, and the alleged victim can also ask a civil court for a protection order. The two cases move on different timelines and use different standards of proof.
A temporary civil protection order can be issued the same day the petition is filed, often without notice to the person restrained. A permanent order hearing usually follows within about two weeks, and the judge decides by a preponderance of the evidence, a lower standard than in a criminal trial.
Testimony given at a protection order hearing can be used in the criminal case. Deciding whether to testify, what evidence to present, and whether to ask for a continuance should be done with the criminal case in mind. See our protection order page for how these hearings work.
Harassment allegations also come up in family court. In a divorce or custody case, a harassment charge or a protection order can affect parenting time, temporary orders, and the use of the family home.
Harassment Compared With Related Charges
| Charge | Key Difference |
|---|---|
| Third-degree assault | Requires bodily injury. Harassment by physical contact does not. |
| Menacing | Requires placing someone in fear of imminent serious bodily injury. |
| Stalking | Involves a pattern of conduct, such as repeated following or communication, that causes serious emotional distress or fear. Stalking is a felony. |
| Violation of a protection order | Any prohibited contact with a protected person, even if it would not otherwise be harassment. |
| Disorderly conduct | Covers public conduct such as fighting or unreasonable noise, without the intent to harass a specific person. |
Prosecutors often file harassment alongside one of these charges. A common resolution is a plea to harassment in exchange for dismissal of a more serious count, so understanding the full picture matters before any decision is made.
Stalking Charges
When prosecutors believe a series of contacts went beyond harassment, they may file a stalking charge under C.R.S. 18-3-602. Stalking generally involves repeatedly following, approaching, contacting, placing under surveillance, or communicating with a person in a way that would cause a reasonable person serious emotional distress, or making a credible threat combined with repeated contact.
Stalking is a felony, and it is treated as an extraordinary risk crime for sentencing. A protection order based in part on stalking also makes any later violation a class 1 misdemeanor. Because the difference between harassment and stalking often comes down to how many contacts occurred and how they were perceived, the number and timing of messages, calls, and visits is examined closely in these cases.
Many stalking cases are resolved through a plea to harassment, which avoids a felony conviction. Whether that is possible depends on the evidence and the history between the parties.
How a Harassment Case Moves Through Court
Harassment can be charged under state law or under city ordinance. In Colorado Springs, cases may be filed in Colorado Springs Municipal Court or in El Paso County Court at 270 S. Tejon Street.
Teller County cases are heard at the Teller County Combined Court in Cripple Creek. We also handle harassment cases in Pueblo County and Fremont County.
- Arrest or summons. Domestic violence harassment usually begins with an arrest. Other cases often begin with a summons.
- First appearance. The court issues a protection order and sets bond conditions.
- Discovery. Your lawyer obtains police reports, body camera video, 911 calls, and the messages or records the case is based on.
- Negotiation. Many harassment cases resolve through a deferred judgment, a reduced charge, or a dismissal after classes.
- Trial. If the case does not resolve, a judge or jury decides whether the prosecution has proven every element, including intent, beyond a reasonable doubt.
How Harassment Charges Are Defended
Harassment cases often involve two people with a history and conflicting accounts. No lawyer can promise a particular result, but these are the defenses that come up most often.
No Intent to Harass
Communication with a legitimate purpose, such as coordinating parenting time, discussing shared finances, or trying to retrieve property, is not harassment even when the conversation is tense. The full message history often shows that purpose.
Protected Speech
Offensive, rude, or angry speech is not automatically a crime. Messages that do not threaten bodily injury or property damage, and are not obscene, may be protected by the First Amendment.
Incomplete Evidence
Selective screenshots, missing messages, and edited images can create a misleading picture. Phone records and complete exports of conversations often tell a different story.
Identity
In cases based on anonymous accounts or shared devices, the prosecution must prove who actually sent the messages.
Credibility and Motive
Harassment allegations sometimes arise during custody disputes, divorces, or breakups, when one side may gain an advantage from a criminal case. Evidence of that motive can be important.
Self-Defense
When harassment is based on physical contact, the contact may have been a reasonable response to the other person's actions.
Consequences Beyond the Sentence
- Protection orders. A protection order can limit where you live, your contact with your children, and your ability to possess firearms.
- Firearms. A domestic violence harassment conviction can bring a federal firearm ban.
- Family court. A harassment case can affect parenting time and decision-making in a custody case.
- Employment. Harassment convictions appear on background checks and can affect jobs in education, healthcare, and security.
- Military members. Service members at Fort Carson, Peterson and Schriever Space Force Bases, and the Air Force Academy may face command action, particularly in domestic violence cases.
- Your record. Many harassment convictions and dismissed cases can be sealed, though domestic violence convictions face strict limits. See our record sealing page.
Working With a Colorado Springs Harassment Lawyer
Attorney Michael W. Moran has been licensed to practice law in Colorado since 1995 and is a former municipal court judge. He represents people charged with harassment, stalking, protection order violations, and related charges in municipal, county, and district courts in El Paso, Teller, Pueblo, and Fremont counties.
A first meeting covers the history between the parties, the messages or events behind the charge, any protection order in place, and the realistic outcomes in your case.
Criminal Defense Colorado Springs, P.C. offers free, confidential consultations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is harassment a misdemeanor in Colorado?
Usually. Harassing calls, messages, and taunts are class 2 misdemeanors, bias-motivated harassment is a class 1 misdemeanor, and obscene language or gestures in public is a petty offense. Physical contact and following are discussed in the penalties section above.
Can texting someone be harassment in Colorado?
Yes, if the messages are sent with intent to harass, annoy, or alarm and threaten bodily injury or property damage, are obscene, or are repeated at inconvenient hours in a way that invades privacy.
How do you file harassment charges in Colorado?
Harassment charges are filed by police and prosecutors, not by private individuals. A person who believes they are being harassed reports it to police, who decide whether to issue a summons or make an arrest. The person can separately ask a court for a civil protection order.
Can the alleged victim drop harassment charges?
No. Once charges are filed, the prosecutor decides whether to continue. The alleged victim's wishes are considered but do not control the case.
Can harassment be charged as domestic violence?
Yes. When harassment involves a current or former intimate partner, it carries a domestic violence designation, which brings mandatory arrest, a protection order, and treatment requirements.
What is the difference between harassment and stalking?
Harassment can be based on a single act. Stalking requires a pattern of conduct that causes serious emotional distress or fear, and it is a felony.
Can a harassment charge be sealed?
A dismissed case can usually be sealed, and many harassment convictions can be sealed after a waiting period. Domestic violence convictions face significant restrictions.
Will a harassment charge affect my custody case?
It can. A harassment charge, especially one with a domestic violence designation, and any protection order that comes with it can be raised in family court and can affect parenting time and decision-making.
What should I do if I am receiving messages from the alleged victim?
Do not respond, even if a protection order is not yet in place. Save the messages and give them to your lawyer, because they may be important evidence in your defense.
Is blocking someone and then contacting them from a new account harassment?
Contacting someone through new accounts after being blocked is often treated as evidence of intent to harass, and it can also violate a protection order. It is one of the most common ways harassment cases escalate.
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