Capital Punishment in Colorado

Several state websites discuss capital punishment procedures in Colorado. The Dept. of Corrections has the webpage Capital Punishment in Colorado, which is a basic outline of information including privileges granted to death row inmates, procedures for execution day, and statistics. The Colorado Public Defender (which firmly states on their site that they are against capital punishment), has also prepared a webpage on the history of the practice in Colorado. In addition, the non-partisan staff of the Colorado Legislative Council has prepared two Issue Briefs. One, Colorado’s Death Penalty – Back in the Hands of a Jury (2003), explains Colorado’s death penalty’s shift from being decided by a jury, to a change in law that gave the decision to a panel of judges, and then, when that was ruled unconstitutional, given back to the jury. The other Issue Brief, The Death Penalty – Who Decides, Judge or Jury? was published in 2002 during the time when the issue was being debated.