Municipal Offenses in Colorado

What a Municipal Charge Means

Colorado cities and towns pass their own local laws, called ordinances. When police believe you broke one of those local rules inside city limits, they can issue a summons into municipal court instead of filing a state charge. The case is prosecuted by a city attorney, and the city must prove every element of the ordinance beyond a reasonable doubt, the same standard used in state court.

Many ordinances mirror state crimes. A city shoplifting ordinance looks a lot like state theft, and a city battery ordinance looks a lot like state assault. Police and prosecutors often have a choice of forum for low level conduct, and they frequently pick municipal court because it moves faster. That speed can work against you. People plead guilty at a first appearance without counsel and only later learn what the conviction costs them.

Common scenarios include a shoplifting stop at a retail store, a fight or heated argument that draws police, a noise or party call, refusing to leave a store or property after being told to go, and neighborhood disputes charged as disturbance or harassment.

How Municipal Courts Differ from State County Courts

County courts handle state misdemeanors under the Colorado Revised Statutes, with district attorneys prosecuting. Municipal courts handle only violations of that city's code, with city attorneys prosecuting. A few differences matter in practice:

• The judge and rules are local. Home rule cities such as Denver run their courts under their own charters, so procedures and penalties vary from one city to the next.
• Jury trials must be demanded. Under C.R.S. 13-10-114 you generally must file a written jury demand and pay a small jury fee within 21 days after arraignment or entry of a plea, or the right is lost and a judge alone decides the case. Municipal juries are also smaller than state juries, typically three people unless more are requested.
• Appointed counsel is narrower. Court appointed lawyers are generally available only when jail is a possible sentence and you qualify financially. Many people appear with no lawyer at all.
• Records live in more places. Municipal cases may not always appear in the state's central criminal database, but they do appear in court records, police records, and private background checks.

Common Charges and How Penalties Vary City to City

Typical municipal charges include:

• Shoplifting and petty theft under a city theft ordinance.
• Trespass, such as staying on property after being told to leave.
• Assault and battery ordinances, which cover fights and unwanted physical contact, sometimes with a domestic violence designation.
• Disturbance and disorderly conduct, including noise, fighting words, and public disputes.
• Harassment, public consumption, curfew, and animal ordinances, among many others.

Maximum penalties depend on both state law and the city's own code. C.R.S. 13-10-113 caps sentences in a municipal court of record at up to 364 days in jail, with a fine cap that started at $2,650 and is adjusted for inflation each January, so the current ceiling is somewhat higher. Courts that are not courts of record are capped at 90 days and a $300 fine. There is now a second, often lower ceiling as well. In December 2025 the Colorado Supreme Court held that a city may not punish conduct more harshly than state law punishes the identical offense. Because the legislature reduced many state penalties in 2021, that ruling matters: shoplifting under $300, for example, is a state petty offense with a maximum of 10 days in jail, so a city ordinance cannot expose you to more than that for the same conduct. Cities have been revising their codes and pending cases in response, which is one more reason to have counsel check the actual exposure in your court.

Those numbers are ceilings, not predictions. They describe what applies only if the court actually orders incarceration. Municipal ordinance violations do not carry mandatory jail, and sentences in these courts are often fines, community service, classes, or a period of probation or a deferred arrangement rather than time in custody.

The Municipalities

Nearly every city and town on the Front Range operates its own municipal court, each with its own code and its own way of doing things:

• Denver metro: Denver, Aurora, Lakewood, Arvada, Westminster, Thornton, Northglenn, Commerce City, Wheat Ridge, Golden, Englewood, Littleton, Centennial, Greenwood Village
• North metro and Boulder area: Broomfield, Boulder, Longmont, Louisville, Lafayette, Erie, Brighton
• Northern Colorado: Fort Collins, Loveland, Greeley, Windsor
• South and beyond: Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Castle Rock, Parker, Grand Junction

Colorado has more than 270 municipalities, and 221 of them operate a municipal court as of August 16, 2026. The complete roster is below, and wherever your summons comes from, that changes nothing about your options.

Municipal Courts Across Colorado

The roster below lists the Colorado municipalities operating a municipal court as of August 16, 2026. Courts open and close as city councils decide, so treat this as a snapshot rather than a guarantee.

• Aguilar
• Akron
• Alamosa
• Alma
• Antonito
• Arriba
• Arvada
• Aspen
• Ault
• Aurora
• Avon
• Basalt
• Bayfield
• Bennett
• Berthoud
• Black Hawk
• Blanca
• Blue River
• Boulder
• Bow Mar
• Breckenridge
• Brighton
• Broomfield
• Brush
• Buena Vista
• Burlington
• Calhan
• Campo
• Cañon City
• Carbondale
• Castle Pines
• Castle Rock
• Cedaredge
• Centennial
• Center
• Central
• Cherry Hills Village
• Coal Creek
• Colorado Springs
• Columbine Valley
• Commerce City
• Cortez
• Craig
• Crested Butte
• Crestone
• Cripple Creek
• Dacono
• De Beque
• Deer Trail
• Del Norte
• Delta
• Denver
• Dillon
• Dinosaur
• Dolores
• Durango
• Eads
• Eagle
• Eaton
• Edgewater
• Elizabeth
• Englewood
• Erie
• Estes Park
• Evans
• Fairplay
• Federal Heights
• Firestone
• Flagler
• Fleming
• Florence
• Fort Collins
• Fort Lupton
• Fort Morgan
• Fountain
• Fowler
• Foxfield
• Fraser
• Frederick
• Frisco
• Fruita
• Garden City
• Georgetown
• Gilcrest
• Glendale
• Glenwood Springs
• Golden
• Granada
• Granby
• Grand Junction
• Grand Lake
• Greeley
• Green Mountain Falls
• Greenwood Village
• Gunnison
• Gypsum
• Haxtun
• Hayden
• Hillrose
• Holly
• Holyoke
• Hot Sulphur Springs
• Hotchkiss
• Hudson
• Hugo
• Idaho Springs
• Ignacio
• Johnstown
• Julesburg
• Keenesburg
• Kersey
• Keystone
• Kiowa
• Kremmling
• La Junta
• Lafayette
• Lake City
• Lakeside
• Lakewood
• Lamar
• Las Animas
• LaSalle
• Leadville
• Limon
• Littleton
• Lochbuie
• Log Lane Village
• Lone Tree
• Longmont
• Louisville
• Loveland
• Lyons
• Manassa
• Mancos
• Manitou Springs
• Manzanola
• Mead
• Meeker
• Merino
• Milliken
• Minturn
• Monte Vista
• Montrose
• Monument
• Morrison
• Mount Crested Butte
• Mountain View
• Mountain Village
• Naturita
• Nederland
• New Castle
• Northglenn
• Norwood
• Nucla
• Nunn
• Oak Creek
• Olathe
• Olney Springs
• Ordway
• Otis
• Ouray
• Pagosa Springs
• Palisade
• Palmer Lake
• Paonia
• Parachute
• Parker
• Pierce
• Platteville
• Poncha Springs
• Pueblo
• Rangely
• Red Cliff
• Rico
• Ridgway
• Rifle
• Rockvale
• Rocky Ford
• Romeo
• Saguache
• Salida
• San Luis
• Sanford
• Severance
• Sheridan
• Silt
• Silver Cliff
• Silverthorne
• Silverton
• Simla
• Snowmass Village
• South Fork
• Springfield
• Steamboat Springs
• Sterling
• Stratton
• Superior
• Swink
• Telluride
• Thornton
• Timnath
• Trinidad
• Vail
• Victor
• Vona
• Walden
• Walsenburg
• Walsh
• Wellington
• Westcliffe
• Westminster
• Wheat Ridge
• Wiggins
• Wiley
• Williamsburg
• Windsor
• Winter Park
• Woodland Park
• Wray
• Yampa
• Yuma

Wherever your case is filed, the fundamentals on this page apply.

Why Counsel Matters, and What Else a Conviction Touches

Because municipal cases feel small, people often plead quickly. The consequences are not small:

• A lasting record. A municipal conviction can appear on background checks for jobs, housing, and licenses. Under C.R.S. 24-72-708 many municipal convictions can be sealed, generally three years after the case and any supervision end, if you stay free of new charges. A municipal assault or battery conviction with a domestic violence basis cannot be sealed.
• Jail exposure. Some ordinance convictions can carry jail time if the court orders incarceration, though after the December 2025 ruling described above the exposure cannot exceed what state law allows for the identical offense.
• Immigration. Federal immigration law can treat a municipal conviction like any other conviction. For a noncitizen, a plea in a city court can affect status, admissibility, and removal, which is why these cases deserve careful handling.
• Firearms. A conviction under a battery or assault ordinance with a domestic violence basis can trigger federal firearm prohibitions.
• Domestic violence findings. A DV designation can bring protection orders, treatment requirements, and the sealing bar described above.

We practice criminal defense in Colorado and we handle municipal cases as well as state charges. A consultation is the right place to get answers about your specific city, your specific charge, and your options.