DENVER – Rep. Kit Roupe has two criminal justice bills moving through the Senate: one would make it easier for prosecutors to press felony charges against repeat domestic violence abusers and a second would curtail low-level felony offenders from being arrested and jailed when law enforcement agrees a court appearance would suffice.

The Republican from Colorado Springs won bipartisan support in the Democrat-dominated House for both of her bills, and they appear likely to pass the Senate in the coming weeks.

House Bill 1066 passed the Senate on voice vote Monday. The bill empowers prosecutors to make a case to juries that defendants should be charged with felony domestic violence because they have three prior convictions with findings of domestic violence.

“One of the issues around domestic violence is it is a cycle of not only violence but when there are no consequences for your actions then it emboldens the actors and things just get more serious,” said Sen. Linda Newell, D-Littleton, who sponsored the bill in the Senate.

A felony charge for repeat-offenders of domestic abuse has been in Colorado law since 2000, but Tom Raynes, executive director of the Colorado District Attorneys’ Council, said it’s been difficult in some jurisdictions to bring the felony charges.

“We’re really trying to accomplish the intent of the legislature from 15 years ago,” Raynes said. “Now we would have the ability to look back at prior convictions, whether it was in Kansas or some other jurisdiction.”

Raynes said if the bill becomes law a prosecutor could lay out the evidence, sentencing statements and court rulings from a prior conviction and allow the jury to decide whether that conviction was also a case of domestic abuse.

Prosecutors struggle under current law to prove that a jury found someone guilty of domestic abuse because it’s not an actual criminal charge, but rather it’s a sentencing enhancer.

Raynes said the change in law could be “a real game changer” and could help in 20 percent to 30 percent of cases establish a suspect as a multiple-offender and a felon instead of just a misdemeanor offender.

Roupe said if the bill becomes law it will make children and families safer.

“On the fourth offense they could face up to eight years,” she said. “Previously some folks, they’d see 48 hours and the offender was out.”

Roupe’s other bill, House Bill 1104, passed the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously Monday.

It would empower local law enforcement to make decisions with district attorneys’ offices about whether to file a warrant in low-level felony offenses.

“This bill is intended to let them keep their homes, keep their jobs and let the district attorneys in each of the districts decide the criteria to be used as to when a summons would be used in lieu of a warrant,” Roupe said. “A warrant means you are immediately arrested and processed and put into jail. A circumstance of bad things is just made worse and it affects the jails, as well, where we have non-violent offenders filling space.”

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Andy Cross