



                             COLORADO BILL OF RIGHTS

              (Article II of the 1876 Constitution of Colorado)
                             As revised to 1975

                                  ARTICLE II

                                BILL OF RIGHTS

          In order to assert  our rights, acknowledge our  duties, and
          proclaim  the  principles  upon  which  our  government   is
          founded, we declare:

Sec. 1.   All political power  is vested in and derived from the  peo-
          ple; that all government of right, originates from the  peo-
          ple,  is  founded  upon  their  will only, and is instituted
          solely for the good of the whole.

Sec. 2.   The people of  this state have the sole and exclusive  right
          of governing themselves, as a free sovereign and independent
          state; and to alter and abolish their constitution and  form
          of government whenever they  may deem it necessary  to their
          safety and happiness; provided, such change be not repugnant
          to the constitution of the United States.

Sec. 3.   All persons have certain natural, essential and  inalienable
          rights, among which  may be reckoned  the right of  enjoying
          and  defending  their  lives  and  liberties;  of acquiring,
          possessing  and  protecting  property;  and  of  seeking and
          obtaining their safety and happiness.

Sec. 4.   The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession  and
          worship, without discrimination, shall forever hereafter  be
          guaranteed;  and  no  person  shall  be  denied any civil or
          political right,  privilege or  capacity, on  account of his
          opinions concerning religion; but the liberty of  conscience
          here  by  secured  shall  not  be construed to dispense with
          oaths  or  affirmations,  excuse  acts  of licentiousness or
          justify practices inconsistent with the good order, peace or
          safety of the state.

Sec. 5.   All elections shall be free and open; and no power, civil or
          military, shall at  any time interfere  to prevent the  free
          exercise of the right of suffrage.

Sec. 6.   Courts  of justice  shall  be  open to  every person,  and a
          speedy remedy afforded for every injury to person,  property
          or character; and right  and justice should be  administered
          without sale, denial or delay.

Sec. 7.   The people  shall be secure in their persons,  papers, homes
          and effects, from unreasonable searches and seizures; and no
          warrant to  search any  place or  seize any  person or thing
          shall issue without describing the place to be searched,  or
          the person or  thing to be  seized, as near  as may be,  nor
          without  probable  cause,  supported  by oath or affirmation
          reduced to writing.

Sec. 8.   Until  otherwise  provided  by law,  no person  shall, for a
          felony, be  proceeded against  criminally otherwise  than by
          indictment, except  in cases  arising in  the land  or naval
          forces, or in the militia when in actual service in time  of
          war or public danger.  In all other cases, offenses shall be
          prosecuted criminally by indictment or information.

Sec. 9.   Treason against  the state  can consist only in  levying war
          against it or  in adhering to  its enemies, giving  them aid
          and comfort; no person  can be convicted of  treason, unless
          on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act,  or
          on his confession in open court; no person can be  attainted
          of treason or felony by the general assembly; no  conviction
          can work corruption  of blood or  forfeiture of estate;  the
          estates of such persons as may destroy their own lives shall
          descend or vest as in cases of natural death.

Sec. 10.  No  law  shall be  passed impairing  the freedom  of speech;
          every person shall be free to speak, write or publish  what-
          ever he will on any subject, being responsible for all abuse
          of that liberty; and in all suits and prosecutions for libel
          the truth thereof  may be given  in evidence, and  the jury,
          under the direction  of the court,  shall determine the  law
          and the fact.

Sec. 11.  No  ex post facto law,  nor law impairing the  obligation of
          contracts, or retrospective in its operation, or making  any
          irrevocable grant of  special privileges, franchises  or im-
          munities, shall be passed by the general assembly.

Sec. 12.  No person shall be imprisoned for debt, unless upon  refusal
          to deliver up  his estate for  the benefit of  tort or where
          there is a strong presumption of fraud.

Sec. 13.  The right of no  person to keep and bear arms in  defense of
          his home, person and property, or in aid of the civil  power
          when thereto legally summoned, shall be called in  question;
          but nothing herein contained  shall be construed to  justify
          the practice of carrying concealed weapons.

Sec. 14.  Private property shall  not be taken for private use  unless
          by consent of the owner, except for private ways of  necess-
          ity, and except for reservoirs, drains, flumes or ditches on
          or across  the lands  of others,  for agricultural,  mining,
          milling, domestic or sanitary purposes.

Sec. 15.  Private property shall  not be taken or damaged, for  public
          or private use, without  just compensation.  Such  compensa-
          tion shall be ascertained by a board of commissioners of not
          less than three freeholders, or by a jury, when required  by
          the owner  of the  property, in  such manner  as may be pre-
          scribed by  law, and  until the  same shall  be paid  to the
          owner, or into court for  the owner, the property shall  not
          be needlessly  disturbed, or  the proprietary  rights of the
          owner therein divested; and  whenever an attempt is  made to
          take private property  for a use  alleged to be  public, the
          question whether the contemplated use be really public shall
          be  a  judicial  question,  and  determined  as such without
          regard to any legislative assertion that the use is public.

Sec. 16.  In criminal prosecutions the accused shall have the right to
          appear and defend  in person and  by counsel; to  demand the
          nature and cause  of the accusation;  to meet the  witnesses
          against him  face to  face; to  have process  to compel  the
          attendance of witnesses in  his behalf, and a  speedy public
          trial by  an impartial  jury of  the county  or district  in
          which the offense is alleged to have been committed.

Sec. 17.  No  person shall be imprisoned  for the purpose of  securing
          his testimony in  any case longer  than may be  necessary in
          order to take  his deposition.   If he can  give security he
          shall be discharged;  if he cannot  give security his  depo-
          sition shall be taken by some judge of the supreme, district
          or county court, at the earliest time he can attend, at some
          convenient place by him appointed for that purpose, of which
          time and place the accused and the attorney prosecuting  for
          the people shall have reasonable notice.  The accused  shall
          have the  right to  appear in  person and  by counsel. If he
          have no counsel, the judge shall assign him one in that  be-
          half only. On the completion of such examination the witness
          shall be  discharged on  his own  recognizance, entered into
          before said judge, but such deposition shall not be used  if
          in the opinion of the  court the personal attendance of  the
          witness might be procured by the prosecution or is  procured
          by the accused. No exception shall be taken to such  deposi-
          tion as to matters of form.

Sec. 18.  No person shall be compelled to testify against himself in a
          criminal case nor shall any person be twice put in  jeopardy
          for the same offense.  If the jury disagree, or if the judg-
          ment be arrested  after the verdict,  or if the  judgment be
          reversed for error in law,  the accused shall not be  deemed
          to have been in jeopardy.

Sec. 19.  All persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties  except
          for capital offenses, when the proof is evident or the  pre-
          sumption great.

Sec. 20.  Excessive  bail shall  not be required,  nor excessive fines
          imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Sec. 21.  The  privilege of the writ  of habeas corpus shall  never be
          suspended, unless when in case of rebellion or invasion, the
          public safety may require it.

Sec. 22.  The military shall always be in strict subordination to  the
          civil power; no soldier shall, in time of peace, be quarter-
          ed in  any house  without the  consent of  the owner, nor in
          time of war except in the manner prescribed by law.

Sec. 23.  The right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate in  crimi-
          nal cases; but a  jury in civil cases  in all courts, or  in
          criminal cases in courts not of record, may consist of  less
          than twelve persons, as may be prescribed by law.  Hereafter
          a grand jury  shall consist of  twelve persons, any  nine of
          whom concurring may find an indictment; provided, the gener-
          al assembly may change,  regulate or abolish the  grand jury
          system; and provided,  further, the right  of any person  to
          serve on any jury shall not be denied or abridged on account
          of sex, and the general assembly may provide by law for  the
          exemption from jury service of persons or classes of persons  

Sec. 24.  The people have the right peaceably to assemble for the com-
          mon good, and to apply  to those in vested with  the powers
          of  government  for  redress  of  grievances, by petition or
          remonstrance.

Sec. 25.  No  person shall be deprived  of life, liberty or  property,
          without due process of law.

Sec. 26. **

Sec. 27.  Aliens, who are or may hereafter become bona fide  residents
          of this state, may acquire, inherit, possess, enjoy and dis-
          pose of property, real and personal, as native born citizens

Sec. 28.  The enumeration in this constitution of certain rights shall
          not be construed to deny, impair or disparage others retain-
          ed by the people.

Sec. 29.  Equality  of  rights under  the law  shall not  be denied or
          abridged by the state of  Colorado, or any of its  political
          subdivisions on account of sex.


