Denver County Court

People Involved

The people involved in a traffic case include:

The Defendant: Person accused of violating the law.

City Attorney: Lawyer who prosecutes the charges brought against a defendant, decides what plea bargains to offer, and represents the City and County of Denver in the majority of traffic cases involving traffic ordinances and less serious state statutes. When prosecuting state statutes, the City Attorney has been empowered to act as a special Deputy District Attorney. For more information go to www.denvergov.org/cityattorney.

District Attorney: Lawyer who prosecutes the charges brought against a defendant, decides what plea bargains to offer, and represents the State of Colorado in cases involving more serious traffic related state statutes. For more information go to www.denverda.org.

Judge: Neutral party who makes rulings on issues of law, decides guilt or innocence of the accused during final hearings and court trials, decides what sentence to be imposed, and presides over jury trials.

Jury: Citizens from the community who are chosen to hear the evidence in a case and decide on the guilt or innocence of the accused. In traffic cases, a jury trial is only an option for those offenses that could result in a sentence of jail time.

Magistrate: Neutral party who makes rulings on issues of law, decides guilt or innocence of the accused during final hearings and court trials, and decides what sentence to be imposed.

Police Officer:  Denver police officer’s have authority to issue tickets for municipal ordinance violations and summons and complaints for violations of state statutes.

Public Defender: Lawyer for the indigent defendant who represents the defendant in all phases of his/her case. Public Defenders are appointed only when the defendant has been declared indigent and has qualified for free representation. Free representation is only considered if the defendant is charged with an offense that could result in jail time.

Private Counsel: An attorney for the defendant who is chosen and paid for by the defendant to represent him/her in a traffic matter.

Interpreter: Neutral party who interprets for the defendant in order to facilitate communication between the defendant and other parties in the case. Interpreters also are provided for witnesses and victims who do not speak English.