(1) Any actor who knowingly subjects a victim to any sexual contact commits unlawful sexual contact if:
(a) The actor knows that the victim does not consent; or
(b) The actor knows that the victim is incapable of appraising the nature of
the victim’s conduct; or
(c) The victim is physically helpless and the actor knows that the victim is
physically helpless and the victim has not consented; or
(d) The actor has substantially impaired the victim’s power to appraise or
control the victim’s conduct by employing, without the victim’s consent, any drug,
intoxicant, or other means for the purpose of causing submission; or
(e) Repealed.
(f) The victim is in custody of law or detained in a hospital or other institution
and the actor has supervisory or disciplinary authority over the victim and uses this
position of authority, unless incident to a lawful search, to coerce the victim to
submit; or
(g) The actor engages in treatment or examination of a victim for other than
bona fide medical purposes or in a manner substantially inconsistent with
reasonable medical practices.
(1.5) Any person who knowingly, with or without sexual contact, induces or
coerces a child by any of the means set forth in section 18-3-402 to expose intimate
parts or to engage in any sexual contact, intrusion, or penetration with another
person, for the purpose of the actor’s own sexual gratification, commits unlawful
sexual contact. For the purposes of this subsection (1.5), the term child means any
person under the age of eighteen years.
(1.7) Repealed.
(2) (a) Unlawful sexual contact is a class 1 misdemeanor.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection (2),
unlawful sexual contact is a class 4 felony if the actor compels the victim to submit
by use of such force, intimidation, or threat as specified in section 18-3-402 (4)(a),
(4)(b), or (4)(c) or if the actor engages in the conduct described in paragraph (g) of
subsection (1) of this section or subsection (1.5) of this section.
(3) If a defendant is convicted of the class 4 felony of unlawful sexual
contact pursuant to paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of this section, the court shall
sentence the defendant in accordance with the provisions of section 18-1.3-406;
except that this subsection (3) shall not apply if the actor engages in the conduct
described in paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of this section.
(4) A person who is convicted on or after July 1, 2013, of unlawful sexual
contact under this section, upon conviction, shall be advised by the court that the
person has no right:
(a) To notification of the termination of parental rights and no standing to
object to the termination of parental rights for a child conceived as a result of the
commission of that offense;
(b) To allocation of parental responsibilities, including parenting time and
decision-making responsibilities for a child conceived as a result of the commission
of that offense;
(c) Of inheritance from a child conceived as a result of the commission of
that offense; and
(d) To notification of or the right to object to the adoption of a child
conceived as a result of the commission of that offense.
(2) Subsection (1.7)(b) provided for the repeal of subsection (1.7), effective
July 1, 2012. (See L. 2010, pp. 2045, 2049.)
L. 75: Entire part R&RE, p. 629, § 1, effective July 1. L. 77: IP(1) amended, p. 962, § 17, effective July 1. L. 86: (3) added, p. 777, § 6, effective July 1. L. 89: (1.5) added and (2) and (3) amended, p. 830, § 41, effective July 1. L. 90: (1)(e) repealed, p. 1033, § 25, effective July 1. L. 91: (3) amended, p. 1912, § 21, effective June 1. L. 92: (1.5) amended and (1.7) added, p. 404, § 15, effective June 3. L. 94: (1.5) and (1.7) amended, p. 1717, § 9, effective July 1. L. 95: (3) amended, p. 1252, § 10, effective July 1. L. 96: (1.7) amended, p. 1581, § 4, effective July 1. L. 2000: IP(1), (1.5), (1.7), (2), and (3) amended, p. 700, § 20, effective July 1. L. 2002: (3) amended, p. 1513, § 190, effective October 1. L. 2004: (2) and (3) amended, p. 635, § 6, effective August 4. L. 2010: (1.7)(b) added by revision, (SB 10-128), ch. 415, pp. 2045, 2049, §§ 1, 12. L. 2013: (4) added, (SB 13-227), ch. 353, p. 2060, § 7, effective July 1. L. 2021: (2)(a) amended, (SB 21-271), ch. 462, p. 3174, § 198, effective March 1, 2022.
(1) This section is similar to former §§ 18-3-403, 18-3-404, and 18-3-410 as they existed prior to 1975.
For the legislative declaration contained in the 2002 act amending subsection (3), see section 1 of chapter 318, Session Laws of Colorado 2002.
