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If you’re facing child abuse charges in Colorado, it’s in your best interests to seek immediate legal representation from a compassionate, knowledgeable attorney who can defend your rights and protect your reputation.

The Denver defense lawyers at Wolf Law understand the far-reaching impacts of child abuse charges, and we have extensive experience with these challenging and often emotionally charged cases.

If you’re being investigated for child abuse or have been charged with child abuse, please call us today at 720-479-8574 for a free consultation or contact us online to tell us your story now.

Child Abuse in Colorado

Child abuse in Colorado is broadly defined as any act or failure to act that threatens the health or welfare of a child (a person less than 16 years old). This includes but is not limited to:

  • Negligence: A lack of care that leads to harm, i.e. the failure to provide adequate food, water, shelter or medical care.
  • Physical abuse: A physical act that endangers a child’s life or results in harm.
  • Psychological abuse: Verbal abuse, manipulation and other forms of emotional cruelty that adversely impact a child’s mental well-being.
  • Sexual abuse: Any sexual activity with a child.

While the actions above are inherently detrimental to a child’s welfare, there are other actions people may not explicitly consider child abuse. There’s a fine line between discipline and abuse, but many of these actions may still result in child abuse charges.

For example:

  • Spanking a child
  • Leaving a child unattended at home or in a car
  • Driving a child while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs
  • Exposing a child to controlled substances or illegal drugs
  • Committing an act of domestic violence in the presence of a child
  • Failing to report suspected child abuse

Child abuse charges range from a petty offense to a Class 1 felony, depending on several factors including but not limited to the severity of any injuries and the relationship between the alleged abuser and the child.

All child abuse allegations should be taken seriously; even a misdemeanor child abuse charge could impact areas of your life including your ability to maintain contact with your child, your employment status, and your access to housing.

Mandatory Child Abuse Reporting in Colorado

In Colorado, certain professionals are required by law to report known child abuse or suspected incidents of child abuse or neglect. These so-called “mandatory reporters” include the following categories:

  • Healthcare providers, including general physicians, dentists, nurses, etc.
  • Public or private school employees, including teachers, coaches and administrative staff
  • Social workers
  • Child care providers
  • Mental health professionals
  • Law enforcement officers
  • Firefighters
  • Emergency medical responders
  • Clergy members

When it comes to reporting child abuse, Colorado encourages a better-safe-than-sorry approach. Individuals or institutions who report suspected child abuse are immune from liability if the allegations ultimately prove false as long as they made the report in good faith.

Furthermore, those who report suspected abuse to Colorado’s Child Welfare department may do so anonymously.

Exaggerated or Dishonest Child Abuse Charges

In some cases, child abuse charges may be exaggerated or arise from a misunderstanding.

For example, a family member might make a false accusation out of anger following a domestic dispute. Children may miscommunicate details of an experience due to confusion or manipulated memory. Children may also fabricate accusations without understanding the potential consequences of their actions.

Similarly, some authority figures or professionals who are mandatory reporters may overreact or jump to conclusions about suspected child abuse. Teachers, babysitters or other adults may interpret a child’s complaints about a parent or guardian as allegations of abuse. Law enforcement and prosecuting attorneys may also use Colorado’s broad statutory language regarding child neglect and abuse to amplify charges.

Acceptable Punishment vs. Child Abuse

Parents and legal guardians have a right to discipline their children within the confines of the law, though people have different opinions about what types of punishment are acceptable.

While some people oppose physical punishment such as spanking, there is a meaningful distinction between corporal punishment and criminal child abuse. Physical discipline is not by law considered child abuse.

However, if a disciplinary act leads to formal abuse charges, you may need a criminal defense lawyer to effectively argue in court that the corporal punishment was reasonable and did not cross the line from discipline and physical abuse.

Contact a Colorado Child Abuse Defense Lawyer

If you’re being investigated for alleged child abuse or are facing child abuse charges in Colorado, one of the most important steps you can take to protect yourself is to contact an experienced criminal defense attorney.

Defendants often face an uphill battle in child abuse cases because juries are predisposed to protect children and view those accused of abuse with suspicion. The accomplished criminal defense attorneys at Wolf Law have substantial experience in child abuse cases, and our lawyers are effective at guiding juries to reach a fair decision based on the law and the facts of the case.

A child abuse charge can have long-term implications for your personal freedom, your family, your child visitation/custody rights, and other facets of your life. You need an attorney on your side who understands Colorado’s ambiguous child abuse statute and who can likewise help a jury understand when a prosecutor is stretching the statute too far.

Call Wolf Law today at 720-479-8574 for a free, no-obligation consultation or contact us online to get started now.

Child abuse can be anything as simple as leaving your child in the car when you go to the grocery store, to things far more serious like broken bones, bruising, and bleeding. As a result, child abuse can be anything from a petty offense, all the way up to a very serious felony that carries mandatory prison time. Child abuse cases, often times carry a family dynamic, that’s something your lawyer needs to understand. When you are going through a divorce, or difficult marriage situation, child abuse can be used as a weapon by your spouse, your ex, or any other type of relationship. You can’t let that happen to you; there are defense in child abuse cases, reasonable parental discipline is the most common. Meaning, you can discipline your child physically in the state of Colorado; it is legal, it just has to be reasonable. That’s a pretty interesting fine line that you will need your lawyer to walk. So you need someone like me, who has handled a lot of child abuse cases, has taken them to trial, and has an overwhelmingly good results from my clients. I can’t guarantee you that your results will be the same as my prior clients, what I can guarantee you, is that I’m going to do everything I can to get the best possible outcome for your case and make sure that you don’t lose your children.

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Outstanding Law Firm

Wolf Law was very helpful in fulfilling my personal needs. Colleen Kelley knew how to approach my case and made me feel better about my results in the bargain. I would recommend her to anyone with criminal trouble; she is an amazing lawyer.

— Levi

Very confident and competent attorney! I am very happy with Jeff

I contacted Jeff Wolf after I had some family issues that also carried potential criminal charges. I spoke with him as soon as i realized how severe the situation could be and he offered great legal advice that lead to me bringing him on as my personal attorney. The charges against me were dropped and I never had to go to trial but throughput the entire process Jeff was in touch and taking care of everything I needed. I am very happy with his services and would certainly work with him again if I was in the situation.

— Daniel E.

I Would Give Wolf Law 50 stars Out of 10 if I Could

I wanted to take a moment and give a MASSIVE THANK YOU to Wolf Law (and Colleen Kelley specifically)!

I had contacted Wolf Law recently regarding a previous offense and legal registration questions. This was for Sex Offender De-registration for the State of Colorado. After taking the time to review my case, my information, etc. etc, Wolf Law was able to take my case.

Considering the amount of time and effort involved to be removed, I am extremely grateful for Colleen Kelly/Wolf Law’s assistance in the matter.

After almost a decade, I was removed from the registry, and can now put a long chapter of my life behind me.

I would give Wolf Law 50 stars out of 10 if I could.

Again, THANK YOU Wolf Law for all your assistance and help in this matter!

I would very very very much recommend Wolf Law for your legal needs and/or situations. Please take a moment to contact them if you need to!

— Anonymous

Sensitive Criminal Matter

At first I was unsure, working with attorneys can be so stressful and difficult to gauge if they can help you effectively. I used this firm for two different cases and I was glad that they were reasonable and didn’t tell me falsehoods. Straight to the point and don’t promise you rainbows and butterflies. That is what you want: a straight up lawyer who doesn’t give you nonsense. Be patient, they will help you and you can feel like they forgot; but that’s just how this stuff goes. Court cases take time and they have many clients, its nothing personal. When we went to court everything was laid out for me to understand and I think they prepared for each task. Each case was handled professionally and they answered all my questions. Thank you, Cassandra and Colleen

— Anonymous

Amazing Lawyer

If you’re looking for an amazing lawyer I would highly recommend Jeff Wolf and Wolf Law in general Jeff helped me every step of the way, kept me well informed about what was going on with my case, and was very responsive to every question I had and is genuinely a good dude. I appreciated all of his help and the way he handled my case. I would highly recommend him to anyone who needs a good lawyer cause he’s definitely the way to go thank you again Jeff!

— Jordan B

Outstanding Results

Mr. Wolf was great to work with. He explained all the aspects of my case in great detail and his communication is excellent. My case was for DUI and Jeff was able to get my sentence deferred which from my understanding, is a very rare outcome.

— Tony G

The Best Lawyer I’ve Ever Come Across

I got my first DUI in April when I fell asleep in my car because I couldn’t get inside my house. I knew I needed a lawyer to help me fight the case but I was really hesitant on who I wanted to hire. I came across Jeffrey Wolf and I couldn’t be any happier that I chose him to represent me. Jeffrey is not only very professional but he can also relate to you on a personal level. Since it was my first offense I had no idea what to expect or what I was doing. He guided me through the whole process and I was very pleased with the results. He was able to convince the Judge to let me off with 6 months of unsupervised probation and level 1 education classes. Jeffrey is very loyal and a wonderful lawyer, definitely hiring him again if need be.

— Anonymous

Highly Recommend Wolf Law for DUI Cases

I hired Jeff Wolf to represent me for a DUI and accident involving damages. While I knew I was 100 percent in the wrong, Jeff never once made me feel like a terrible person for making a mistake. He quickly responded to emails and always called me back quickly when I had questions (I had a lot of questions). I’ve never been in trouble with the law before, and Jeff was patient in explaining everything thoroughly to me throughout the entire process, and was also able to get my sentence reduced. I recommend him to anyone going through a similar situation.

— Emily

Out of State? No Problem!

I was from out of state and ran into some trouble, when I realized for the first time in my life I needed an attorney. I called around and did my research, and I am so happy I chose Wolf Law and most importantly I received Cassandra Monahan as my attorney. I can’t speak high enough praise of Ms. Monahan. My family and I are very close and me being over 26 hours away was extremely hard for us, and understanding laws from another state were even harder! She provided us with in depth information on the laws and was there every step of the way and truly fought for my case. She followed through on everything we asked and went above and beyond. I am so thankful to have found Wolf Law and cannot recommended Ms. Monahan enough!

— Lesley B.

Winning the Case

Colleen Kelley came through for me when I thought all else was lost. Colleen worked diligently and kept up the fight; she was able to get the job done, and I’m so appreciative for her work.

— Randy J.