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Littleton council adopts emergency ordinance to align municipal sentencing limits with state law
Summary
The Littleton City Council unanimously approved an emergency ordinance on Jan. 6, 2026, adding language to the municipal code that makes state-law maximum sentences controlling where municipal and state offenses are identical, after Colorado Supreme Court rulings prompted the change.
The Littleton City Council on Jan. 6 adopted an emergency ordinance to ensure municipal sentencing limits do not exceed corresponding Colorado state-law maxima, a change city attorneys said was required after recent Colorado Supreme Court decisions.
City Attorney (unnamed in the transcript) told the council the ordinance — Ordinance 02 of 2026 — would repeal and reenact Title 1, Chapter 4 (general penalty) so that “whenever there exists a non felony criminal violation where the prohibited conduct is identical to a corresponding charge in Colorado state law, the max sentence at Colorado state law shall control.” The city made the change as an emergency measure to avoid any period during which a municipal sentence could conflict with state law.
The legal context, the city attorney said, includes the Supreme Court’s review of People v. Camp and People v. Simmons after challenges that municipal penalties exceeded state penalties for identical conduct. The attorney referenced CRS 13-10-113 and the 2021 Misdemeanor Reform Act as part of the statutory framework informing the court’s decision.
During the hearing council members and members of the public asked whether the ruling might extend to traffic infractions (Title 42). The city attorney said a footnote in the decision appears to limit that application but called it an open question and said judges and prosecutors are monitoring how traffic-related matters are being handled.
Council member Zink voiced frustration that the ruling and the ordinance reduce local sentencing discretion under home-rule authority. Zink said the council must comply but warned the change could prevent Littleton from imposing harsher penalties for repeat offenders on local issues such as school-zone speeding. “We have to pass this to stay in compliance with state law, but I'm deeply discontented by this,” Zink said.
The council voted 7–0 to adopt the emergency ordinance. The city attorney said the change also allows municipal court advisements to correctly state the applicable maximum sentences to defendants going forward.
Votes at a glance: the emergency ordinance (Ordinance 02-2026) passed unanimously 7–0. Earlier in the meeting the council also approved its consent agenda (items a–d) by the same margin.
What happens next: The ordinance takes effect immediately as an emergency measure. City staff and the municipal court said they will continue to monitor judicial guidance about whether and how the ruling affects traffic infractions and other categories of offenses.
