Felony Referrals

A felony referral to the DA's Office occurs when law enforcement presents an individual suspected of a felony crime to review for potential charges, generally following an arrest. This section presents data on felony cases referred by law enforcement agencies to the DA’s Office for review. The DA’s Office decides whether to file charges – a formal accusation that a specific person has committed a specific crime – based on the evidence and reasonable likelihood of conviction. 

Why is this important?  The DA’s Office makes decisions based on the cases they receive from law enforcement; they are not responsible for arresting or citing individuals. The office may decide not to file a case for a number of reasons, such as insufficient evidence or investigation by law enforcement, when the charges did not rise to the level of a crime, or acceptance into a diversion program.

The Denver DA's Office is working to collect and publish data for felony referrals. Please revisit this site in the future.