CO Code § 16-10-402 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 16 - Criminal Proceedings|Article 10 - Jury Trials|Part 4 - Trial Proceedings|§ 16-10-402. Use of Closed-Circuit Television - Child or Witness With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

     When a witness at the time of a trial is a child less than twelve years of age, or is a person who has an intellectual and developmental disability as defined in section 25.5-10-202, C.R.S., the court may, upon motion of a party or upon its own motion, order that the witness's testimony be taken in a room other than the courtroom and be televised by closed-circuit television in the courtroom if:   The testimony is taken during the proceeding;    The judge determines that testimony by the witness in the courtroom and in the presence of the defendant would result in the witness suffering serious emotional distress or trauma such that the witness would not be able to reasonably communicate; and    Closed-circuit television equipment is available for such use.       To obtain an order authorizing the use of closed-circuit television for testimony by a child or developmentally disabled witness, the party shall file a written motion with the court no less than fourteen days prior to the trial.    Only the prosecuting attorney, the attorney for the defendant, the guardian ad litem, if any, and the judge may question the witness when he or she testifies by closed-circuit television.    The operators of the closed-circuit television equipment shall make every effort to be unobtrusive while the witness is testifying.         Only the following persons may be in the room with the witness when the child or developmentally disabled person testifies by closed-circuit television:   The prosecuting attorney;    The attorney for the defendant;    The guardian ad litem, if any;    The operators of the closed-circuit television equipment;    A person whose presence, in the opinion of the court, contributes to the welfare and well-being of the witness, including a person who has dealt with the witness in a therapeutic setting; and    The jury.       During the witness's testimony by closed-circuit television, the judge and the defendant, if present, shall remain in the courtroom.    The judge and the defendant shall be allowed to communicate with the persons in the room where the witness is testifying by an appropriate electronic method.       The provisions of this section shall not apply if the defendant is appearing pro se.    This section shall not be interpreted to preclude, for purposes of identification of a defendant, the presence of both the witness and the defendant in the courtroom at the same time.    Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to preclude the removal of the defendant, rather than the witness, from the courtroom upon the stipulation of both parties and the approval of the court.      History. Source: L. 2005: Entire section added, p. 424, § 4, effective April 29. L. 2012: (1)(b) amended,(SB 12-175), ch. 208, p. 853, § 83, effective July 1. L. 2013: IP(1)(a) amended,(HB 13-1314), ch. 323, p. 1804, § 28, effective March 1, 2014.    ANNOTATION   Removing the defendant from the courtroom, rather than the child witness, violates the defendant's due process right where there is noncompliance with the statutory procedure this section requires. People v. Rodriguez, 209 P.3d 1151 (Colo. App. 2008), aff'd by an equally divided court, 238 P.3d 1283 (Colo. 2010), cert. denied, 563 U.S. 991, 131 S. Ct. 2443, 179 L. Ed. 2d 1215 (2011); People v. Aldridge, 2018 COA 131 , 446 P.3d 897.   Because there was no reasonable possibility that the errors in the closed-circuit television procedure the court adopted contributed to defendant's conviction, the errors were harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. People v. Rodriguez, 209 P.3d 1151 (Colo. App. 2008), aff'd by an equally divided court, 238 P.3d 1283 (Colo. 2010), cert. denied, 563 U.S. 991, 131 S. Ct. 2443, 179 L. Ed. 2d 1215 (2011).   Erroneous exclusion of defendant from the courtroom, however, was not harmless beyond a reasonable doubt, requiring the court to reverse the judgment. People v. Aldridge, 2018 COA 131 , 446 P.3d 897.   Actual evidence of psychological trauma not required before permitting a child to testify via one-way closed circuit television. People v. Ujaama, 2012 COA 36 , 302 P.3d 296.