New Colorado law adds protections for sexual assault survivors [Video]

DENVER — A brand new Colorado law signed this week will bring big changes to how sexual assault court cases are handled. The law is an expansion of the Rape Shield law that stops certain pieces of victim information from being used as evidence in court. 

“It’s about time,” said Ana Martinez, Co-Director of Client Services at Blue Bench. “I think it brings fairness, and in that fairness, I think it brings hope that can be can get justice that people can seek care for what happened to them.” 

On Wednesday Lt. Governor Dianne Primavera, the current acting Governor, signed HB 1072 into law. It will prohibit a defendant from using aspects like how a sexual assault victim dressed or their sexual history as proof of consent. Before the new legislation, aspects like that were allowed to be admitted.

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