People v. Gardner, 919 P.2d 850 (Colo. Ct. App. 1995)

Cases | People v. Gardner, 919 P.2d 850 (Colo. Ct. App. 1995) | 2018

The victim testified against defendant’s husband in his trial for fraud and deceit in attempting to pass false prescriptions. Defendant allegedly struck the victim with a cardboard advertisement display at the victim’s place of employment, and was convicted of retaliation against a witness and third degree assault. On appeal, defendant claimed that her right to equal protection was violated because the retaliation against a witness statute, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-8-706, provided for a more severe punishment than the intimidation of a witness statute, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-8-704, though both statutes prohibited the same or similar conduct. The court held that the statutes did not violate defendant’s right to equal protection. The statutes are factually distinguishable in their application, as § 18-8-704 applies prior to testimony and § 18-8-706 applies after testimony. Further, there is a rational basis for imposing a greater penalty for retaliating against a witness. A defendant is less likely to interfere with a potential witness or victim before trial than after conviction.