Yes, a DUI in Colorado can be a felony, but only in specific situations. The first, second, and third convictions are misdemeanors. A DUI becomes a Class 4 felony on the fourth offense, and impaired driving that causes serious bodily injury or death is charged as a felony from the very first offense, no prior record required.
The Three Ways a Colorado DUI Becomes a Felony
Colorado’s impaired driving statute elevates a DUI to felony status in three distinct scenarios. Each carries its own sentencing range, but all three produce a permanent felony record with consequences that extend well beyond the courtroom.
A Fourth or Subsequent Offense
A fourth DUI or DWAI is automatically a Class 4 felony.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 42-4-1301 – Driving Under the Influence A Class 4 felony carries two to six years in state prison, three years of mandatory parole after release, and fines that can reach $500,000.2Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-1.3-401 – Felonies Classified
If the court grants probation instead of prison, you still face a mandatory 90 to 180 days in county jail as a condition of that probation.3Colorado General Assembly. HB17-1288 Penalties for Felony DUI Offenders
Vehicular Assault Involving Impairment
Driving under the influence and causing serious bodily injury to another person is vehicular assault, a Class 4 felony. This charge applies to a first-time offender with no prior record. The prosecution does not have to prove you intended to hurt anyone. Vehicular assault under DUI is a strict liability crime, so the act of driving impaired and causing the injury is enough to sustain the conviction.4Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-3-205 – Vehicular Assault
The sentence follows the standard Class 4 felony range: two to six years in prison with three years of mandatory parole.2Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-1.3-401 – Felonies Classified A lesser version applies when the driver was impaired rather than fully under the influence; DWAI-based vehicular assault is a Class 5 felony.4Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-3-205 – Vehicular Assault
Vehicular Homicide Involving Impairment
When impaired driving causes someone’s death, the charge is vehicular homicide. If the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, it is a Class 3 felony, and again it applies from the first offense. Like vehicular assault, this is a strict liability offense. The prosecution only needs to prove that you were impaired and that your driving caused the death.5Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-3-106 – Vehicular Homicide
A Class 3 felony carries four to twelve years in state prison and three years of mandatory parole.2Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-1.3-401 – Felonies Classified If the court finds the offense presented an extraordinary risk of harm, the maximum can climb by another four years, reaching a total of sixteen. Vehicular homicide based on DWAI rather than full DUI is a Class 4 felony.5Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-3-106 – Vehicular Homicide
Which Prior Convictions Count Toward Felony DUI
Colorado counts prior convictions broadly when deciding whether your current charge is the fourth. The following all count toward the three-prior threshold that triggers felony status:
- DUI or DUI per se (BAC of 0.08% or higher)
- DWAI, the lesser impaired-driving charge
- Vehicular assault where impaired driving caused serious bodily injury
- Vehicular homicide where impaired driving caused a death
Each prior must come from a separate incident. The statute requires “separate and distinct criminal episodes,” so two charges from a single arrest count only once.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 42-4-1301 – Driving Under the Influence
Two features of Colorado’s counting rule catch people off guard. First, there is no lookback period. A DUI conviction from thirty years ago counts the same as one from last year. Second, equivalent out-of-state convictions count. If you had a DUI in California fifteen years ago and two DWAI convictions in Colorado since then, your next offense in Colorado is your fourth and will be filed as a felony. This lifetime approach is among the strictest in the country.
What a Misdemeanor DUI Still Costs
Even without felony exposure, the first three offenses carry mandatory jail time, fines, community service, and license consequences that climb sharply with each conviction.
A first DUI conviction brings five days to one year in county jail, a fine of $600 to $1,000, and 48 to 96 hours of community service. The court can suspend the five-day minimum if you complete an alcohol and drug evaluation and finish the recommended program. A BAC of 0.20% or higher raises the mandatory minimum to ten days in jail, and the court cannot suspend it.6Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 42-4-1307 – Penalties for DUI and DWAI The license revocation is nine months.7Colorado General Assembly. Colorado Drunk Driving Laws – Colorado Law Summary
A second conviction requires ten consecutive days in jail with no ability for the court to suspend the minimum and no good-behavior credit against those ten days. The maximum is still one year, fines range from $600 to $1,500, and community service climbs to 48 to 120 hours. The court must impose at least two years of probation with a one-year suspended jail sentence attached.6Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 42-4-1307 – Penalties for DUI and DWAI The license revocation extends to twelve months.7Colorado General Assembly. Colorado Drunk Driving Laws – Colorado Law Summary
A third DUI is still a misdemeanor but carries longer mandatory jail time, higher fines, and a 24-month license revocation. Three DUI or DWAI convictions within seven years trigger a mandatory five-year revocation under Colorado’s habitual traffic offender statute.7Colorado General Assembly. Colorado Drunk Driving Laws – Colorado Law Summary
Administrative License Action Runs Separately
The license revocation is worth flagging on its own because it does not depend on whether your case ends up as a felony, a misdemeanor, or a dismissal. The Colorado DMV handles license revocation through the express consent process on its own timeline, and those administrative penalties apply even if the criminal case is later dismissed.8Department of Revenue – Motor Vehicle. The DUI Process Refusing a chemical test triggers its own escalating revocations: 12 months for a first refusal, 24 months for a second, and 36 months for a third.9Colorado Department of Revenue. Express Consent
Collateral Consequences of a Felony DUI
A felony conviction reaches into parts of life that a misdemeanor typically does not.
Firearms
A felony DUI conviction permanently bars you from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law. The prohibition applies to any crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment, which includes every Colorado felony.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The ban is difficult to reverse and applies whether or not the judge actually imposed prison time.
Immigration
Non-citizens face heightened risk from any DUI conviction, and the risk grows sharply once the charge is a felony. A single misdemeanor DUI without aggravating factors does not typically make someone deportable on its own, but it can delay green card and citizenship applications by raising questions about good moral character. A felony DUI, a DUI involving drugs, repeated DUI convictions, or a DUI causing injury or death can be treated far more seriously and may be classified as a crime involving moral turpitude or an aggravated felony, either of which can trigger removal proceedings.
International Travel
Canada treats impaired driving as a serious criminal offense and can deny entry to anyone with a DUI conviction on their record, including misdemeanors. Since December 2018, Canada increased the maximum penalty for impaired driving to ten years, and a DUI no longer qualifies for automatic deemed rehabilitation after a waiting period. Anyone with a DUI conviction from December 18, 2018 onward may need to apply for a Temporary Resident Permit or Criminal Rehabilitation to enter Canada, a process that takes documentation, legal fees, and often months of waiting.
Insurance and Cost
Colorado typically requires an SR-22 filing after a DUI. The filing itself is inexpensive, but it signals to your insurer that you are a high-risk driver, which can dramatically increase premiums for years. Combined with defense fees, fines, surcharges, treatment programs, and interlock costs, even a first misdemeanor conviction commonly runs into several thousand dollars. A felony compounds those numbers.