People v. J.P.

2026 COA 41. No. 24CA2067. Sealing Criminal Justice Records Other Than Convictions—Acquittals—Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity.

May 28, 2026

J.P. was charged with multiple crimes in three separate cases in El Paso County. Following a bench trial, the court found J.P. not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI) in all three cases. The court committed J.P. to the human services department for care and psychiatric treatment. During his commitment, J.P. pleaded guilty to second degree murder and aggravated robbery in connection with a cold case homicide, and the court sentenced him to 60 years in prison. A psychiatrist subsequently opined that it was appropriate for J.P. to be unconditionally released to serve his prison sentence, and the district court unconditionally released J.P. Three years later, J.P. filed motions in his three El Paso County cases to seal his criminal records under CRS § 24-72-705, arguing that because his charges in each case ended in acquittal and a not guilty finding, his records were eligible for sealing. The district court concluded that § 24-72-705 does not authorize sealing records in cases where a defendant is found NGRI and denied the motions.

On appeal, J.P. argued that an NGRI verdict is an acquittal, so his records are eligible for sealing under § 24-72-705(1)(a)(II), and the district court erred by denying his motions to seal. Section 24-72-705(1)(a)(II) requires a court to order a defendant’s criminal justice records sealed when the defendant is “acquitted of all counts in the case.” The court of appeals held that a defendant found NGRI is eligible for record sealing under the statute because an NGRI judgment operates as an acquittal of the charged offenses. The district court thus erred by denying the motions to seal.

The orders denying the motions to seal were reversed and the case was remanded to seal J.P.’s records.