NEWS

[MuffyBee]

http://www.9news.com/news/article/207693/188/Caylees-Law-may-be-introduced-in-Colorado-
'Caylee's Law' may be introduced in Colorado
July 12, 2011
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Currently in Colorado, it is a Class 1 misdemeanor if you fail to report a death and thereby compromise the investigation.

Caylee's Law would make failing to report the death of a child within one hour a felony offense. Failing to report a child missing within 24 hours would also be a felony offense.

Rep. Daniel Kagan (D-Denver) has been inundated with emails and letters from people demanding the laws be changed
People are very concerned. People feel like a great injustice was done in Florida and people want to make sure it can never be repeated here in Colorado," Kagan said. "It may be that there is a gap in our law. To fail to report a death and thereby compromise an investigation, should that just be a misdemeanor? I'm not so sure."

Dan Recht, a Denver criminal defense attorney, disagrees and says general legislation often leads to bad legislation.
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Kagan says lawmakers are considering Caylee's Law, but he says it has to have the right provisions.

"There's an argument that can be made for it but it can't be made in haste," Kagan said.

Kagan says he wouldn't be surprised if a bill was drafted when the legislature reconvenes in January.
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[MuffyBee]

http://www.kdvr.com/news/politics/kdvr-lawmakers-moving-ahead-with-caylees-law-20110715,0,3034127.story
Rep. Fields, others moving ahead with 'Caylee's Law'
July 15, 2011

AURORA -- It took about five years, but justice finally came to Rhonda Fields, whose son, Javad Marshall Fields, was murdered along with his girlfriend because he was about to testify in the murder trial of a drug dealer who killed his friend.

Fields, not surprisingly, is upset, like so many Americans, that the just-concluded trial of Casey Anthony in Florida didn't provide, in her view, any justice for the murder of Anthony's daughter, Caylee.

"I just think it's an injustice that happened," Fields said. "There's not going to be any accountability associated with that little girl's death."
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Fields, elected last November to theColorado House of Representatives as a Democrat from Aurora, is now in a position to lead that effort next year at the state Capitol -- and she's planning to do just that.

"If you don't report it when someone's missing or dead, you're probably trying to hide something," Fields said.

But when Fields called the Legislative Council office on Thursday to reserve the title for such a bill, she was told another lawmaker had already beaten her to the punch.

"I guess a lot of us are serious about this," Fields said.

Bill title and drafting requests are confidential, so it remains unclear which other state representative or senator is giving 'Caylee's Law' serious thought after a national petition effort.
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Fields, having seen her son's murder lead to improved witness protection laws, notes that the laws sparked from specific cases are often important and effective.

But she'd like what's now referred to as 'Caylee's Law' to be named for a child from her own community whose murder, also by her parents, went unreported for roughly two years -- Aarone Thompson.

Aarone Thompson's father, Aaron Thompson, reported her missing in November 2005, possibly two years after she was killed, police later determined.
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Fields' idea for a bill involves increasing the state statute for failing to report a murder or a missing person from a misdemeanor to a felony. And she thinks setting some sort of deadline by which parents must report makes sense.
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