(Colorado Newsline) Colorado voters approved a “truth in sentencing” measure, according to The Associated Press.

Proposition 128 will make people convicted of certain violent crimes ineligible for parole until they have served at least 85 percent of their sentences. It also will make someone convicted of a third violent crime ineligible for parole granted by a parole board or earned reductions based on rehabilitative efforts.

Image

The AP called the race at 8:53 p.m. It had 62.5 percent of the vote.

Colorado law requires that people convicted of certain violent crimes serve at least 75 percent of their sentence before they could be eligible for parole. Crimes affected by Proposition 128 include murder, sexual assault, aggravated robbery, assault, kidnapping, arson and burglary. It will apply to convictions on or after January 1, 2025.

Depending on the crime, a person who is convicted can earn a reduced sentence or be granted discretionary parole based on their efforts to reach certain personal, professional or educational milestones while incarcerated.

Advance Colorado, a conservative “dark money” nonprofit that has spent millions to influence state elections in recent years but which is not required to disclose its donors, sponsored the measure. The organization also sponsored a measure to provide $350 million to law enforcement training efforts.

A coalition of organizations including the ACLU of Colorado, the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition, New Era Colorado and the Colorado Center on Law and Policy opposed Proposition 128, saying it would “unjustly punish” incarcerated people who worked to rehabilitate themselves.

Colorado Newsline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Colorado Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Quentin Young for questions: info@coloradonewsline.com. Follow Colorado Newsline on Facebook and X.