In Re The PEOPLE of the State of Colorado v. Patrick S. KEEN, 2021 CO 50

Patrick Keen assaulted his girlfriend; initially convicted of sexual assault and misdemeanors, then later vacated convictions pursuant to a Crim. P. 35(c) plea agreement.
Under the plea deal Keen pleaded guilty to first-degree assault (a per se crime of violence) and attempted sexual assault (a SOISP-eligible sex-related offense).
The court sentenced Keen to 16 years in prison for first-degree assault followed consecutively by an 8-year determinate SOISP term for attempted sexual assault.
After Allman v. People (2019), Keen moved to vacate, and the district court held the consecutive prison–probation (prison + SOISP) sentence illegal under Allman and scheduled resentencing.
The People filed a C.A.R. 21 petition; the Colorado Supreme Court exercised original jurisdiction and held that Allman does not bar a prison sentence for a non-sex offense followed by a consecutive SOISP sentence (whether indeterminate for a sex offense or determinate for a sex-related offense), and remanded.
The court relied on Manaois reasoning, SOLSA legislative history (removal of sex-related offenses from the indeterminate sentencing provision to preserve plea bargaining), and the crime-of-violence statute’s distinction between mandatory punishment for violent crimes and other concurrent/consecutive sentencing.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Allman’s general prohibition on imposing prison for some counts and probation for others in multi-count cases applies when the probation is an SOISP term imposed under SOLSA for a sex-related offense (determinate SOISP) and the prison term is for a non-sex offense	Manaois and SOLSA’s structure and legislative history show the legislature intended courts may impose consecutive prison then SOISP to preserve plea-bargaining flexibility; crime-of-violence statute permits prison for the violent count while allowing probation for the non-violent SOISP count	Allman bars any prison-plus-probation sentencing in multi-count cases; because Keen’s SOISP was determinate for a sex-related offense (not an indeterminate sex-offense SOISP), Allman should control and render the sentence illegal	Court held Allman does not apply here; consecutive prison for a non-sex violent offense followed by SOISP for a sex-related offense is authorized by SOLSA as amended and by the crime-of-violence statute; rule to show cause made absolute and case remanded

Allman v. People, 451 P.3d 826 (court prohibited sentencing a defendant to prison for some counts and probation for others under the general sentencing statutes)
People v. Ehlebracht, 480 P.3d 727 (Colo. App.) (court of appeals held SOLSA’s unique sentencing scheme could render Allman inapplicable for certain prison–SOISP sentences)
People v. Lucy, 467 P.3d 332 (discusses narrow scope and standards for exercise of original jurisdiction under C.A.R. 21)
People v. Rosas, 459 P.3d 540 (addresses circumstances warranting exercise of original jurisdiction)
People v. Austin, 419 P.3d 587 (explains per se crime-of-violence sentencing mechanics)
Granite State Ins. Co. v. Ken Caryl Ranch Master Ass'n, 183 P.3d 563 (principle that courts must give effect to legislative intent in statutory interpretation)
Dep't of Revenue v. Agilent Techs., Inc., 441 P.3d 1012 (court will not add or subtract words to a statute; respect legislature’s chosen language)