People v. Naranjo, 2017 CO 87

Naranjo was charged with two counts of felony menacing for allegedly pointing a handgun from his car at another vehicle’s occupants during a road‑rage incident and saying, “You don’t want to fuck with me.”
Victims testified Naranjo raised and pointed the gun at close range; Naranjo testified he merely picked up a sliding gun from the passenger seat and placed it in the glove compartment to prevent accidental discharge, denying any pointing or threats.
Trial court instructed on felony menacing but refused defense‑tendered instruction on the lesser non‑included offense of disorderly conduct with a deadly weapon (intentional/knowing/reckless display in a public place “in a manner calculated to alarm”).
Jury convicted Naranjo of felony menacing (acquitted on a separate harassment instruction). Court of Appeals reversed, holding a rational basis existed for the disorderly‑conduct instruction and remanding for retrial.
Colorado Supreme Court granted certiorari and reversed the court of appeals, holding there was no rational evidentiary basis to acquit on menacing yet convict on disorderly conduct given the trial testimony.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether trial court erred by refusing a lesser non‑included instruction for disorderly conduct with a deadly weapon	People: No rational basis existed to acquit on felony menacing and convict on disorderly conduct; defense testimony described at most negligent handling, not reckless display	Naranjo: His handling of the sliding gun could be viewed as reckless display in a public place calculated to alarm; jury should have the lesser option	Court: No. Given the evidence, either the victims’ account (which, if credited, established felony menacing) or Naranjo’s account (which denied any display or recklessness) left no rational basis to convict of disorderly conduct while acquitting on menacing; instruction properly refused

People v. Rivera, 525 P.2d 431 (Colo. 1974) (permits lesser non‑included offense instruction when supported by evidence as a theory‑of‑the‑case tool)
People v. Hines, 780 P.2d 556 (Colo. 1989) (holding pointing a gun at another at close range may constitute felony menacing)
People v. Garcia, 826 P.2d 1259 (Colo. 1992) (a lesser non‑included instruction cannot rest on a statement the defendant has recanted under oath)
People v. Aragon, 653 P.2d 715 (Colo. 1982) (evidence must rationally support conviction on the lesser offense)
Brown v. People, 239 P.3d 764 (Colo. 2010) (distinguishes treatment of lesser included vs. lesser non‑included instructions)
People v. Torres, 848 P.2d 911 (Colo. 1993) (disorderly‑conduct weapon display measured by whether it would alarm a reasonable observer)