1. (1)

   1. (a) The prosecution fellowship program is created in the department to provide money to the Colorado district attorneys' council to fund rural district attorney's office fellowships for persons who have graduated from a regionally accredited law school in Colorado and allow them to pursue careers as prosecutors in rural Colorado. The general assembly may appropriate money to the department for distribution to the Colorado district attorneys' council to implement the provisions of this article 19.3 and to provide fellowship funding to a rural district attorney's office selected for the funding.
   2. (b) The program provides fellowship funding to a rural district attorney's office in an amount determined appropriate by the fellowship committee that the office shall use to recruit, hire, and retain new deputy district attorneys.
   3. (c) The program must provide the fellows with a five-day training practicum. The Colorado district attorneys' council shall develop and present the practicum.

2. (2)

   1. (a) The prosecution fellowship committee is created, which selects the recipients of the fellowships. The committee is comprised of five members, including:

      1. (I) The executive director of the Colorado district attorneys' council, who serves as the chair of the committee; and
      2. (II) Four elected rural district attorneys or their designees appointed by the executive director of the Colorado district attorneys' council.
   2. (b) The committee shall develop a fellow and a district attorney's office application process and determine the selection criteria for fellowships.
   3. (c) The committee shall meet at least once a year, and the meeting shall be set by the chair of the committee.
   4. (d) Each elected district attorney member of the committee shall serve without compensation for a term of two years as determined by the fiscal year calendar.
   5. (e) The committee shall review applications received by the program, select the district attorneys' offices that will receive program funding for the eligible time period, and determine the applicable award amount for each selected office. After the committee selects the district attorneys' offices that will receive program funding, the Colorado district attorneys' council shall provide the funds to the selected offices.
3. (3) If a fellow who is receiving fellowship funding leaves the position within the award period, the recipient office shall return any remaining fellowship funding to the Colorado district attorneys' council. Upon receipt of any unspent funds, the committee may meet and award the funding to the same or another district attorney's office. Each office that receives funding shall return any unexpended program funding to the Colorado district attorneys' council. The Colorado district attorneys' council shall return any unexpended program money to the department at the end of each fiscal year.

4. (4) On or before January 1, 2028, the Colorado district attorneys' council shall provide a report to the house of representatives and senate judiciary committees, or their successor committees, regarding the prosecution fellowship program. The report must include the following information regarding the placement of the fellows:

   1. (a) For each fellowship awarded, the district attorney's office receiving the award; the amount of the fellowship funding awarded; and the status of any fellow's employment with the office, with any other district attorney's office within Colorado, or other employment, if known, after the fellowship ends;
   2. (b) A quantification of the decrease in workload for the deputy district attorneys by having the fellow placed in the particular rural district attorney's office;
   3. (c) Prosecutorial innovations and office improvements in the rural district attorneys' offices as the result of hosting fellows; and
   4. (d) Any other information regarding the efficacy of the fellowship program.

Source: L. 2014: Entire article added, (SB 14-174), ch. 232, p. 859, § 2, effective August 6. L. 2015: (1)(b) and (2)(e) amended, (SB 15-043), ch. 70, p. 188, § 1, effective April 3. L. 2025: (1)(a), (1)(b), (2)(a), (2)(b), (2)(d), (2)(e), (3), IP(4), and (4)(a) amended, (SB 25-067), ch. 54, p. 230, § 2, effective August 6.