Colorado legal term
Semiautomatic firearm in Colorado Criminal Law
Current through 2026 Colorado legislative session
In Colorado criminal law, “Semiautomatic firearm” is a term defined by statute rather than by its everyday meaning. Its statutory definition — quoted verbatim below — controls how the term is applied throughout the Colorado criminal code.
What does “Semiautomatic firearm” mean in Colorado criminal law?
"Semiautomatic firearm" means a firearm that is not a machine gun and that, upon initiating the firing sequence, fires the first chambered cartridge and uses a portion of the energy of the firing cartridge to extract the expended cartridge case, chamber the next round, and prepare the firing mechanism to fire again, and requires a separate pull, release, push, or initiation of the trigger to fire each cartridge. (C.R.S. § 18-12-101)
Statutes defining or using this term
Charges using this term
Related terms in the same statutes
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.