The People of the State of Colorado, Petitioner v. Edward Kevin Degreat, Respondent.

Summary

The court held that, on the unique facts presented, DeGreat was entitled to a jury instruction allowing self-defense as an affirmative defense to aggravated robbery based on his alleged failure to pay for taxi services after using force against the driver. The court concluded that DeGreat presented some credible evidence from which a reasonable jury could find that the alleged taking of services and the use of force occurred simultaneously in self-defense, and that the instructional error was not harmless. Chief Justice Coats, joined by Justices Boatright and Samour, dissented, concluding that the majority improperly treated the failure to pay for voluntarily rendered services as robbery and that the jury's reckless-assault verdict foreclosed self-defense.