The Office of Research and Statistics (ORS), in response to specific legislative mandates, develops and maintains specific risk assessments and decision guidelines. Please see information below on the Colorado Actuarial Risk Assessment Scale (CARAS), the Colorado State Board of Parole Administrative Release Guideline Instrument (PBRGI), and Sex Offender Risk Assessments (SORS, SVPASI, and the SOMB Checklist).
Colorado Actuarial Risk Assessment Scale (CARAS)
The Division of Criminal Justice is mandated by statute, pursuant to 17-22.5-404(2)(a), C.R.S., to develop actuarial risk assessment instruments for use by the state parole board when it considers inmates for release to parole supervision. Over the years, the Colorado Actuarial Risk Assessment Scale (CARAS) has been revised many times to accommodate changes in the characteristics of prisoners. The CARAS applies to both men and women. Following the latest re-validation process, the newest version of the CARAS was implemented in September 2015. Available below is the current CARAS, Version 6 scale (including items, item descriptions, item weights, and scoring categories). Forthcoming will be Brief Description and a Technical Summary of the CARAS, Version 6.
CARAS Version 6: Scale 108KB
-Typo on Item #4. Assessed Custody Level, updated, 12/01/2015.
-Typo on Item #2. Number of All Prior Parole and Probation Revocations, updated, 05/05/2016).
Available below is the previous CARAS, Version 5 scale in effect between 2008 and 2015 (including items, item descriptions, item weights and scoring categories), a brief description of the CARAS, Ver. 5, external reviews by criminologists Christopher Baird and Gerald Gaes, and an overview of the CARAS, Version 5 in PowerPoint presentation format.
CARAS Version 5: Brief Description 149KB
CARAS Version5: Reviews by Criminologists 241KB
CARAS Version5: PowerPoint Overview 3.3MB
Colorado State Board of Parole Administrative Release Guideline Instrument
Pursuant to §17-22.5-107(1), C.R.S., the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ), working in consultation with the Colorado State Board of Parole, is mandated to develop an administrative release guideline instrument for use by the Board in evaluating applications for parole.
Below is a link to the document, "Overview: Colorado State Board of Parole Administrative Release Guideline Instrument." The Parole Board Release Guideline Instrument (PBRGI) comprises a set of items determined by policy decisions derived from a draft guideline produced by the Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice and that correspond with the parole considerations in statute [see §17-22.5-404(4), C.R.S]. The PBRGI described in the "Overview" [2012] document below remains the current version, reflecting the statutory parole considerations.
This document includes a description of the instrument, the policy items and advisory decision matrix that provides an advisory recommendation for each release application hearing conducted by board members. The statutory reports related to this mandate may be found at ORS: Documents-Reports, by fiscal year, under the title, "Analysis of Colorado State Board of Parole Decisions."
Overview: Colorado State Board of Parole Administrative Release Guideline Instrument 160KB
Sex Offender Risk Assessments (SORS, SVPASI, and the SOMB Checklist)
The General Assembly mandated that DCJ develop a risk assessment tool to assist in the determination of sexually violent predators (SVPs) (see 16-11.7-103(4)(d) and 18-3-414.5, C.R.S.). An offender's score on the Sex Offender Risk Scale (SORS) is one of four criteria identified by the state Sex Offender Management Board (SOMB) to be included in the recommendation to the court regarding the SVP designation for offenders whose crime qualifies for possible SVP status, per 18-3-414.5(1), C.R.S. The SORS, then, is incorporated into a larger decision-making tool (the Colorado Sexually Violent Predator Assessment Screening Instrument).
The SORS was developed using actuarial methods and cannot be modified without additional empirical research. The non-SORS SVP designation criteria were developed by an expanded membership of the SOMB that convened for the purpose of explicitly defining the statutory criteria. The non-SORS criteria may change over time should policymakers decide to reconsider the current screening process.
Each of the seven dynamic items in the SOMB Checklist (three of which are included in the SORS) statistically correlated with problems in treatment and supervision within the first 12 months following sentencing. The instrument was developed and tested without instructions, yet reliability rates for each item were very high. It has the capacity to be used over time to document an offender's changes in each of the domains.
Accompanying are the SVPASI Handbook, Instrument, and additional resource material.
Handbook 556KB (11/2020; rev. 10/23/2023)
Instrument 816KB (7/23/2021; typo. corrections, 10/23/2023)
The SVPASI Form includes editable fields. Tips to edit the "Instrument."
- To preserve fillable fields, click on the "Instrument" link, then "Save", "Save As", or "Download" the document as a pdf to your desktop.
- The form is best completed in a simple pdf reader (e.g., Adobe Reader, Foxit Reader, etc.)
- Note! Due to Acrobat Reader issues, users completing ANY form in Reader should "Disable new Acrobat Reader" on the Acrobat Menu.
DO NOT:
- "Print to pdf" (this will eliminate the edit functionality of the fields).
- Complete the form in an internet browser window!
- Attempt to complete the form by editing it using software designed to edit pdf documents!
RESOURCES: Colorado Division of Criminal Justice Adult Sex Offender Risk Assessment Screening Instrument
Progress Report 1.a (June 1999) 78.7KB
English, K., Retzlaff, P., &, Kleinsasser, D. (2002) The Colorado Sex Offender Risk Scale. Journal of Child Abuse, 11, 77-96. 1.01MB