Colorado High Court: Judges Can't Let Suspects Search Homes

DENVER (AP) — Colorado's highest court says trial judges can't allow criminal suspects access to crime scenes inside private homes without consent.

Monday's state Supreme Court decision comes after a man convicted of sexually assaulting his cousins argued a judge was wrong to deny him access to the scene in his grandmother's basement. An appeals court agreed he failed to prove a need to search her home, but said trial judges could grant access, which troubled victims' rights advocates.

In a similar case, a judge said it was necessary to grant a sex assault suspect access to a home.

The state Supreme Court says trial judges lack such authority.

In contrast, courts in California, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina and Massachusetts have determined a defendant's right to a fair trial sometimes outweighs privacy interests.