H. Michael Steinberg has 42+ years of experience practicing Colorado criminal law. Mr. Steinberg strives to stay current with the ever changing aspects of criminal law issues and updates resulting in his extensive knowledge of successful criminal defense as well as appellate work. He is also an active member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar Association, the Colorado Trial Lawyer's Association, and the Colorado and Arapahoe Bar Associations.

Articles Posted in Colorado Police Phone Searches: What’s Legal In 2026

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Police officer in a Colorado mountain town holding a glowing smartphone, with mountains and pine trees under a clear sky in the background.
Colorado police generally may seize a cell phone or computer when a lawful arrest, warrant, consent, probable cause plus a recognized seizure doctrine, or a genuine emergency permits them to take control of the device.

But lawful possession of the hardware does not automatically authorize examination of its digital contents.

Under Riley v. California and Colorado law, an arrest alone does not permit police to browse messages, photographs, applications, files, or other stored data; police must obtain a search warrant or establish a separate, narrowly defined exception to the warrant requirement.

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