Top Republican in Colorado House, who is also running for Congress, was arrested in 2022 on DUI charge

Mike Lynch, the top Republican in the Colorado House of Representatives who recently announced a congressional bid, was arrested in 2022 on suspicion of drunken driven and being in possession of a gun while intoxicated. 

News Wednesday of the previously reported arrest came a week after the 2024 legislative session began and was a surprise to many at the state Capitol. Lynch has been the House minority leader for well over a year.

Lynch was pulled over by a Colorado State Patrol trooper on Interstate 25 in Larimer County on Sept. 30, 2022, for speeding. He was traveling 90 mph in a 75 mph zone. 

A trooper smelled alcohol on Lynch’s breath and the Wellington lawmaker’s blood alcohol level, when tested by a Breathalyzer, was about 0.16 — double the state’s driving limit of 0.08. 

“I didn’t realize that I was over the limit,” Lynch said in an interview with The Colorado Sun on Wednesday, adding that he had just left a nonpolitical fundraiser when he was pulled over. “It was a bad call, man. Bad call on my part.”

Lynch said he didn’t disclose his arrest to members of the House Republican caucus before he was elected minority leader a few months later. However, he said that some in the caucus knew about it before news of the arrest was made public Wednesday by The Denver Post, which first reported the case. 

“This happened out of session, in between elections,” Lynch said. “I’m not running away from this. I’ve taken full responsibility for it.”

Lynch’s campaign shared some of the court records in the case with The Sun. The minority leader said he has stopped drinking alcohol.

Lynch was charged with driving under the influence, speeding 10-19 miles per hour over the speed limit and being in possession of a gun while drunk. He pleaded guilty to driving while ability impaired, a lesser offense, and the gun charge. The other charges were dismissed by prosecutors. 

The representative was sentenced in December 2022 to 18 months probation and more than 150 hours of community service. Lynch told The Sun he still has some community service hours to complete and that his probation term — during which he is prohibited from possessing a gun — will end in June.

The news of Lynch’s arrest comes a few weeks after he announced a bid to represent Colorado’s 4th Congressional District, which spans the state’s Eastern Plains into Loveland and Douglas County. Lynch is one of nearly a dozen Republican candidates in the district, including U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, state Rep. Richard Holtorf and former state Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg. 

Lynch said he didn’t consider disclosing the arrest before announcing his candidacy. 

“Voters are forgiving on these things,” he said. “A lot of people have gone through this.”

This is a developing story that will be updated.