Second Hand Smoke and Colorado Family Law

The Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act that went into effect at 12:01 on July 1, 2006 means many businesses are now officially deemed smoke free. The implementation of this law coincides with the United States Surgeon General's statement about environmental tobacco smoke, often called second hand smoke, that there is no safe amount of second hand smoke.

The U.S. government's top doctor says the debate is over, second hand smoke is not a mere annoyance, but a serious health hazard that leads to disease and premature death in children and non-smoking adults. "Second hand smoke kills people," stated Surgeon General Richard Carmona, citing a report issued this week.

Attorney at The Harris Law Firm had an opportunity to expound on this issue when they were invited to discuss a current family law case on the Caplis and Silverman Show on KHOW 630 AM on June 28th. The case involved one of the parties who was concerned about how the other party's second hand would affect the health of their child, and the yet to be determined allocation of parenting time.

We believe that with the recent attention given to the harmful effects of second hand smoke, Colorado judges will likely take this issue much more seriously when considering the best interests of the child.