Distressed motorist shot dead by cops had alcohol, cannabis and amphetamines in his system
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A troubled motorist shot dead by police after calling 911 had alcohol, cannabis and amphetamines in his system at the time of the fatal incident.
Christian Glass, 22, had even tried to give heart-shaped signals for help when he was tasered and shot five times by officers.
The cop who killed him has since been named Clear Creek County Deputy Andrew Buen by prosecutors.
Buen, 29, was back on patrol a few days later and has not been suspended from his job.
He is not visible in the bodycam images released, as it appears that the indicator was recorded by the alleged killer’s bodycam.
The deadly shooting is under investigation and it is unclear whether Buen will ultimately be charged. Glass’s parents have said their son’s death was murder.
The Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office said he was shot on June 11 in Denver, Colorado, after becoming “argumentary and uncooperative” with officers.
According to his parents, Sally and Simon Glass, Deputy Andrew Buen was the one who fired the fatal shots, the name coming from prosecutors.
Sally, from Kent, and Simon, from New Zealand, have both demanded that the sheriff take the incident seriously and label their son’s death a “murder.”
Christian Glass, 22, had tried to give heart-shaped signals for help when he was tasered and shot five times by officers in Denver, Colorado
They said their son was taking Ritalin for his ADHD, which may have explained the presence of amphetamines in his system.
Officers became engaged to Glass after he called for help after his car crashed into a rural road, sparking an hour-long argument between the driver and police.
Another sheriff’s deputy who arrived on the scene to investigate the murder muted his body camera video during most of his investigation.
An autopsy report released Tuesday shows he was shot five times and had superficial knife wounds in which he stabbed himself.
He also had traces of alcohol, cannabis and amphetamine in his system, with his parents explaining that his ADHA medication, Ritalin, can also show up as amphetamine.
According to his parents, Sally and Simon Glass (left), Deputy Andrew Buen was the one who fired the fatal shots. They call their son’s death “murder”
Simon and Sally Glass demand responsibility for their son’s death and say the cops who shot him should be fired
Glass, 22, (pictured) was shot by officers after standing still for an hour, refusing to get out of his car while holding a knife
Glass family lawyers Qusair Mohamedbhai and Siddhartha Rathod said Buen was back on patrol within days of the incident.
His father said his son had ‘trusted’ that the police would come to help him, adding: ‘Instead they attacked and killed him.
“The killer hit Christian five times just to be safe.”
Fifth District Attorney Heidi McCollum said in a statement Tuesday that her office is continuing the investigation into the shooting.
She will decide whether the officers involved should be prosecuted, or she can convene a grand jury to make that decision.
McCollum said: “While we understand that public sentiment may want this process to proceed at a faster pace, it is not in the interests of justice and fairness to the victim’s family to rush this case to a decision.”
Her office has been in contact with the US Attorney’s Office for Colorado, the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, and the FBI’s Denver Division regarding the matter.
Glass said he was afraid to get out of his car when police surrounded him, with one officer standing on the hood of his car (pictured) while others tried to get him out of the vehicle
Once Glass grabbed a knife, the officers fired beanbag rounds and groped him. After he stabbed himself and hurled himself wildly, officers fired five shots into the car
The officers then broke through the window and removed a dying glass from the vehicle
Deborah Takahara, spokeswoman for the Colorado US Attorney’s Office, added: “The US Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and the FBI’s Denver Division are aware of the Silver Plume shooting.
“If the information reveals possible violations of federal criminal laws, the Justice Department will take appropriate action.”
Glass lived in Boulder with a roommate and took computer coding classes. He had no criminal record.
Bodycam footage shows the moment officers approached Glass, who called for help to get his car out of a bush.
When police arrived, Glass refused to get out of his car, fearful when officers yelled at him to get out of the vehicle.
“Please, push me out, drag me out, I’ll follow you to a police station,” Glass told the officers. ‘I am so afraid.’
Glass refused to get out of his car for over an hour before pulling out a knife, causing the police to fire beanbags and grope Glass before firing into the car.
Sally called the police bullies, with both parents describing the incident as murder
Officers pulled Glass out of the car because he stopped responding after the shooting
Cops repeatedly yelled at him to drop the knife and begged the 22-year-old to get out of the car and save himself after stabbing himself
At one point you can also see him praying with folded hands and saying, ‘Dear Lord, please don’t let them break the window.’
When the officers broke open the window, Glass appeared to panic and grabbed a knife.
Police then shot Glass with a beanbag chair and shocked him with a tranquilizer gun before the young man twisted in his seat and thrust a knife at an officer, the footage shows.
Then a cop fired his gun and hit Glass. The footage shows Glass stabbing himself while the police yelled at him to stop.
“You can save yourself,” one of the officers yells. “You can still save yourself!”
Glass had no history of mental illness, and a family lawyer said they “would never know” the reason behind his abnormal behavior.
Simon condemned the action the police took in responding to his son’s appeal and their failure to calm him down and de-escalate the situation.
Lawyers Qusair Mohamedbhai, (left) and Siddhartha Rathod (right) released an autopsy report showing Glass died of gunshot wounds
While officers broke the window in the car, Glass grabbed a knife and injured himself
Glass’s autopsy shows five gunshots hit his chest, lungs, liver, spine and kidneys
In a news conference on Tuesday, he said, “Christian’s murder is a stain on Clear Creek County and Colorado.
“It was a murder by a Colorado official who can’t stand. It is not good.’
His mother Sally described the police as bullies and called on the county to exterminate them and replace them with friendlier officers.
She added: “You know, an aggressive bully will always be an aggressive bully, and I don’t know how to train that trait.
‘Pay more, increase the stages of the profession by getting rid of’ [them] and hire people with a good heart and a moral compass,’
The Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.
The shooting comes amid a national outcry over police reforms aimed at crisis intervention, de-escalation and alternative policing programs.
In Denver and New York, behavioral health specialists are sent to 911 callers dealing with crises that police may not be trained to handle or may even exacerbate.
Police have not said whether behavioral specialists have been called for Glass.