Six Colorado police officers who were present when distressed motorist Christian Glass was shot dead have been charged for failing to intervene.
Glass, 22, was shot five times and killed in Georgetown last year after he called 911 for help and then refused to get out of his car during an hour-long standoff because he was “terrified.”
Clear Creek County sheriff’s deputies Andrew Buen and Kyle Gould were charged with second-degree murder last year, and now every other officer who was on the scene when Glass was killed has also been charged for their role.
Police have now charged Georgetown Marshal Randy Williams with two felonies: failure to intervene and third-degree assault.
Former Deputy Timothy Collins, Division of Gaming Officers Christa Lloyd and Mary J Harris, Idaho Springs Officer Brittany Morrow and State Trooper Ryan Bennie have been charged with one count of failure to intervene.
On June 10, Glass called the police because his car was stuck on an embankment. Body camera footage shows Glass refusing to get out of his car while telling police he is ‘terrified’ and making heart shapes with his hands at officers
Former Clear Creek deputy Buen, who was also offered a plea deal, was the one who broke Glass’ window and shot him. He is awaiting trial
On Thursday, Gould pleaded guilty to ‘duty to report use of force by peace officers – duty to intervene – a class 1 misdemeanor. He was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine , and will never be allowed to work as a police officer in Colorado again.
Gould was not at the scene when Glass was killed, but ordered the driver’s side window broken while watching the incident via a live-streamed bodycam.
Former Clear Creek deputy Buen, who was also offered a plea deal, was the one who broke Glass’ window and shot him with beanbag rounds before tasing him and shooting him five times in the chest. He has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and is awaiting trial.
Both Gould and Buen were fired after being indicted last year.
Gould has reached a plea deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to a lesser charge of failure to intervene, a crime created in police reform legislation passed during protests over the 2020 killing of George Floyd. The penalty is a prison sentence of a maximum of 364 days, but according to the deal, Gould was to be placed on probation.
Georgetown Police Marshal Randolph Williams is seen at the scene. He is charged with failure to intervene and third-degree assault
Gould entered his plea and was convicted as Christian Glass’ parents, Sally and Simon Glass, watched in court in Idaho Springs.
A statement from their lawyers expressed support for prosecutors and noted that Gould had taken responsibility for his role in their son’s death.
“The Glass family hopes that the law enforcement community learns from this prosecution and makes changes to their policies and culture to prevent these types of tragedies in the future,” the report said.
Glass, from New Zealand, had called 911 for roadside assistance while he was experiencing what his mother described as a mental health crisis in June 2022. He refused to get out of his car because he was ‘terrified’ and made heart-shaped signs with his hands, and flashed a knife at the officers.
Officers spoke to him to persuade him to leave the car. After about an hour of negotiations, officers decided to enter the car even though there was no indication Glass posed a danger or was suspected of a crime, the complaint said.
After the window was smashed, body camera footage shows officers shooting Glass with beanbag rounds and then tasing him. Glass brandished a knife in “a state of complete panic and self-defense” before turning in his seat to thrust a knife in an officer’s direction, the complaint said. Buen then shot his gun into Glass five times.
Glass’ mother Sally said at the time that her son suffered from depression, had recently been diagnosed with ADHD and was “having a mental health episode” and was “petrified” the night he was killed.
This week she told the court: ‘Our son was a nice boy, and they killed a good boy. And I hope that now, throughout his life, Mr. Gould will think about being kinder and more compassionate to people who are in trouble.”
Earlier this year, Glass’ parents won a $19 million settlement that included policy changes including crisis intervention training for officers who respond to people in need.