On a June night in 2022, 22-year-old Christian Glass, a man of New Zealand heritage, found himself in a frightening situation. His car was stuck on a remote road near the small town of Silver Plume, Colorado. Seeking assistance, he did what anyone in his position might do: he called 911 for help. This call for aid, however, would set in motion a chain of events that would tragically end his life.
In his call to the dispatcher, he mentioned he had two small knives, a hammer, and a rubber mallet, tools he used for his hobby as an amateur geologist. He even offered to throw these items out of his car window to show he was not a threat.
When officers from the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office and other local agencies arrived, they found a distressed and scared young man. For over an hour, a tense standoff unfolded. Glass, who his parents said was likely experiencing a mental health crisis, remained in his car, expressing his fear to the officers. Despite his offers to disarm himself and his apparent distress, the situation escalated. Officers, instead of de-escalating, decided to breach his vehicle.
The scene descended into chaos as officers broke Glass's car window. They deployed bean bag rounds and a Taser on the young man who was still inside his vehicle. In the ensuing moments, as Glass held one of his knives, Clear Creek County Sheriff's Deputy Andrew Buen fired his gun multiple times, killing him. The autopsy would later show that Christian Glass died from multiple gunshot wounds. The report also indicated the presence of THC and a prescription amphetamine in his system.
In the aftermath of the shooting, a grand jury indicted Deputy Andrew Buen on charges including second-degree murder, and his supervisor, Kyle Gould, who was not on the scene but authorized the breach of the vehicle, faced charges of criminally negligent homicide. Several other officers at the scene were also charged with failure to intervene. Following legal proceedings, Andrew Buen was ultimately convicted of criminally negligent homicide and sentenced to prison. Kyle Gould pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of failing to intervene and received probation. The other officers' charges were eventually dismissed. In a civil settlement, Christian Glass's family received $19 million, the largest in Colorado's history for a police killing. As part of the settlement, the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Department agreed to implement crisis intervention training for its officers.
