A new trial is set for Aug. 12 in the murder case against former Clear Creek sheriff’s deputy Andrew Buen in the shooting death of Christian Glass. Prosecutors asked for a new trial at an April 29 hearing following a hung jury last week.
Prosecution and defense attorneys in the Buen trial will have an opportunity to present motions before the court on July 8, according to the court’s calendar.
After eight days of testimony and two-and-a-half days of deliberation, a Clear Creek County jury found Buen guilty of reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor, in the shooting death of 22-year-old Christian Glass. However, jurors were unable to reach a decision on the second-degree murder and official misconduct charges at proceedings on April 26.
The jury’s foreperson Kristi Englekirk told the Courant there was one person among the 12 jurors who steadfastly rejected the second-degree murder conviction.
“(She was) really digging her heels in the whole time, saying cops can do no wrong, cops make mistakes, and thought that everything he (Buen) did was reasonable throughout the whole entire encounter,” Englekirk said.
Englekirk is a criminal defense attorney with Meza & Associates based in Westminster.
“It was frustrating, really, really frustrating,” she added.
Overnight on June 10-11, 2022, Christian Glass called 911 for help, saying he was trapped in his car. When officers arrived, they asked him to leave his vehicle. He refused in what turned into a long standoff. It ended when officers broke his car window and used a Taser on him. Buen then shot Glass five times, killing him, according to an indictment.
“It just seems so clear to me that he (Buen) was guilty. I don’t think any of his actions were reasonable and certainly not objectively reasonable given the circumstances. … I didn’t find anything the defense was saying very compelling at all,” Englekirk said.
Englekirk said she informed the Glass family attorney and the district attorney about the holdout juror in the hopes they would investigate any wrongdoing.
“The tenor of law enforcement in Clear Creek County has been tainted with this case, and I don’t know how long it’s going to take for that taint to be lifted,” District Attorney Heidi McCollum said outside the Clear Creek County Courthouse after the verdict April 26. “It could be a year, could be a decade. … I feel for my community. I wish this never happened in my community.”
Clear Creek County Sheriff Matthew Harris was hired by county commissioners in October of last year following the resignation of former Sheriff Rick Albers.
Harris promised change in the sheriff’s department.
Responding to the district attorney’s plan to re-try the Buen case Harris said, “The sheriff’s office will continue our efforts to improve to ensure that the events of June 2022 never happen again.”
“I’ve made a commitment to the public, our commissioners, and most importantly to the Glass family to change our operations here,” Harris continued. “I remain steadfast in fostering a culture of accountability, transparency, and professionalism to earn the public’s trust. Anything less is unacceptable.”
The Board of Clear Creek County commissioners shares the dissatisfaction of many in the community and beyond for the lack of closure from the recent trial, commissioners said in a May 1 statement.
“Christian Glass and his family deserved better… and we promise to always do everything in our power regardless of a verdict, to ensure that something like this horrific incident never happens again in our county,” the commissioners’ statement concluded.