Former Colorado sheriff’s deputy convicted of homicide in shooting death of man in crisis

A former Colorado sheriff’s deputy was convicted of criminally negligent homicide Thursday in the shooting death of a 22-year-old man in distress who called 911 for help after his car got stuck in a small mountain community.

A former Colorado sheriff’s deputy was convicted of criminally negligent homicide Thursday in the shooting death of a 22-year-old man in distress who called 911 for help after his car got stuck in a small mountain community. Jurors stopped short of finding former Clear Creek County Deputy Andrew Buen guilty of the more serious charge of second-degree murder in the June 2022 death of Christian Glass, which drew national attention and led to changes in how officers are trained to respond to people in mental health crises under a $19 million settlement with his family. The jury had the option to convict Buen on the lesser charge of homicide, which carries a sentence of up to three years in prison. As the verdict was read, Buen stood with his head bowed, flanked by his attorneys. He was later taken to jail, where he will stay until he is sentenced April 14. Murder convictions against officers are rare, and the decision in Buen’s case follows a long trend of officers avoiding harsh punishment for actions taken while they were on duty. Jurors delivered murder convictions against police only nine times in the U.S. over the past two decades, according to criminal justice expert Philip Stinson at Bowling Green University. Thursday’s verdict “is a typical result that we see. It’s not uncommon that in these cases an officer will be convicted of a lesser offense, if convicted at all,” Stinson said.