Trial starts in Colorado for former town councilman accused of shooting teen in the face

The trail started Wednesday for the former town councilman whose defense claims a faulty gun is responsible for his shooting of a teenager.

Brent Metz, who was serving as a councilman in the tiny suburban community of Mountain View at the time of the incident in September of 2024, is accused of assault in the 2nd degree, two counts of menacing and one count of illegal discharge of a weapon.

The incident left a 17 year old with a gunshot wound to the face. The teenager survived and is expected to testify against Metz.
Metz' defense is admitting he shot the teen, but placing blame on what it claims is a faulty handgun, not Metz.

 
It happened along Pleasant Park Road in Conifer at the home of Metz' girlfriend. The two teenagers were seeking a place to take homecoming photos and thought the upscale property was a good backdrop. They were unable to reach anyone at the home's locked gate, so they went over a fence and up to the door where they knocked, but found no one home.

They turned around and left, going back over the fence off the property and were sitting in a car along the road when Metz approached. The girlfriend had called 911 about trespassers on the property after seeing the teens on camera. She was told not to contact them. She also told Metz, who drove up in a GMC pickup and parked at an angle in front of the Audi where the boys sat.

Investigators say they were penning a note to leave behind, to ask permission to take photos on the property.

"Minor trespassing. No big deal. It's true they were looking for a place to take homecoming photos. Very sweet, very innocent," said defense attorney Chris Decker.

In opening statements, the defense introduced its theory of the shooting; that Metz' gun, a semi-automatic Sig Sauer P320 was a defective weapon and fired without warning.

"This gun goes off, in his hand, without his intention," said Decker. "He was being as careful with his sidearm as he had been every other day, But it happened anyway."

The prosecution opened by saying Metz didn't have to act as he did, pulling his truck in front of the car where the boys sat and getting out, pulling a gun.

"He came in hot. He knew exactly who was there. Because he was watching them on a video," said prosecutor Brian Hassing.

"And he knew that they did nothing more than you're going to see they did. But he decided that rather than wait for law enforcement that he was going to teach these boys a lesson and approach them aggressively."

Among the first testimony, the other teenager in the car who said he remembered Metz making a motion as he got out of the truck and pulling the gun, saying Metz pointed it at him and then fired. The bullet went through the windshield and struck the other teen, who was turning to get out of the car.

The teenager, testified Metz said, "Oh ______ , my gun went off. And "Oh ________ I just shot a kid." He also remembered Metz saying, "It's only just a graze." The teen underwent surgery for injuries to his nose and cheek area.

"This accidental discharge was not the product of his reckless conduct," said Decker to the jury of 12 women and one man, including an alternate.

"They're going to try to argue that this was a justifiable action. When you hear the eyewitness testimony, the physical evidence and your common sense, that's not going to work," said Hassing.

The assault charge is a 4th degree felony with a sentencing range of 2 to 6 years if Metz is found guilty. The menacing and illegal discharge of a weapon charges are lower felonies and the penalty range is 1 to 3 years.

The victim is among the expected witnesses and may testify Thursday.