Colorado town councilman pleads not guilty in shooting of teen

A town councilman in Colorado who was accused of shooting a teenage boy in the face outside his property pleaded not guilty to all charges on Monday.

Brent Metz, a councilmember in the town of Mountain View, pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon resulting in serious bodily injury, two counts of menacing with a weapon, and illegal discharge of a firearm -- all felonies -- related to a Sept. 11, 2024 shooting in Conifer.

Mountain View is a town of about 500 residents in the Denver metro area about 30 miles northeast of Conifer

In an arrest affidavit from the time, a Jefferson County Sheriff's Office investigator said Metz, 39, shot a 17-year-old high school student in the face while the teen was sitting in his car with a friend outside a home owned by Metz through an LLC. The teens told investigators that they tried to ask the homeowner for permission to take high school homecoming dance pictures on their property.

The 17-year-old and his 15-year-old friend tried speaking with the homeowner of a 33-acre property with horse barns, a pond, and views of the mountains, investigators said. They heard music playing at the property, hopped the fence to knock on the door, and when no one answered, they returned to their car on Pleasant Park Road. While in their car, they began writing a note to leave for the homeowner, which sheriff's office investigators recovered.

"There is nothing so far that we have learned that would cause us to believe that this was- that there was any intent to commit crimes that they were doing anything that would have been malicious or criminal other than stepping across their fence," Jefferson County Sheriff's spokesperson Jacki Kelley told CBS News Colorado in September.

Someone at the home saw the teens on security cameras and called Metz, who came home, got out of his truck with a handgun, pointed it at one of the teens, and shot him, striking him in the face, according to an arrest report. The other teen told investigators that he heard Metz say, "Oh s..., my gun went off."

Jefferson County deputies responded and took Metz into custody without incident. He was formally charged days later.

A message was left with one of Metz's attorneys on Monday seeking comment.

In 2023, Metz was sworn in as a town council member in Mountain View. His term expires in 2027, but he took a leave of absence from the council after the shooting, town officials said in September. He now faces a recall election.

Metz is due back in court on June 23.