JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — A trial date is set for the man accused of shooting a teenager in the face after the boy and a friend allegedly trespassed on his Conifer property in 2024.
Brent John Metz's trial will begin May 22 with jury selection and will continue May 27-29. A Jefferson County judge said at a Tuesday status conference that they will pull a larger pool of jurors due to the publicity the case has received.
Denver7 began following this case after the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) released initial information about Metz's arrest on Sept. 11, 2024.
The JCSO said two teens had trespassed on Metz's property, which is located along the 23000 block of Pleasant Park Road, as they searched for a place to take homecoming photos. One of the homeowners called 911 to report the trespassers at 4:15 p.m., and then she called her boyfriend, later identified as Metz.
When first responders arrived, they found two cars on the side of the road, and a 17-year-old who was bleeding from his face while another boy applied pressure to the wounds. Metz stood nearby. JCSO said the injured teen told police that the two boys had been trying to find a place to take homecoming pictures and jumped the fence on the property to ask the homeowners for permission. However, they said nobody appeared home, so they walked back down the long driveway back to their car to write a note for the homeowners.
As they were doing that, Metz pulled up in a truck and fired one round through the other car's windshield, JCSO said. According to the affidavit, Metz tried to help after the shooting, but the uninjured teen pushed him away.
Crime
Affidavit: Teen shot in face by Jeffco man may have bullet fragment in head
Metz was arrested and formally charged with second-degree assault (recklessly causing a serious bodily injury with a deadly weapon), two counts of felony menacing and illegal discharge of a firearm. The assault charge is a Class 4 felony. The rest are Class 5 felonies.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges on the afternoon of April 28, 2025. The prosecutors and defense had met several times and "exchanged materials" to possibly reach a settlement, but that was still in the works, the defense said during that court hearing.
To learn more about homeowner's rights with trespassers, Denver7 asked civil rights and criminal defense attorney Tyrone Glover about Colorado's Make My Day law, which allows you to use deadly force against an intruder inside your home, to see if it would apply in this case. Glover explained that the law does not apply to your yard or the area outside of your property.
Metz was a member of the Mountain View Town Council and was removed from the position during a special election in May.
