A Jefferson County courtroom is about to take center stage in a shooting case that has shaken the small communities of Mountain View and Conifer. Former Mountain View town councilman Brent John Metz is headed for a jury trial this spring on allegations that he shot a 17-year-old in the face last fall, seriously injuring the teen and triggering both criminal charges and a successful recall effort that removed him from office. Metz has pleaded not guilty, and the case is now set for jury selection and a multi-day trial window.
According to Denver7, a Jefferson County judge scheduled jury selection to start May 22, with additional trial days slated for May 27 through 29. Because of the widespread attention on the case, the judge ordered a larger pool of potential jurors. The schedule, outlined in court filings and a recent status conference, comes as prosecutors and defense attorneys continue trading evidence and pretrial motions.
As first reported in the teens' homecoming photo search, Jefferson County deputies say two teenagers hopped a fence on the 23000 block of Pleasant Park Road in Conifer while they were scouting a lakeside location for homecoming pictures. Investigators say the teens went back to their car to write a note asking for permission to use the property when Metz pulled up in a truck, got out with a handgun, and fired a single round through the windshield, hitting the 17-year-old in the face.
Metz’s attorney, Chris Decker, has argued the shooting was an accident and suggested the gun might have gone off without Metz pulling the trigger, according to CBS News Colorado. The outlet reports that the firearm recovered at the scene was a Sig Sauer P320, a handgun model that has been the focus of recalls and lawsuits, and that forensic testing on the weapon is currently underway.
What the charges mean
Prosecutors have charged Metz with second-degree assault with a deadly weapon resulting in serious bodily injury, two counts of felony menacing, and illegal discharge of a firearm, all felony counts, according to Colorado Public Radio. Under Colorado law, second-degree assault is generally a Class 4 felony and can carry an enhanced sentence when it is treated as a crime of violence. The statute governing second-degree assault is set out in C.R.S. § 18-3-203.
Local fallout
Metz, who was sworn in to the Mountain View town council in 2023, was ousted from office in a special recall election held after the shooting. Voters opted to remove him by a 128 to 72 margin, Denver7 reported. For a town that measures itself in a few city blocks, that result was a clear signal that residents were not interested in waiting to see how the criminal case played out before weighing in at the ballot box.
Metz formally entered his not-guilty plea at a court hearing in April 2025, and both the prosecution and the defense are now lining up expert reports, witness lists, and other filings ahead of the late May trial dates, according to CBS News Colorado. With jury selection looming, lawyers on both sides are expected back before the judge for a series of pretrial deadlines and hearings in the coming weeks, as Jefferson County prepares to put the high-profile case in front of twelve local jurors.
