Testimony continues in the murder trial of former Colorado deputy accused of killing Christian Glass

While closing arguments are expected within a week in a Colorado courtroom for the trial of Andrew Buen, the man accused of killing 22-year-old Christian Glass, it is now the defense’s turn to call witnesses. After the prosecution made its case, the defense of former Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Buen called their first set of witnesses, the second being Lewis “Von” Kliem, Chief Executive Officer of Force Science, who provided the majority of the took witnesses. time on Monday.

After a lengthy introduction in which the judge was eventually forced to intervene and ask Kliem to speak less so that the defense could actually maintain its line of questioning, Kliem explained his expertise in the use of force, and why this was relevant to his interrogation. opinion and understanding of what happened in the early hours of June 11, 2022.

One such opinion focused on the fact that Buen would not allow Glass to get rid of the weapons in his car, which were later used by Glass after he was attacked by law enforcement officers, and subsequently used as justification for the use of violence by Buen. When Glass first called the dispatcher for help that evening, he asked if he could throw the knives and hammers he had in his car (the prosecutor explained that they were rock digging tools) out the window because ‘I understand that this is an unreliable business’. situation.” He doesn’t, but asks again once the police (including Buen) arrive on the scene. Buen tells him not to throw the weapons out the car window.

The defense said this is a normal thing to expect of officers.

“We would never assume that it would be enough for someone to throw away their own weapons,” Kliem said. “That boils down to having your suspect clear out his own vehicle, make sure there are no weapons in it.”

The prosecutor said that the fact that Buen declined that offer, and that the knives in the car that Glass offered to throw away, which police say escalated the situation (along with Glass’ refusal to leave the car) sparked the issue was from the very beginning. .

During cross-examination, the prosecutor asked Kliem how they got to the point where police felt they had to use force.

“He wasn’t excited until they shot him with beanbags, right?” the lawyer asked.

“At that stage that is correct,” Kliem said.

Those two were consistently combative on the witness stand, to the point where the judge had to tell them more than once to get along for the sake of the case. Another controversial moment occurred when the prosecutor tried to argue that there was no time limit on this event. Glass had crashed his car and was unable to drive away in it, refusing to leave the car at all.

“The compression of time would have been influenced by medical concerns about overdose,” Kliem argued. “That was the first time there was time pressure.”

“Deputy Buen never mentioned in the interview that he was concerned about an overdose,” the prosecutor countered. “Nobody said anything on the bodycam about an overdose.”

Kliem teamed up with the attorneys to say that officers on the scene could not fully understand Glass’s mental state that night, whether he was under the influence or having a mental episode. The prosecutor refuted that, saying it was clear from his first phone call that he was having a mental health crisis as he was concerned about “skinwalkers” approaching his car.

This isn’t the last witness the defense plans to call, including former Clear Creek County Sheriff Kyle Gould, who has already pleaded guilty for his part in the Glass case. CBS News Colorado is staying on the story and keeping you informed.