Attorney for Christian Glass's parents respond to Clear Creek Sheriff turning investigation over

The Clear Creek Sheriff's Office announced Wednesday that it would turn over the investigation into the June 2022 fatal shooting of 22-year-old Christian Glass.

The shooting sparked outrage and controversy over the sheriff's office's handling of an apparent mental health crisis.

While the shooting happened over three months ago, it became widely publicized following the release of bodycam footage and the first public statements from Glass's parents last month.

The sheriff's office said Wednesday that it would turn the investigation over to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, which will turn its investigation over to the district attorney.

"It is my understanding that after review, the DA will decide what further action is appropriate, whether to issue a report, present the case to a grand jury or further investigation," Clear Creek Sheriff Rick Albers wrote in a statement Wednesday. "While this matter is pending with the CBI and DA, it is not appropriate for me to comment about specifics."

Glass family attorney Siddhartha Rathod issued a statement later that day saying, in part, "Today the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office, in response to the nationwide condemnation of the killing of Christian Glass and without speaking with the Glass family, issued a press statement."

In the wake of the shooting and the outrage that followed, Clear Creek County expressed its interest to start a crisis response team to respond to mental health crises that don't require -- or could be escalated -- by the presence of armed law enforcement.

"Had a Crisis Response Team been in place in June of 2022, Christian would be alive today," Rathod continued. "However, for more than two years the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office has been on notice that they needed a Crisis Response Team."   

The county commission had a meeting Tuesday, where they discussed the details of such a plan. One resident said he supported that idea, but that discipline or legal action against the deputy or deputies that shot Glass was also vital.

"Not only did the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office ignore the Grand Jury's well-founded recommendations, but over the last four months since Christian's death the Sheriff's Office has misled the public about the facts of Christian's murder and repeatedly condoned, justified, and exonerated their deputies' conduct," Rathod said. "None of the deputies involved in Christian's murder have been disciplined and the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office deputy who shot and killed Christian is still on the street in uniform. The time for "research and development" has passed and the nation must demand action and justice for Christian Glass."