Christian Glass Shooting Statement
Body camera footage here
On June 10, 2022, 22-year-old Christian Glass was shot and killed by a deputy from the Clear Creek County, Sheriff’s Office Colorado, while suffering a visible mental health crisis. The case has received national and international scrutiny. A review of the body-worn camera footage shows a tragic and preventable death. Police officials can, once again, learn from what happened in Clear Creek County and apply those lessons to police department operations. That learning cannot occur in the silo of internal police department decision-making.
There are three key lessons to be considered for more standardized, trustworthy, and human-dignified policing. The first lesson to address is communication. It is evident from the footage that poor communication occurred with Mr. Glass, and among the officers themselves. From an operational standpoint, poor communication can be seen in de-escalation planning and tactics, and a failure of the officers on scene to continually assess the situation and adjust their tactics and planning correctly. To do this, the communication and tactical plan must constantly go through the process of information gathering, threat and risk assessment, correctly applying police power and policy, identifying options and contingencies, and taking action and assessing.
The second key lesson is a code of ethics. This must be the starting point of the planning and decision-making process, with the sanctity and preservation of life at the core. Decisions must originate from a firm ethical foundation as officers assess the situation and adjust to new information. There is no conflict between proper safety and tactics and firm morals and ethics, especially when a life is at stake. At the core of the assessment are always ethical considerations and the value and sanctity of preserving human life.
The third and final lesson is the issue of constitutional policing. Constitutional policing is an essential factor in planning and decision-making. Officers are adept at responding to calls that begin as non-criminal or involve minor violations. In this case, Mr. Glass was a stranded motorist who called for help. There was no indication that Mr. Glass committed any crime before or during his contact with officers. The problem is that traditional training does not support the notion of retreating. Peace officers are trained problem solvers and consider walking away from an unsolved problem as failure or "giving up." In this case, one agency supervisor identified no crime justifying forcible entry into Mr. Glass' vehicle, and told his officers to walk away. Officers must consider walking away from a problem when it is reasonable to do so instead of escalating a situation or creating an artificial urgency that ends in significant or deadly force.
Mr. Glass' death will have far-reaching implications for his family, the Clear Creek County community and Sheriff's Office, and peace officers across the nation. In this case, better options and outcomes were available. There is a mandate of municipal leadership to prevent tragic outcomes in our communities. Accountability for failures should not be ignored, minimized, or shifted solely to the bearing of offending police officers. Police leadership must be involved but should not hold exclusive ownership for developing and improving policies and procedures surrounding high-risk, high-liability operations. Police officials must avail themselves of critical and constructive input from subject matter experts and community leaders locally and nationwide. Community members are owed a duty of ongoing oversight by servant leaders who ensure relevant, safe, and progressive policing practices anchored in high compliance and publicly endorsed accountability standards.
Written by Eric Litchfield, VP of Standards, Education, and Training
