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Christian Glass was shot dead by police in the US.
A US policeman whose office came under national scrutiny after the fatal shooting of Christian Glass has announced his retirement.
Glass, 22 was killed by a sheriff’s deputy while suffering a mental health crisis.
The shooting in the mountain town of Silver Plume last year drew attention in the US and New Zealand, prompting calls to reform how US authorities respond to people with mental health problems.
In May it was reported that Glass’ Christchurch-based parents will get US$19m (NZ$30.2m) from US government state and local agencies and changes to how officers are trained, under a newly announced settlement.
Colorado’s Clear Creek County officer Sheriff Rick Albers announced his early retirement in a Facebook post, saying he was leaving the office after 43 years with “mixed emotions.”
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Albers, in a Facebook post, said, “It is with mixed emotions that I am announcing my retirement as the Sheriff of the Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office as of August 3, 2023.”
Simon Glass, father of Christian, demanded Albers be prosecuted over the death of his 22-year-old son in June 2022.
“While Sheriff Albers’ resignation is a step in the right direction it is only a start towards avoiding another senseless death,” Glass family lawyer Rathod Mohamedbhai said the statement on Thursday.
Glass was shot dead in his car after calling 911 for help late at night, about an hour and 15 minutes’ drive from his home in Louisville, just north of Denver in June 10, 2022.
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Warning – distressing content: US police shot and killed 22-year-old Christian Glass after he called 911 for roadside assistance.
A video released by Christian Glass’s parents in a press conference showed the 70-minute encounter between Christian Glass and US police officers. The video raised questions over the conduct of police in the US.
Christian’s mother Sally Glass, told RNZ in May that they were hoping officers responsible for her son’s killing would be sent to prison.
“The criminal trial has yet to happen … [It] probably won’t start until early 2024, and then of course it’s our fervent hope and expectation that bullies who murdered our son will end up behind bars for a very long time,” she said.
CHRIS SKELTON/Stuff
Christian Glass’s father Simon Glass from Christchurch, and his mother Sally Glass from the UK, addressed an emotional press conference in May at which their lawyers released the body camera footage and 911 audio tapes.
Christian’s parents alleged Albers was responsible for training and disciplining the officers that killed Glass and has failed to apologise.
A grand jury in the US found two police officers were not in imminent danger and needlessly escalated the situation after Glass called 911.
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