Teenager hoping for homecoming photos at lake was shot in face by city councilor, police say

DENVER (AP) — A teenager scouting a spot near a Colorado lake this weekend to take scenic homecoming photos was shot in the face when the property owner's boyfriend fired his gun and yelled, “Oh shit, my gun went off,” according to court records.

The 17-year-old boy survived the shooting and told investigators he did not believe the man shot him intentionally. But the man who shot him, Brent Metz, a city councilman in a small town in the Denver metropolitan area, was arrested on suspicion of first-degree assault.

Metz did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. A phone number or attorney for Metz could not be immediately found. He is a councilman in the city of Mountain View.

The victim's boyfriend told investigators they jumped the fence of the property to ask the homeowners for permission to take photos the following weekend. They knocked on the door and looked around to no avail. They went back to their car to write a message to the homeowner.

Around that time, Metz received a call from his girlfriend, the property owner, who said there were intruders, according to police. Metz drove to the property while the two boys sat in her car.

Metz got out of his car, pointed a gun at the two boys and fired through the windshield, the teens told officers. The shot left one of the boys with severe bleeding on his face and part of his mouth missing, while his friend ran around the car and used his shirt to stop the bleeding, the friend told investigators.

Metz tried to help them, but the friend said he pushed Metz away.

A hospital scan showed a bullet fragment may still be lodged in the teen's head, according to court records. Metz was arrested on charges of first-degree assault, menacing, illegal discharge of a firearm and reckless endangerment.

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