A Jefferson County teen who was shot in the face when he and his friend were seeking a spot to take homecoming photos said he believed he was going to die as he recounted the shooting during trial testimony on Thursday.

The second-degree assault trial for Brent John Metz, 40, a former Mountain View council member, began Wednesday in Jefferson County in front of District Judge Russell Klein.

Metz is accused of shooting the teenager in the face on Sept. 10, 2024. The shooting happened after the teen and a friend hopped a fence at Metz’s home, in an attempt to ask for permission to take homecoming photos at the property, located in the 23000 block of Pleasant Park Road, east of Conifer. 

Metz’s girlfriend called the police and Metz to report that the teens were trespassing, police said at the time. Police said that the teens, ages 17 and 15, drove to the property, parked at the home’s gate and hopped the fence. They walked up to the home and knocked on the door, then returned to their vehicle to write a note after no one answered the door.

Metz then arrived in an SUV, blocked the teen’s car from leaving, police said, and exited the car while armed with a handgun. He allegedly pulled the gun from its holster and the gun went off, police said, going through the windshield and striking the 17-year-old in the face, seriously injuring him.

The teen told investigators he did not believe Metz shot him intentionally. After the shooting, Metz was charged with second-degree assault, menacing and illegal discharge of a firearm.

David Jones, one of Metz’s attorneys, said during opening statements that the shooting was an accident, caused by Metz losing his balance as he got out of his car and attempted to re-holster his weapon, a Sig Sauer P320 handgun that Metz’s attorneys have also argued was defective, according to 9NEWS.

Christopher Decker, another of Metz’s attorneys, argued during cross-examination of a gun expert witness on Thursday that the P320 has a history of accidental discharges, even when the trigger is not pulled.

Sig Sauer has disputed that the P320 can discharge without a trigger pull, and the gun expert, Derek Watkins, also testified Thursday that the weapon cannot fire unless the trigger is pulled. Even if the gun was fired accidentally, Metz could still be convicted on the second-degree assault charge, which alleges reckless injury.

Sig Sauer has been sued more than 100 times in incidents relating to accidental discharges of the P320.

Prosecutors called Jack Howard, now 19, to the stand Thursday afternoon. He said on the day of Sept. 10, 2024, he picked best friend up from Dakota Ridge High School in his new Audi with plans to scout the Deer Creek Valley area for a scenic spot to take homecoming photos.

The two drove past a property with a pond, lots of trees and a perfect mountain backdrop, and they decided it was the spot they wanted, the teen testified. He parked his car in front of a gate and looked for a camera or intercom to try and speak to the property owner. When they couldn’t find one, Howard and his friend decided to hop the fence and knock on the door in an attempt to ask for permission to take photos on the property. 

The teen said he and his friend spent about five minutes on the property looking for the homeowner to speak with, which included knocking on the door of a barn on the property from which they heard noise coming from. While on the property, the teen said he noticed a car slowly pass the gate several times, and he then decided to return to his car, thinking the passing car may have been the homeowner. 

After returning to his car, Howard said he moved it down the road so it wouldn’t block the gate. While his friend was writing a note to the homeowner, the teen said he saw a truck in his side mirror pull up and park in front of his car.

The teen said he saw the door to the truck open and someone began to get out. Howard then started to get out of his own car to try and talk to the truck’s driver, he testified. Then everything went black.

“I got knocked out,” he told jurors. “I don’t remember anything.”

When he came to, Howard said he was disoriented and saw his friend and a man he didn’t know trying to help him out of the car. He was covered in blood and in pain, and said he could feel blood in his mouth as well as fragments of something. 

“I thought I was gonna die,” the teen said.

Howard described his thoughts at the time as frantic as he said out loud several times that he thought he was dying.

His voice quivering, Howard pointed at Metz and identified him as the man who shot him and who helped him out of his car after the shooting. He said first responders arrived about 10 to 15 minutes after the shooting and took him to the hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery and spent three days in the hospital.

Howard testified he had short-term effects from the shooting such as difficulty breathing, nosebleeds and an inability to eat or drink hot and cold foods and beverages due to a shattered tooth. He also described lasting issues, and said he occasionally loses sight in his eye on the side where he was shot. 

On the trial’s first day, the teen who was not shot testified that he believed his friend had died after the shooting, according to 9NEWS. The younger teen said the shooting unfolded quickly, with the shot ringing out only seconds after Metz arrived at the property and left his vehicle.

The teen testified that he heard Metz say both “Oh s—, my gun just went off,” and “Oh s—, I shot a kid,” after the shooting, which happened as the teens were sitting inside their car and writing a note asking for permission to take photos on the property, 9NEWS reported.

If convicted, Metz faces up to 16 years in prison. The trial will continue on Friday.

The Denver Gazette’s news partners 9NEWS contributed to this report.