Milliken officer won’t face charges for shooting suspect armed with knife

DENVER (KDVR) — A Weld County Critical Incident Response team determined that a Milliken police officer was justified in shooting an armed suspect outside of the Milliken Elementary School on June 3.

However, the suspect who was shot is still facing charges .

The incident occurred at about 1:24 a.m. on June 3 in the area of the Milliken Elementary School. Officers were told there was a suspicious person in the area.

Before arriving, officers were able to speak with the man by phone. The man reportedly made several threatening statements to law enforcement.

An officer, who was the subject of the Critical Incident Response Team’s determination, made contact with the man. The suspect was later identified as Colin Brixius, 18. His father told FOX31 in June that his son was experiencing mental illness.

After the officer contacted Brixius, the suspect began to run “at the officer with a large knife.” The officer gave commands for Brixius to stop and also deployed a Taser, or stun gun, but the methods were ineffective in stopping the armed suspect.

That’s when the officer fired his gun at Brixius, striking him. Brixius was transported to a local hospital. He is charged with first-degree assault — threatening a peace officer with a weapon and with felony menacing with a weapon.

He is being held on a $150,000 cash or surety bond and is scheduled to appear in court on July 22.

The full investigation report will not be released as Brixius’s prosecution is still pending.

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