Months after winning his first state title in wrestling, Cory Casady, 18, faces charges of felony menacing and reckless endangerment after allegedly shooting an off-duty police officer with an air-pellet gun Monday morning.
Casady was advised of the charges Tuesday and has another court date next Wednesday,said Colleen O’Connell, spokeswoman for the Broomfield Police Department.
Casady, a student at Broomfield High School, shot an off-duty Thornton police officer twice in the temple with an air-pellet gun while the officer drove east on Eagle Way in front of the school, O’Connell said.
The officer’s name is being withheld, she said.
Casady was driving west, yelled something, leaned out his window and shot the officer in the temple when their vehicles were side by side, the officer reported. The officer, who was in civilian clothes, was driving his private vehicle, O’Connell said.
The shooting took place while school was in session.
“When you point a weapon or lead someone to believe that it was a weapon, that’s felony menacing,” O’Connell said.
“He fired it twice, giving the officer every reason to believe he had been shot,” she said.
The officer called 911 and followed Casady’s vehicle until Broomfield police officers arrested him on Sheridan Boulevard just north of West 144th Avenue, police said. Investigators could not determine a motive for shooting the officer. Three juveniles riding in Casady’s vehicle were not charged.
In an e-mail message sent to parents Monday night, Broomfield principal Ginger Ramsey stressed the safety of the school.
“I want to assure you that there is no tolerance for any weapons to be on our campus or on any other (Boulder Valley School District) campus,” she said.
In February, Casady won the class 4A title for the 140-pound wrestling division.
The Colorado High School Activities Association expects each school to have a standard of citizenship for athletic participation and to determine whether an athlete meets the school’s standard, said Bill Reader, association commissioner.
Staff writer Gabriela Resto-Montero can be reached at 303-954-1638 or grestomontero@denverpost.com.
