Parolee accused of driving at police set for trial
A parolee accused of almost hitting Longmont police in a stolen SUV in August is now set for trial.
Keith Beyer, 31, on Friday pleaded not guilty to attempted first-degree assault, possession of a controlled substance, possession of a firearm during the commission of a drug felony, second-degree burglary, first-degree trespassing, aggravated motor vehicle theft, vehicular eluding, attempted firstdegree auto trespass, possession of a weapon by a previous offender, second-degree trespassing, reckless endangerment, leaving the scene of an accident, reckless driving and careless driving.
Beyer, who remains in custody, is now set for a five-day trial on June 14 and a pre-trial readiness conference on June 2.
Beyer is also set for a motions hearing on May 4.
Police officers were investigating three reports of a man attempting to steal vehicles in north Longmont on Aug. 10. A resident in the area told officers Beyer entered a garage at the rear of her property, according to police.
Officers walked to the garage and saw Beyer in a black Chevrolet Suburban. Beyer put the stolen SUV in reverse and backed down the driveway, and an officer fired one round at the vehicle’s tire, blowing it out.
Beyer drove off, hitting a fence and a UPS truck on the way, according to an affidavit. He was taken into custody less than five minutes later, when officers
stopped Beyer with a taser in the 1200 block of Spruce Avenue.
According to the affidavit, a backpack was later reported found about a mile away from where the incident occurred, at 2201 14th Ave. Court and law enforcement paperwork belonging to Beyer was inside, as well as “a sandwich size Zip-lock bag with about five ounces of presumptive positive methamphetamine.” There were also about nine empty jeweler’s baggies and a loaded 9mm Smith and Wesson M&P Shield, the affidavit states.
In an interview at the Longmont Police Department, Beyer told officers “parole was looking for him and (he) had been running from them during the day,” according to the affidavit. He admitted to entering a house, leaving when the owner asked him to and then entering another garage, where he saw the keys to an SUV in the console.
He told officers that when he got into the SUV, he saw the officers behind him, and was trying to flee the scene. He said he was not trying to hurt the officers, according to the affidavit.
The affidavit states Beyer had a felony warrant for his arrest out of the Department of Corrections for violating his parole.