Denver prosecutors will drop all charges against a Black man accused of killing two white brothers in a road-rage incident on Interstate 25 last year.
Stephan Long, 26, was initially charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the June 13, 2023, killings, but said he acted in self-defense when he shot the two men after they rushed his car in stopped traffic.
Prosecutors dropped one of the first-degree murder charges against Long in October, saying they could not prove the charge in court — but the murder case continued for the second brother.
Prosecutors on Wednesday informed the brothers’ family members that they plan to drop the second murder charge as well, said their father, Arthur Lucas.
“This system has failed me,” he said. “I will not trust this justice system anymore.”
Denver District Attorney Beth McCann said in a statement Wednesday that “the evidence establishes a strong and valid self-defense claim” for Long, and she could not prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
“We will ask the court to dismiss the remaining charges against Mr. Long,” she said. “This was an extremely difficult and heart-wrenching decision but, ultimately, in my opinion, the correct one.”
The expected dismissal is a victory for Long’s supporters, who have railed against the criminal prosecution as racially biased and have said Long never should have been charged with the killings.
“This is the justice Stephan should’ve received from the very beginning,” said Alex Landau, co-director of the Denver Justice Project.
It’s a blow for the family of slain brothers Blake Lucas, 21, and Damon Lucas, 22, who say Long should be punished for killing two people.
“It really does come as a surprise,” Arthur Lucas said. “The whole time this hearing was going on I thought, ‘He’s going to walk, he’s going to get away with it. He’s not going to get anything.’ And when it actually happened, no matter what you tell yourself, you’re not ready for it.”
Long, who is Black, is accused of shooting and killing both brothers, who were white, on the interstate near the intersections with Sixth and Eighth avenues. Witnesses told police that Long, who was driving a red Ford Taurus, was tailgating a silver sedan driven by the brothers, and that the sedan then cut off the Taurus, according to prior court testimony.
When traffic came to a standstill, Blake Lucas got out of the passenger side of the silver sedan and went up to Long, who was in the driver’s seat of the Taurus. Blake Lucas then started punching at Long through the window, according to testimony.
Long shot the man. As Blake Lucas retreated after being shot, his brother, Damon Lucas, rushed at the Taurus and started hanging on the driver’s side window as Long drove away, according to testimony.
Long then shot Damon Lucas as well. Both brothers died. Long did not stop at the scene or call 911, but a police officer who happened to be nearby in an unmarked car followed Long’s Taurus until Long stopped near the intersection of Meade Street and 13th Avenue. He was then arrested.
Prosecutors last year dropped the murder charge in the killing of Blake Lucas, the brother who allegedly threw punches at Long. The dismissal came days after 11 Denver City Council members sent Denver District Attorney Beth McCann a letter expressing concerns about the prosecution.
Arthur Lucas said prosecutors told him Wednesday they “didn’t have enough evidence” to prove Damon’s killing was a murder. He said he understands how Blake Lucas’ killing could be considered self-defense, but not Damon Lucas’.
“He was just jumping on the car to stop the man from fleeing the scene, and he never laid hands on him,” Lucas said. “I don’t understand how that is not murder.”
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Originally Published: August 21, 2024 at 4:48 p.m.
