EDGEWATER, Colo. — The trial for Jeremy Smith, the defendant accused of fatally shooting a man at a Tesla charging station in Edgewater in 2023, began on Tuesday morning with jury selection in Jefferson County court.
Opening statements are expected to begin on Wednesday.
Smith, 40, was charged with second-degree murder, a Class 2 felony, and reckless manslaughter, a Class 4 felony, in connection with the shooting. He pleaded not guilty to both charges on Sept. 23, 2024.
Denver7 began covering this case on the morning of May 3, 2023, when officers with the Edgewater Police Department responded to a Tesla charging station outside the Edgewater Public Market after hearing about a shooting. A 33-year-old man with gunshot wounds was brought to the hospital, where he died. He had also been maced. He was later identified as Adam Michael Fresquez of Denver.
Local
Authorities ID victim of fatal shooting at Edgewater Tesla charging station
Edgewater police initially told Denver7 that they believed the altercation between the two men, who were both driving Teslas and were both armed, stemmed from a charging station spot. However, after speaking with witnesses and investigating further, an Edgewater sergeant confirmed they no longer believed that was the case, and that the altercation instead seemed to have started with a road rage incident. The sergeant said authorities believe the victim walked up to the suspect's vehicle just before the shooting. Fresquez was transported to Denver Health Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.
Police said the suspect, identified as Smith, who was 38 at the time, left the scene before he called 911. He was detained along the 1500 block of Xavier Street, about a mile away, and was later released.
Few other details about the actual crime were released in the immediate aftermath, as the investigation was in full swing.
Nearly a month after the shooting, no arrests had been made and no charges were filed.
To protest the delay, dozens of people — including Fresquez' family — gathered outside the First Judicial District Attorney's Office in Jefferson County on May 31, 2023. They told us that he was a family man and father of two who always stayed in touch with his aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. The family's frustration carried into the remainder of the year. They came together at the Tesla charging station in June 2023 calling for transparency, and the Edgewater Police Department told Denver7 that they were still investigating.
Hear more from the victim's family in our May 2023 report below.
That same month, First Judicial District Attorney Alexis King asked the Colorado Attorney General's Office to open an investigation into the Edgewater Police Department, alleging a pattern of misconduct within the department between 2016 and 2021. She said then-Police Chief Eric Sonstegard, who resigned in December 2024, had been fully cooperative but “these events and allegations of misconduct must be addressed with accountability to ensure they do not recur in the future.” Sonstegard told Denver7 the lengthy delay was due to forensic analysis.
“Our sole priority since May 3 has been to ensure we put a thorough and complete case together," he said. "We are doing the best we can. And doing it fast is a secondary priority to doing it right."
Hear more from Fresquez' loved ones and the Edgewater Police Department in our September 2023 report, as authorities announced they were wrapping up the investigation.
In September 2023, Edgewater police said they were wrapping up the investigation, but the family said police had contradicted themselves multiple times when communicating with the victim's loved ones. His sister, Crystal Fresquez, said police told them he was shot in the chest, but an autopsy obtained by Denver7 showed he died of two gunshot wounds that punctured his back and several organs. It also showed he had fentanyl and cocaine in his system, but Crystal Fresquez stressed that the gunshots killed her brother — not the drugs. The family also called for the police department to release body-camera video that had been captured shortly after Fresquez was shot.
Another candlelight vigil was held in early December 2023, where Denver7 again spoke with Fresquez' family as they continued to seek answers.
“When this man killed Adam, he took a piece of us,” said Adam’s mom, Lena Fresquez Mendez. “I mean, literally every day, it’s a struggle... He was not perfect. No one is. But he was a good person. He had a good heart. The drugs did not kill him. The fact that he was shot in the back twice is what killed Adam.”
In early December 2023, the Edgewater Police Department told Denver7 that the homicide case had been presented to the First Judicial District Attorney's Office on Sept. 19, 2023, and no charges had been filed against the suspect as of then. However, new evidence was collected and submitted for forensic testing, and those results came in on Dec. 6, 2023, police said.
Just a few days later, on Dec. 12, 2023, the suspect was arrested at his home and police identified him — for the first time — as Jeremy Alan Smith. He faced charges of second-degree murder and manslaughter and was booked into jail.
Police Chief Sonstegard said he was thankful the district attorney's office had decided to move forward with a criminal prosecution. District Attorney King added that the charges were filed "after a careful legal analysis and considering all available evidence."
In addition to the arrest announcement, the Edgewater Police Department also shared new details on what had unraveled at the charging station that day — more than 200 days before the arrest.
The department said video evidence showed both men arriving at the charging station within seconds of each other. In the video, Fresquez is seen walking toward Smith's Tesla and then stumbling away less than a minute later, police said. The video captured Smith pulling out of the parking space and driving east. Just minutes later, Smith called 911 and told the dispatcher he had maced and shot someone after they "pulled a gun" on him, according to police. The department said the shooting had stemmed from an earlier road rage incident, and confirmed both men were armed.
Watch Denver7's breaking news coverage of this arrest, seven months after the deadly shooting.
According to Smith's arrest affidavit, which Denver7 obtained a day after his arrest, one witness said they had seen Fresquez yelling and slapping the windows of a red Tesla, and reported feeling that Fresquez was "antagonizing (Smith) to fight," and another witness said they saw Smith pull out a gun and fire two shots before driving away. They added that Fresquez appeared to have a gun too, though they never saw it and Fresquez did not fire the gun during the dispute. Police later confirmed both men had guns. In an interview with police after the shooting, Smith said Fresquez had been brake-checking him on the road, the affidavit reads.
In Smith's initial court hearing, the victim's family asked for a $1 million cash bond. The judge set it at $300,000.
In subsequent court hearings, Smith's defense team said the shooting was in self-defense, which is something the Fresquez family and advocacy groups like the Denver Justice Project adamantly disputed.
In the video below from January 2024, Lena Fresquez Mendez, the victim's mother, explained to Denver7 why she does not believe this is a case of self-defense.
By the end of 2024, nearly a year and a half after the shooting, Fresquez' family accused the defendant's legal team of delaying the case.
During a motions hearing, Smith's defense attorneys argued that there were issues with the way police handled the investigation, alleging that officers' body-worn cameras were either muted or turned off at times. They also brought up concerns that Smith's phone was searched beyond what is legal and the prosecution should not be able to use that evidence in its case.
A pre-readiness hearing was held on Jan. 23 ahead of jury selection for the trial, which began Tuesday. Opening statements are expected to start on Wednesday.
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.