Clinton Eugene Priest (DOB: 02-16-1967) was sentenced by the First Judicial District Court on Friday to 48 years in prison for the murder of 32-year-old Robert Miller in September 2020.
“We are grateful to the Wheat Ridge Police Department and the District Attorney’s Office for their dedication and hard work in bringing this case to trial to secure justice for Robert,” Miller’s family said in a statement.
In September, a Jefferson County jury found Priest guilty of Second-Degree Murder and First-Degree Assault with a Deadly Weapon Causing Serious Bodily Injury. He received a 32-year prison sentence for the assault charge to be served concurrently with the 48-year sentence for murder.
On September 23, 2020, officers from the Wheat Ridge Police Department were dispatched to a bar on West 44th Avenue and Kipling Street in response to reports of a man found bleeding in the parking lot. Miller was found unconscious on the ground behind the bar. Suffering multiple stab wounds, he was transported to the hospital but later pronounced deceased.
A witness at the bar saw a man arguing with Miller in the parking lot after Miller had asked him for a ride. When the witness returned, Miller was found on the ground bleeding. Priest was identified as the other man and Miller’s blood was found on the back of his truck, on the murder weapon, in his house and on himself.
Priest initially reported that he was attacked – unprovoked – by a homeless man and did nothing to them in response. After being taken to the hospital, Priest was cleared by medical professionals without any treatment and refused to speak further with investigators.