TEMPE, Arizona — An artist and dancer, in the prime of her life, was shot and killed in the middle of the night.
That’s what happened to Arizona ballerina Colleen Hoopes, whose maiden name was Buckley.
May 20, 2022, her husband Christopher Hoopes was captured on body camera video describing, in his own words, what happened.
Christopher said he was asleep for three hours. He woke up, startled and grabbed his gun out of his nightstand.
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“It was like a dream. I don't know. Like, I just woke up in a panic,” he told the officer.
A grand jury indicted Christopher on second-degree murder in 2022. He pleaded not guilty. Since then, the case has moved slowly toward an eventual trial in Maricopa County Superior Court.
Over four years later, the 36-year-old’s case is still not adjudicated.
In September, ABC15 reported that prosecutors had offered a plea deal.
The Maricopa County Attorney's Office offered to reduce the charge against him from second-degree murder to negligent homicide.
Second-degree murder carries a prison term of 16 to 25 years if convicted. Negligent homicide carries a much lower term of four to eight years.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys have both acknowledged this is a complicated case, which is why it has taken so long to even approach trial.
With a change of plea hearing now scheduled for November 16, ABC15’s Anne Ryman is sitting down to talk about the case.
ABC15’S COVERAGE
- May 2022 - Valley ballerina shot and killed, husband charged
- May 2023 - Court records reveal new details a year after ballerina's death
- November 2023 - Trial delayed again for husband who shot, killed Valley ballerina
- January 2024 - 11 high-profile court cases happening in Arizona in 2024
- https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/11-high-profile-court-cases-happening-in-arizona-in-2024
- January 2025 - Trial postponed until May for man accused of shooting and killing Arizona ballerina
- June 2025 - New body cam video: Arizona man tells police he ‘didn’t knowingly shoot’ his ballerina wife
- March 2026 - Tempe man accused of killing ballerina wife won’t face trial until summer
- September 30, 2026 - Plea deal offered in Arizona ballerina's shooting death
