Jason J. Eaton pleaded not guilty to 3 counts of second-degree murder Monday morning. He allegedly shot three Palestinian-American college students in Burlington, Vermont.
Eaton made his first court appearance during an arraignment Monday morning. He is being held without bail ahead of a bond hearing. The judge said will be scheduled in the coming days. The 48-year-old man is accused of shooting Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdel Hamid and Tahseen Ahmed who were visiting Awartani’s grandmother’s house Saturday afternoon. Two are Palestinian-American citizens and one is a legal resident in the United States. Though the shooting took place near the University of Vermont, all 3 of the 20-year-olds attend other universities. Eaton is reported to have run away after the shooting.
Two of the men were wearing a keffiyeh, the traditional black-and-white checkered scarf commonly worn in Middle East at the time they were shot. It is being investigated as a hate crime. They were speaking in Arabic and English at the time of the shooting. Eaton used a pistol.
Reports of the shooting vary a little. One pro-Palestinian group claims Eaton shouted at the students and harassed them. Police say he shot them without saying a word. The first reports I read said Eaton was silent as he shot them.
The victims were reported to have been speaking Arabic when attacked, according to the Institute for Middle East Understanding, a nonprofit pro-Palestinian advocacy organization. It also said the assailant opened fire on the three men after he began to shout at and harass them. Police say he fired four shots without saying a word.
“In this charged moment, no one can look at this incident and not suspect that it may have been a hate-motivated crime,” Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad said in a statement earlier.
“That there is an indication that this shooting could have been motivated by hate is chilling, and this possibility is being prioritized” by police, Mayor Miro Weinberger said.
His mother described him as “very religious” and frequently read the Bible. His social media accounts point to a man unhappy with America. He has worked as an office assistant but bounced around between jobs, his mother said.
Eaton is a 48-year-old former financial adviser and part-time farmer who describes himself as a ‘radical’ libertarian on the ‘ADHD spectrum’.
His social media pages are largely private, but hint at a disillusionment towards America.
Eaton’s shocked mother Mary Reed told The Daily Beast he has had his ‘struggles’ in the past but that nothing indicated he was capable of such violence.
She said he is a ‘very religious’ person, but had seemed normal when she spent Thanksgiving with him on Thursday, two days before the shooting.
‘He, like all of us, thinks the world is a mess. He is a spiritual person,’ she said.
‘Jason has had a lot of struggles in his life but he is such a kind and loving person.
‘I am just shocked by the whole thing,’ she said.
Two of the students are in stable condition and one suffered ‘much more serious injuries,’ according to Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad. ‘Without speaking, he discharged at least four rounds from the pistol and is believed to have fled,’ Murad said. ‘All three victims were struck, two in their torsos and one in the lower extremities.’ He said no one knows as much as they would like yet and cautioned people against jumping to conclusions before the investigation is completed.
However, the Mayor of Burlington points a finger to a hate crime.
‘In this charged moment, no one can look at this incident and not suspect that it may have been a hate-motivated crime. And I have already been in touch with federal investigatory and prosecutorial partners to prepare for that if it’s proven,’ Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger said.
Others were quick to weigh in.
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee released a statement Sunday saying that the victims were Palestinian American college students and that there is ‘reason to believe this shooting occurred because the victims are Arab.’
The Council on American-Islamic Relations released a statement offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest or conviction of the person or people responsible for the shootings.
The Institute for Middle East Understanding posted a statement on X that the institute said was from the victims’ families.
‘We are extremely concerned about the safety and well-being of our children,’ the statement said. ‘We call on law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation, including treating this as a hate crime. We will not be comfortable until the shooter is brought to justice.’
Ramallah Friends School posted a statement on Facebook saying the three young men were graduates of the private school in the West Bank.
‘While we are relieved to know that they are alive, we remain uncertain about their condition and hold them in the light,’ the school said. ‘We stand united in hope and support for their well-being during this challenging time.’
In response to the shooting, U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries encouraged people to ‘unequivocally denounce the startling rise of anti-Arab hate and Islamophobia in America.’
‘No one should ever be targeted for their ethnicity or religious affiliation in our country,’ the New York Democrat said in the statement posted on X. ‘We will not let hatred win.’
Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont Independent, also denounced the shooting.
‘It is shocking and deeply upsetting that three young Palestinians were shot here in Burlington, VT. Hate has no place here, or anywhere. I look forward to a full investigation,’ Sanders said in a statement.
Gov. Phil Scott called the shooting a tragedy, calling on the state’s residents to unite and ‘not let this incident incite more hate or divisiveness.’
If, as the police chief said, the shooter didn’t say anything as he shot the students, there is no way of knowing what was in his head at the time unless or until he confesses to the crime. Rushing to call it a hate crime may not prove to be true. Eaton may be mentally ill, which could lead to irrational behavior. In today’s over-heated environment, where we see daily reports on antisemitism and violence towards Jews, we don’t yet know if this is one of Kamala’s Islamophobia stories or not. If it turns out to be, it is rare, with the trend going against Jews, not Muslims since October 7.
JUST IN: Burlington Police release a booking photo of Jason J. Eaton, 48, who is accused of shooting, and injuring 3 Palestinian-American men in Burlington over the weekend. His arraignment is expected this morning. pic.twitter.com/RjGOnyPUfM
— Dom Amato (@WCAX_Dom) November 27, 2023
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