Man pleads not guilty in shooting of 3 Palestinian American students in Vermont

The man accused of shooting three Palestinian American students in Vermont pleaded not guilty to charges at an arraignment hearing Monday.

Jason Eaton, 48, appeared in court virtually, where he pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted second-degree murder. Chittenden County Superior Court Judge Gregory Rainville ordered him held without bail until his next court appearance, which has not been scheduled.

The three victims, each 20 years old and of Palestinian descent, were walking Saturday in the street in Burlington when a man approached them with a handgun and fired at least four rounds, the Burlington Police Department said.

The three men were staying at the home of one victim’s grandmother for Thanksgiving and were on their way back from bowling. One victim told police he saw a man staring at them from a house porch; he then stumbled down the stairs and pulled out a pistol, The Associated Press reported.

Two of the three men were in stable condition, while a third suffered “much more serious injuries,” police said Saturday, adding that two men were shot in the torso while one was shot in the lower extremities.

Following a search in the area, agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested Eaton and collected evidence at his apartment, which is near the shooting location, police said.

The police affidavit stated federal agents found a shotgun at Eaton’s apartment, according to the AP. He would not identify himself but told officers he had been waiting for them.

Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad said at a Monday press conference that Eaton repeatedly asked for a lawyer when approached by the federal agents. He also said Eaton had recently moved to Burlington and recently legally purchased the firearm that the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network connected to the one used in the shooting.

Murad also said that police are still investigating what motive there may have been.

“We still do not know as much as we want to know,” Murad said. “But I would urge the public and you in the media to avoid making conclusions based on statements from people who know even less than we currently do. We are working hard to find out this information and we are nowhere near the end of this investigation.”

Two of the victims were also wearing keffiyehs at the time of the shooting, Murad said Saturday. Two victims are U.S. citizens, and the third is a legal resident. All three are students studying at U.S. universities.

Sarah George, the state’s attorney of Chittenden County, said on Monday authorities do not currently have evidence to support a hate crime enhancement, “there is no question this was a hateful act.” George emphasized that to add a hate crime enhancement, officials would need to prove that motive “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

The shooting comes amid a rise in threats and violence against Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities across the United States since the beginning of the war between Israel and the militant group Hamas that has left thousands of people dead on both sides of the conflict.

Police did not reveal the names of the victims, though the Institute for the Middle East Understanding released a statement on behalf of the families that identified the victims as Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid and Tahseen Ali Ahmad.

The families’ statement said they will not be “comfortable” until the shooter is brought to justice, writing, “We are extremely concerned about the safety and well-being of our children. We call on law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation, including treating this as a hate crime.”

Attorney General Merrick Garland said Monday the Justice Department will be investigating whether the shooting was a hate crime, while noting there is “understandable fear in communities across the country.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest or conviction of the people responsible for the shootings.

Lauren Sforza contributed to this report, which was updated at 1:31 p.m.