Judge orders trial for man who shot protester at Colorado ICE facility

Prosecutors claim a corrections officer contracted to work at the Aurora ICE Processing Center shot a protester after she made comments about his children.BRIGHTON, Colo. (CN) — A Colorado judge found enough evidence Wednesday to prosecute a GEO contract employee who shot a protester outside an immigration detention facility.“The court is going to find the prosecution has met its burden as pertains to both counts,” said 17th District Judge Martin Flaum.When protesters blocked the gate to enter the Aurora ICE Processing Center near Denver on July 16, corrections officer Brandon Booth was unable to clock in for his shift. Booth does not work for the federal government, but is employed by the GEO Group, the contractor that manages the immigration detention facility.Fearing being filmed or attacked on social media, Booth tried to avoid the protesters, according to defense attorney Julia Stancil.“Did GEO tell the workers they might have been in danger?” Stancil asked Aurora Police Sergeant Gabriel Nestor on the witness stand.Although Nestor did not interview GEO management about the incident, he recalled the chaotic protest in which two women shouted vulgar names at Booth and other contract workers.According to officers, 22-year-old Emma Landis and 38-year-old Mandy Dillon called Booth, who is Black, a “race traitor” and “Nazi.” The protesters then told the 42-year-old Booth they had his license plate number and would find his children’s school, pushing him into a state of “15-out-of 10” anger, according to Nestor.Booth drew a pistol loaded with brass training ammunition and fired at the women, shooting Landis in the foot.Nestor recalled Booth telling him he wasn’t trying to hit them in any vital areas. “He wanted to ‘split the difference’ and shoot in between them, to scare them.”After officers pursued Booth, he told them he realized he “just did some dumb shit,” Nestor recalled.Prosecutors charged Booth with one count of assault with extreme indifference and one count of criminal intent to commit assault.Chief Deputy District Attorney Sara Carty convinced the judge to find probable cause to try Booth.“Universal malice is defined as the depravity of human heart without knowing or caring about who the victim is,” Carty argued. “The evidence is Mr. Booth was angered by Ms. Landis and Ms. Dillon’s comments about his children so he drew his firearm and fired between them.”Booth is scheduled for arraignment Oct. 28.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads