In a still frame from video first responders tend to an injured man, behind, at the scene of a shooting, Saturday, Nov. 25, 2023, in Burlington, Vt. Burlington Police Department arrested Jason J. Eaton, suspected in the shooting of three young men of Palestinian descent, who were attending a Thanksgiving holiday gathering near the University of Vermont campus Saturday evening. (Wayne Savage via AP)
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Three college students of Palestinian descent out for a walk in Vermont were seriously injured over the weekend when a man shot them at close range on a city street—an attack being investigated as a possible hate crime, authorities said Monday.
Jason J. Eaton, 48, made his initial court appearance by video from jail on three counts of attempted murder, and a plea of not guilty was entered on his behalf on Monday. He was ordered held without bail for the time being.
The U.S. Department of Justice, along with state law enforcement agencies, were investigating whether Saturday’s shooting was a hate crime amid an increase in threats against Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities across the U.S. since the Israel-Hamas war began, Attorney General Merrick Garland said. “There is understandable fear in communities across the country,” he said.
The three men, all age 20, who were spending their Thanksgiving break in Burlington, were walking during a visit to the home of one of the victims’ relatives when they were confronted by a white man with a handgun, police said.
“They stated that the person had not made any comments to them and had merely approached them while they were walking down the street, essentially minding their own business,” Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad told reporters.
Two were struck in their torsos, while one was hit in the lower extremities, Murad said. All three were being treated at University of Vermont Medical Center, and one faces a long recovery because of a spinal injury, a family member said.
The Institute for Middle East Understanding, in a statement from victims’ families on X, formerly known as Twitter, identified the men as Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid and Tahseen Ali Ahmad.
“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.”
The three have been friends since first grade at Ramallah Friends School, a private school in the West Bank, and all are “remarkable, distinguished students,” said Rania Ma’ayeh, head of the school.
Awartani is studying mathematics and archaeology at Brown University in Rhode Island; Abdalhamid is a pre-med student at Haverford College in Pennsylvania; and Ali Ahmad is studying mathematics and IT at Trinity College in Connecticut, Ma’ayeh said. Awartani and Abdalhamid are U.S. citizens while Ali Ahmad is studying on a student visa, Ma’ayeh said.
“Our students are not safe in their own country because of the occupation. They’re studying abroad and have a bright future ahead of them, and look at what happens,” she said. “This has deeply shaken us.”
Abdalhamid’s uncle Radi Tamini, who flew from California and spoke Monday at the press conference, shared a similar sentiment.
“Kinnan grew up in the West Bank and we always thought that that could be more of a risk in terms of his safety and sending him here would be a right decision,” the uncle said. “We feel somehow betrayed in that decision here and we’re just trying to come to terms with everything.”
Eaton moved to Burlington over the summer and had legally purchased the gun used in the shooting, Murad told reporters. According to a police affidavit, federal agents found the gun in Eaton’s apartment on Sunday. Eaton came to the door holding his hands palms up and told the officers he’d been waiting for them.
Rich Price, Awartani’s uncle, said the gunman “shot them without saying any words” and that the family suspects they were targets of a hate crime.
“The family’s fear is that this was motivated by hate, that these young men were targeted because they were Arabs,” Price said.
The victims were speaking in a mix of English and Arabic and two of them were also wearing the black-and-white Palestinian keffiyeh scarves when they were shot, Murad said.
Speaking at a news conference, Sarah George, state’s attorney, said law enforcement officials do not yet have evidence to support a hate crime enhancement, which under Vermont law must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. But, she said, “I do want to be clear that there is no question that this was a hateful act.”
Murad echoed George’s language.
“Whether or not this is a hate crime by the law, it was a hateful act. It’s one that we abhor,” he said. “And anybody who steps out from a porch and attacks three random passersby for whatever reason, he’s expressing a form of hate.”
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger, who called it “one of the most shocking and disturbing events in the city’s history,” said he spoke to President Joe Biden on Monday.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president and first lady Jill Biden were “horrified” to learn of the shooting. “There is absolutely no place for violence or hate in America,” she said Monday. “No person should worry about being targeted while going about their daily lives.”
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, Vermont. 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.”
The Vermont-New Hampshire chapter of Jewish Voice For Peace, which has urged an end to the Israel-Hamas war, released a statement saying it was “appalled by the shooting.”
“We are in solidarity with the students, their families and all those affected by this clear act of hate,” the organization said Sunday. “We are in solidarity with all Palestinian people in occupied Palestine, around the world, and here in Vermont — and we are committed to creating a Vermont that is safe and welcoming for all.”
Demonstrations have been widespread and tensions in the U.S. have escalated as the death toll rises in the Israel-Hamas war. A fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was set to continue for two more days past Monday as 11 more hostages were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza under what was originally a four-day truce deal.
Last month, an Illinois landlord was charged with a hate crime after being accused of fatally stabbing a 6-year-old Muslim boy and seriously wounding his mother in suburban Chicago. Police and relatives said he singled out the victims because of their faith.
University of Vermont graduate student Jacob Friz-Trillo, who lives down the street from where the shooting took place, said the violence was out of character for the city. “It’s kind of regarded as a super liberal area, especially because it’s right by UVM,” he said.
Ma’ayeh said the most recent attack shows that safety must be improved. “This incident is a reminder of the urgency to change the discourse, which has dehumanized Palestinians. They are people who are deserving of empathy, compassion, rights, freedom, happiness and life,” she said.
Associated Press writers Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire, Lindsay Whitehurst in Washington and David Sharp in Portland, Maine, contributed to this report.