Colorado judge finds probable cause to try GEO employee who shot protester
A Colorado judge ruled there is sufficient evidence to prosecute GEO Group employee Brandon Booth for assault after he fired a pistol at a protester outside the Aurora ICE Processing Center.
On July 16, protesters blocked the gate of the Aurora ICE Processing Center, preventing GEO Group employee Brandon Booth from clocking in for his shift. During the turmoil, two women, Emma Landis and Mandy Dillon, shouted slurs and threatened Booth’s children, prompting him to draw a pistol loaded with brass training rounds and fire at their feet. Aurora police testified that Booth intended to “split the difference” to intimidate rather than kill.
After the shooting, Booth told officers he had done “some dumb shit.” 17th District Judge Martin Flaum found probable cause for one count of assault with extreme indifference and one count of criminal intent to assault, following arguments by Chief Deputy District Attorney Sara Carty. Booth’s arraignment is set for Oct. 28.
Why it matters
The case tests how private prison staff are held criminally responsible for using firearms during immigration-facility protests.
How the sides frame it
LOW AGREEMENTLeft-leaning coverage highlights the guard’s personal background and the circumstances of the shooting, while centrist coverage stresses the protesters’ alleged slurs and threats and frames the guard’s actions as intimidation.
LEFT
Frames the case around the guard’s identity, termination and the factual testimony about distance and his description of the protesters as “agitators.”
CENTER
Frames the incident as a response to protesters shouting slurs and threatening the guard’s children, emphasizing the guard’s intent to intimidate rather than kill.
The left emphasises
- Brandon Booth is described as a “42-year-old Black father of two.”
- Booth referred to the protesters as “agitators.”
- The shooting occurred after the women were photographing license plates and confronting GEO employees.
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