The three Palestinian men wounded during a 2023 shooting in Burlington took the witness stand on Monday during the first day of the trial of their alleged shooter.
Jason Eaton, 51, pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted second degree murder. He’s been held in prison since being arrested in November 2023, a day after the shooting. If convicted he could be sentenced to life in prison.
Prosecutors had been concerned that delays in the high-profile trial might mean the shooting victims would be unable to testify in person, but all three were in Chittenden Superior Court on Monday.
Nearly three years ago, Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid and Tahseen Ali Ahmad, were in Burlington visiting Awartani’s grandmother and uncle for the Thanksgiving holiday. On the evening of Nov. 25, 2023, they were walking on North Prospect Street speaking a mixture of English and Arabic. Two of the three were also wearing keffiyehs — traditional Palestinian scarves.
The men, who were all 20 at the time of the shooting, testified that Eaton approached them and, without speaking, drew a pistol and opened fire.
“I first heard a gunshot, and then two more gunshots, and then I fell onto the ground,” Awartani said. “And at that point, didn't really know what was going on.”
During his testimony, prosecutors played the 911 call Awartani made after he’d been shot.
“I think I'm going to die,” Awartani told the dispatcher.
Awartani was hit in the spine and left paralyzed from the waist down. Abdalhamid was shot in the glute and Ali Ahmad in the upper chest.
During testimony, the three men described the shooter as an older, skinny white male. But they could not specifically identify Eaton.
Eaton’s attorneys are expected to present expert testimony that Eaton was legally insane at the time of the shooting, which means he can’t be held criminally responsible for his conduct.
Public defender Joshua O’Hara told the jury that in the two weeks leading up to the shooting Eaton started to get messages from the CIA through the radio, including orders to carry out the shooting.
“These were delusions,” O’Hara said during opening arguments. “He did not have the ability to appreciate the wrongfulness of his conduct in the moment because he believed he had been instructed to do this by this government agency or God.”
Prosecutors, during their opening statement, said they’ll present their own expert testimony that refutes the insanity defense. Deputy state’s attorney Sally Adams told the jury to look critically at Eaton’s justification for the shooting.
“I ask you to consider why might Mr. Eaton say this,” Adams said. “I ask you to consider its timing. I ask you to consider the potential benefit of this story to Mr. Eaton.”
“We believe that the evidence will show that Mr. Eaton did not suffer from a mental disease or defect at the time of the shooting,” Adams added.
The first day of the trial also featured testimony from medical providers at the University of Vermont Medical Center who treated the three young men after the shooting, a crime scene technician who collected evidence at the scene of the shooting, and two agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
The shooting occurred in front of Eaton’s apartment building. The day after the incident, ATF agents Samuel Brown and Eric Brimo were canvassing for witnesses. The agents said when they knocked on Eaton’s apartment door, he opened it and said something like “I’ve been waiting for you.”
Eaton stepped into the threshold with his hands held open in “what I would describe as a surrender position,” Brown testified on Monday.
Eaton wouldn’t identify himself or explain why he said he’d been waiting for them, Brown testified. He then asked for a lawyer.
On Monday, the courtroom was packed with the victims’ families and friends, their supporters, and media. The shooting, which took place about a month after the beginning of the war in Gaza, made national and international headlines.
A number of spectators in court on Monday wore keffiyehs in a show of solidarity with the shooting victims, but Judge John Pacht ordered them to remove the scarves before the jury entered the courtroom.
Pacht said he understood the desire to show support, but he was concerned the keffiyehs could impact the jury
“Everything decided here must be decided by the evidence in court,” Pacht said. “I’m concerned the wearing of keffiyehs could be a silent type of evidence.”
Eaton’s trial will resume on Tuesday morning. It’s expected to last for a week.
