I suspect some want this to be a hate crime to fit prevailing divisive narratives, but the investigation will continue on.
by Kolby LaMarche
I want to preface by saying the investigation into and the prosecution of Mr. Jason Eaton is ongoing. This article only uses information currently available and may be subject to change.
I have received numerous messages from readers interested in why I have yet to cover the shooting of three men which took place here, in Burlington, on November 25.
I haven’t because it was too early. But it’s nearly been a month now and I want to address it.
As you may know, according to investigators, on November 25 q three men of Palestinian descent were walking on North Prospect Street at night when they were approached by Jason Eaton, 48, who was carrying a handgun. Eaton, saying nothing, then discharged four rounds, striking all three victims.
It is no secret that gun violence, and crime more generally, has been on the rise in Burlington.
What happened to those three young men is beyond disturbing – as disturbing as the countless number of other victims of crime here. I wish them all a speedy recovery, both mentally and physically. No doubt, this incident will unfortunately live with them forever.
And Jason Eaton, if found guilty, should face the full weight of justice.
Following the shooting, Burlingtonians convened for vigils and rallies, prompting the city council to deliberate on a resolution advocating for a cease-fire in Gaza. Residents have voiced their condemnation of the incident, categorizing it as a targeted hate crime.
But was it?
Certain members of the public will likely want me drawn and quartered for even asking that. However, to you, the reader, I appeal to your better judgment.
We’ve witnessed the aftermath of remarkable incidents like this one before; they typically unfold in a familiar sequence of events.
A succession of media reports and public outrage typically ensues, digging into the perpetrator’s social media history, past statements, group affiliations, or, at times, a manifesto.
These discoveries can often immediately confirm, in the mind of the public, the assertion that the incident was a targeted act of hate and that the perpetrator’s motive constitutes a hate crime. And they’d usually be right.
But Eaton’s case isn’t adding up the same as others.
Countless outlets have published all the public intelligence available on Eaton. He was an intern at Harvard, a teacher, an investment advisor who oversaw $7 million worth of assets, a farmhand, and staff at a camp for at-risk youth.
Residents of Syracuse, New York, where Eaton once lived, described him as a “jack-of-all-trades” and “that hippie guy”.
From what has been gathered online, Eaton’s ideology doesn’t appear to include MAGA, or extreme Zionism, or Islamaphobia. In fact, it somewhat mirrors that of many pro-Palestinian activists. For example, in 2020, Eaton posted a meme critical of “Amerika”, lamenting the nation for its imperialism and corruption.
Most notably, since the shooting, we have had comments published from Eaton’s mother, ex-girlfriends, and friends who attest to his challenges with mental illness, depression, and a hot temper.
And, according to the victims, Eaton – who they described as a “wonky” man – stumbled down the stairs of his apartment before discharging his firearm toward them.
Within hours of the shooting, organizations and activists across the globe began banging their drums, demanding that Burlington and the federal government treat the incident as a hate crime, with the Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee saying the shooting most definitely occurred because “the victims are Arab.”
Similar assertions were made in the case of the young Palestinian boy murdered in Plainfield, Illinois, by Joseph Czuba on October 14th. Both activists and officials, then, were quick to call it a hate crime. They seem to be right.
According to court documents, Czuba regularly listened to conservative talk radio and was growing concerned over reports of a “National Day of Jihad”. Police have also alleged that during that attack, Czuba shouted “You Muslims must die”.
Yet, in Eaton’s case, after all this time, and all of the information we have, prosecutors still do not have evidence to support a hateful, targeted motive. Eaton doesn’t have any social media indicators and he didn’t say anything during the incident.
Burlington seems to exist in two divergent realities on this.
In one, Jason Eaton attempted murder, unequivocally driven by hatred towards Arabs and Muslims.
In the other, a reality truer to ours, Eaton attempted murder, but there is no documented bias or hatred against Arabs or Muslims.
The absence of discernible proof linking the tragedy to hatred challenges the chain of events that often follows these incidents. Nonetheless, there exists a palpable desire within Burlington and across the nation for this narrative to be absolutely true.
Yes, I suspect some want this to be a hate crime, to fit prevailing divisive narratives.
The investigation into Jason Eaton remains ongoing. In American jurisprudence, facts and the untainted truth matter, and must be in complete alignment.
At the moment, the facts do not support a hate crime. But will the public, with their own version of the “truth”, put enough pressure on Vermont’s justice system to make it bend? Or will Mayor Miro Weinberger and State’s Attorney Sarah George be forced to recognize this for what it seems to be leaning towards: a random act of violence.
Burning Sky is dedicated to providing critique and commentary on the issues of the day from an unapologetic perspective, fueling change in the heart of Vermont. Authored by Kolby LaMarche every Saturday.
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Categories: Commentary
We don’t have enough facts to form an educated, intelligent opinion. How do we know what transacted between the four men? How do we know the three men were not responsible for instigating a conflict and being outnumbered and possibly threatened, Mr. Eaton defended himself? How do we know if the three men were armed themselves?
How do we know if Mr. Eaton stalked these young men and lay in wait to perpetrate this crime? We don’t know. We don’t know a lot and considering the atmosphere of the world right now, it’s unlikely we will unless one side comes forward or the trail ensues. It’s interesting that I haven’t seen a lot of stumping from their lawyers. Isn’t that telling?
Yes misunderstanding and here say travels twice around the world before the truth gets it’s shoes on.
I would suspect that had this fit the definition of “hate crime”, this prosecution would have already been shifted to federal charges, in federal court. IF this unacceptable crime fit the narrative desired, it would be national front page news
for a long time, not forgotten
Why has the 14 year old shooters case been kept so confidential? Why was that shooter allowed back in school two days later? I could list a dozen more questions but I know I won’t get any reasonable answers.
Taking place in a state and in a city utterly obsessed with left wing philosophy and race paranoia, and in a jurisdiction with the legal apparatus run by a State’s Attorney wholly on board with that Soros-promoted lunacy, if no formal charges indicating bias have been proffered at this point, then we can safely assume that there is no evidence that it should be a factor in a legal sense. Quite the opposite, when the evidence suggests this alleged perpetrator is a creature of the left, the typical scenario is for the leftist-complicit media to quietly ignore the facts and transform it into simply an anti-gun-rights issue.
50 years or so ago, when we as a society decided that it was a violation of the human rights of the dangerously mentally disturbed to pre-emptively confine them for the common good, then we accepted the inevitable consequences. I’m perfectly ok with that decision so long as my Constitutional Rights are not then subject to compromise in an attempt to alleviate the risks we have deliberately introduced.
We have tough federal laws on the books regarding the possession of firearms by those who have been adjudicated as a danger to themself or others. Because we simply do not fully and adequately enforce those laws, there should be no reason to impose repercussions on the law-abiding and sound of mind.
Well stated on the gun issue and I agree, Sarah George would be chomping at the bit to call this a hate crime. Her silence on the issue tells us all we need to know on that front. But all the mis-informed Burlintonians and virtual signalers will still call it that and tie it to the war and pat themselves on the back.
I still think the story we are being fed, still seems a little fishy !!
So we have three young men just walking down the street and the fourth man just
starts shooting, I don’t buy it…… something is being held back, like something being said by any of the people involved ??
The narrative being pushed is all about these three college students of Palestinian descent, who were shot by a crazed middle-aged white man, seems like nothing more than gun violence…………………
I’ll wait for the full details, not the smoke & mirror story we are being fed to cause another turmoil in the cesspool known as Burlington.
So, there is a network, a very well, very, very well-organized network made to disseminate information about hate crimes, about racism, about sexism to spread to every news show and smart phone across the country. The book, The Smear, by Sheryl Atkisson, lays this out well. It’s called propaganda.
So the thing about propaganda, the very best propaganda is it’s true, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. But it does allow the narrative to form and be propagated, in many instances a known blatant lie will spread instantaneously across the entire country within hours, which serves the purpose.
The most prolific is police violence toward minorities. What is done is thus. Inevitably there is some police officer who is racist or does kill somebody who is innocent. Then this story and only this story is run across the country for months… and this is used as an identifier to say all police are scum. It doesn’t’ show the millions upon millions of police interactions every day that are good and proper. And if they can’t find one, they’ll make it up…..Jussie Smoulet….as a famous comedian referred to him.
Vt Digger did this with our state troopers pulling over a Rabbi…for months they slammed the VT State Police and officer. Then the video was released….and low and behold the officer couldn’t have been more professional or kind. But the damage and narrative were already done.
This is the game plan played out daily across our nation. They want us divided and fighting. Solving our own problems and living in peace with our neighbors and police is Kryptonite for the NWO……
It’s very nice and refreshing to see real journalism, I doubt there will be any retractions from the others who spread lies and propaganda, you see if they were a real news organization they would, because they want to keep credibility. But, because they are propaganda, lobbyists, political operatives they await the next possible story they can use to divide and conquer us.
I’d agree for sure that many both here in VT and elsewhere very much want this to be a anti-Muslim hate crime. They were labeling it as such from the get go. Only problem was of course, as you point out, there appears to be zilch to support this. From what I’ve heard everything points to his being a mentally ill leftist. Oops. Not what they wanted. But so many won’t let the truth get in the way and have used it to promote their vile causes such as the Burlington City Council resolution and pro Hamas rallies. And there isn’t a good way to understand the thought process of a mentally ill person so our frustration over “why” he did it is immense and probably insolvable.
It still wont stop the moonbats from blaming “the gun”…
This is probably silly but how do we know Mr Eaton is not antisemitic and mistook these 3 Palestinians for Israelis? There is a synagogue a couple blocks away. It is a Saturday. They are talking in English and Arabic which maybe he mistook for Hebrew. Does he know what a Kaffiyeh (sp)? looks like?
@ Ed
Interesting. Haven’t considered that possibility. And I seriously doubt he would know the difference between Hebrew and Arabic or even know what they were speaking. Ya never know. But probably just exceedingly crazy.