AURORA | The GEO Group employee who was arrested after allegedly shooting a protester outside of the Aurora ICE detention facility had his bond lowered in court on Wednesday and his pending charges reduced..
The 17th District Attorney’s Office announced it is charging Brandon A. Booth, 42, with one count each of first-degree assault and first-degree attempted assault. He also had his bond reduced to $100,000 cash or surety. Booth is being held at the Adams County Jail and his bond had originally been set at $500,000 cash or surety.
Booth is accused of shooting Emma Landis, 21, in the ankle as she was leaving a protest outside of the Aurora facility on the evening of July 16.
The charges are a reduction from what Booth originally faced, which included attempted murder, assault, attempted assault, menacing and unlawful carrying of a concealed weapon.
Booth’s Wednesday court appearance was short and a preliminary hearing was set for Aug. 13. During the proceedings, the judge acknowledged that Booth had been appointed a public defender for the time being.
A previous statement from the GEO Group said Booth is on unpaid leave and the company is fully cooperating with law enforcement.
An arrest affidavit for Booth says that he arrived for work around 7 p.m. to find the entrance to the northwest Aurora GEO facility blocked by protesters, so he waited nearby with a few other coworkers. At about 7:30 p.m., some GEO employees were approached by Landis and another woman, who were leaving the protest.
The two women called the employees “race traitors” and “Nazis,” according to the affidavit. Video from Landis, who filmed the interaction, records the women saying they could find out where the GEO employees live and where their kids go to school, but they don’t explicitly threaten harm, according to the affidavit.
The women were walking away when Landis was shot, the video revealed.
Booth told police that the comment about his kids is what caused him to pull out his weapon, saying he was “extremely angry” and describing his actions as “impulsive,” investigators said.
Booth allegedly grabbed a personal handgun from a cross-body bag he was wearing and shot one time at the women. Landis was hit in the ankle and had to be transported to the hospital.
Police said Booth does not have a concealed carry permit.
According to the affidavit, Booth said he intentionally pulled the trigger, but was aiming between the two women to “scare the protesters away from him and his coworkers, not to injure or kill anyone.” He told police that he is a “better shot” than he demonstrated, according to police records.
The affidavit adds that Booth acknowledged Landis and the other woman were not doing anything that posed a threat to his life at the time he fired the gun.
After Booth fired the gun, the affidavit says he got in his car and drove away, not knowing if he hit anyone. Booth allegedly told police that after he fired, he realized he had “done some dumb sh**.”
Police arrested Booth a few blocks away, at 3700 Havana Street.
Since the shooting, Landis has already returned to protest outside the GEO facility on Sunday morning. She told 9News that she wouldn’t let herself “be used as an example” and plans to continue to oppose the poor treatment of detained immigrants.
“So I’m going to keep going out there and advocating for this stuff,” Landis said. “It’s an important thing that people need to be aware of.”