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06_04_25_Headlines Ainsley Coogan
Pearl Street attack
The family of the man accused of burning a dozen people supporting Israeli hostages on Pearl Street could be facing imminent deportation.
U.S. immigration officials detained the wife and five children of 45-year old Mohamed Sabry Soliman yesterday. U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristy Noem confirmed on social media that the family has been arrested, according to the Denver Post. All of their visas were revoked after the attack.
Noem wrote that her investigators want to know whether family members knew in advance that Soliman was planning Sunday’s attack on Boulder’s Pearl Street Mall.
Soliman said shortly after his arrest that none of his family members, who live in Colorado Springs, were aware of what he was planning, according to law enforcement who interrogated him.
12 people were burned Sunday when Molotov cocktails and a homemade flamethrower were used against them. They were part of a group called Run for Their Lives, which has been gathering peacefully on Pearl Street for nearly two years, according to the Denver Post, in support of the hostages kidnapped by on and since October 7th, 2023. Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said yesterday that all 12 are expected to survive.
Investigators said at a news conference that Soliman yelled “Free Palestine” when he carried out the attack.
Soliman, an Egyptian National whose visa expired in 2023, is facing numerous charges stemming from the attack. They include hate crimes and other state and federal charges. He is due back in court tomorrow where additional charges may be filed against him. Authorities say if convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
Rock thrower sentenced
The man convicted of first degree murder for killing a woman in her car with a large rock has been sentenced to life in prison, plus an additional 60 years.
Joseph Koenig was found guilty of 19 charges for the 2023 death of 20-year-old Alexa Bartell. She died after Koenig hurled a nine-pound rock at her car.
During Koenig’s sentencing yesterday, he apologized to the victim’s family and acknowledged it’s his fault that she is gone. He said there’s “no excuse” for what happened, but maintained that he didn’t intend to hurt anyone.
DOE investigates JeffCo trans policy
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights is investigating JeffCo Public Schools over the district’s sleeping arrangement policy for transgender students on school trips.
The JeffCo district policy says that in most cases, transgender students should be assigned to share overnight accommodations with students that share their gender identity. It also prioritizes the case-by-case needs of trans students when it comes to safety and comfort, and any stigma they may face.
The federal Education Department has launched their investigation under Title IX, which has been used previously by the Trump Administration to challenge transgender rights policies. In a press release, the department accused JeffCo schools of “allegedly mislead[ing] parents by informing them that the girls and boys will be separated for overnight accommodations without divulging that its definition of ‘girl’ includes boys who claim a female identity.”
JeffCo stood by its policy, saying in a statement that their rules are grounded in Colorado’s anti-discrimination law.
The JeffCo investigation was one of two announced on Monday, during what the Trump Administration is calling “Title IX Month.” June marks the 53rd anniversary of the law. The other case involves a University of Wyoming transgender student who was admitted to a sorority.
Bill signings
Governor Jared Polis has signed bills into law that crack down on stolen guns, and provide millions of dollars to law enforcement.
The governor signed Senate Bill 205 on Monday. The new law requires gun dealers to request a check on a previously owned gun’s serial number before buying it. A local sheriff’s office then has three days to complete the serial number check. If the dealer suspects that someone sold, or attempted to sell, a firearm that was stolen, lost, or involved in an open criminal investigation, they are required to report that information to law enforcement within two days, or risk losing their license.
Also on Monday, the governor signed Senate Bill 310 into law. That bill implements a voter-approved ballot measure that provides $350 million for law enforcement training, recruitment, and retention. It also provides a one million dollar death benefit to the families of officers who are killed while on the job.
That’s all according to Colorado Politics.
Wolf Death
Another of the wolves released into the Colorado wilderness has died.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife says the wolf, one of fifteen captured in British Columbia and brought to Colorado in January, died in northwestern Colorado. The agency learned of the death after getting a mortality signal from its collar late last week, according to the Colorado Sun.
The cause of death has not been made public at this time. This latest death is the eighth since the voter-approved wolf reintroduction program began in late 2023. That includes a wolf shot and killed by wildlife officials at a Pitkin County ranch last week.
The wolf reintroduction program has been controversial all along, especially since wolves have killed livestock at ranches in Pitkin, Grand, and other counties.
