Burlington, VT– The man accused of shooting and injuring three Palestinian-American students last November appeared in a Burlington courtroom for the first time since his arraignment.

Although it was a short hearing for 48-year-old Jason Eaton, there was a massive show of community support inside the courthouse for the three victims. Dozens of people wore Keffiyehs to stand in solidarity with Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid, and Tahseen Ali Ahmad. While the three are mostly recovered, Awartani remains paralyzed from the chest down.

Eaton faces three attempted second-degree murder charges to which he pleaded not guilty after police say he shot the three students over Thanksgiving break.

After showing up slightly late to the scheduled hearing on Friday, and changing into regular clothing, Eaton was unshackled to face the judge.

The court heard two motions filed by Eaton’s attorneys. One asked the court to allow Eaton to wear “civilian clothing” for his court visits instead of the prison jumpsuit, which was granted. Eaton has been in jail since his arrest, and his lawyers filed another motion asking if Eaton could be held at Northwest State Correctional Facility so as to be closer to the courthouse than he would be at Southern State Correctional.

After the case gained national publicity, Defense Attorney Margaret Jansch urges the public not to make any assumptions about the motive.

“In times of violence that we live in today, sometimes it’s a natural human desire to want a quick and easy simple solution to explain the ‘why.’ It’s not as simple as it may seem at first,” says Jansch.

When asked about the possibility of this being a hate crime, Jansch said the state has yet to bring forward any evidence that would point toward filing that kind of charge.

As supporters and advocates from ‘Vermonters for Justice in Palestine’ and the ‘Vermont Coalition for Palestinian Liberation’ wore keffiyehs in solidarity, some believe it was a hate crime.

“We came here to show the state and show the people of Burlington that our community is strong, and we believe this is a hate crime, this should be called a hate crime,” says Wafic Faour. “My community needs protection like any other community, otherwise the city and the leader of this state are discriminating against us.”

Faour, of Vermonters for Justice in Palestine, says he feels the support from the every-day community member, but also says he often feels “pushed aside” by city and state officials.

When asked how the three victims were doing, Faour said they want answers.

“Of course, they are desperate, they are disappointed, and the greater community is disappointed,” said Faour.

Jansch says that Eaton hopes the three victims and their families can begin to heal.

“Neither he nor we minimize the gravity of the situation and the impact on the lives of the three young men who were shot and their families. Regardless of the criminal case, we all, and that includes Mr. Eaton, hope that they can recover as much as possible,” said Jansch.

Jansch noted that cases involving attempted murder charges can often take up to two years to get to trial. While prosecutors were unavailable for comment after the court proceeding, both sides said they remain optimistic that Eaton could face a jury by January or February of next year.