A 43-year-old man was arrested early Tuesday morning after opening fire and barricading himself inside the Colorado Supreme Court building in Denver, authorities said.
The Colorado State Patrol said the case came before a seven-judge court after a Dec. 19 4-3 ruling ruled that former President Donald Trump was ineligible to participate in the state's March 5 primary voting. issued a statement saying it was not related to the previous threat.
According to CSP, the suspect, identified as Brandon Olsen, was involved in a car accident outside the Ralph L. Carr Colorado Justice Center around 1:15 a.m. after pointing a handgun at the other driver. , entered the building through a window. .
After breaking in, Olsen allegedly pointed a gun at an unarmed security guard. Investigators say the man then confiscated the officer's keys and headed to the seventh floor.
While there, Olsen apparently fired more shots and activated a fire extinguisher, starting the fire, according to a Denver police affidavit supporting the arrest.
Around 3 a.m., Olsen surrendered to law enforcement authorities who had surrounded the building.
“There were no injuries to building occupants, suspects, or law enforcement personnel,” authorities said in a press release.
Hours after the incident, large windows were seen broken on the first floor of the building, with glass spilling onto the sidewalk along a busy downtown street. CSP personnel were guarding the scene.
Centennial state judges ruled that President Trump's actions on January 6, 2021, violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits persons “associated with insurrection or insurrection” from holding public office.
Trump will be allowed to remain on the primary ballot unless there is an unusual intervention by the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold or affirm the Colorado state court's ruling before primary ballots are printed later this week.
CSP said it had increased security at the Supreme Court justices since the ruling, but declined to elaborate on how. The administration said security guards at the entrance to the statehouse are unarmed, but people can call for help from armed State Patrol agents stationed nearby.
An investigation into this matter is ongoing.
with post wire
