Probe unresolved in Aurora shootings By Manny Gonzales Denver Post Staff Writer Aurora - Investigators have been unable to determine probable cause in the case where a white man shot a black couple, authorities said Thursday. Police submitted part of their investigation this week to the Arapahoe County district attorney's office, which will decide whether criminal charges are warranted. Meanwhile, the gunman remains free, much to the dismay of activists who say he hasn't been arrested because he is white. Glenn Eichstedt, who owns the Denver downtown-area Hoffbrau Tavern & Grill, said he shot Aaron Prentice Davis and Benita Coleman-Davis in self-defense during an altercation in the parking lot of a Blockbuster Video store at East Mississippi Avenue and Chambers Road. Aaron Davis was killed, but his wife survived. Eichstedt was allowed to leave the scene the night of the Nov. 13 shooting, and police have been working ever since to determine whether a crime was committed. Advertisement Many residents said Eichstedt should have been arrested, and they have criticized police for not moving more quickly to file charges. On Thursday, authorities confirmed that they have not established probable cause for making an arrest. "When we say probable cause, we're talking about evidence that leads us to believe that an individual has committed the crime," Aurora police spokeswoman Kathleen Walsh said. "At this time we do not have probable cause to make an arrest in this case, but the investigation is ongoing." District attorney spokesman Mike Knight said criminal charges are still a possibility. By not rushing to make an arrest, he added, investigators have given themselves more time to get their facts straight. "I'm sure the issue was debated, but if we arrested (Eichstedt) then, investigators would have had to put their case together in 72 hours before we would have had to release him," Knight said. "We still would have wanted to talk to the victim who survived so we could make charges, if there will be any, stick." Detectives also are awaiting lab results from evidence submitted to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. "This is still an ongoing case," Knight said. "And we're still waiting for interviews." An Arapahoe prosecutor who was called to the scene the night of the shooting had advised that there was no probable cause for an arrest, Knight said. Prosecutors are typically called to homicides when legal advice is needed. Eichstedt, who has a concealed-weapons permit, told officers that he shot Aaron Davis after Davis hit him on the head with a lead pipe. Eichstedt's friends have said he told them he was pushed to the ground by Coleman-Davis. The Aurora Human Relations Commission held a meeting this week with Aurora's mayor and police chief where residents voiced concerns about the case. "Although we talked specifically about the Blockbuster incident, I got the feeling that the underlying current of fear must go deeper," the commission's executive director, Barbara Shannon-Banister, said. "It appears that there is a double standard regarding how cases are dealt with on site," said Pastor Larry Wishard, who attended the meeting. "There is a need for the community to have better input into what's going on in the Aurora Police Department and the way they investigate matters and make decisions."
