A man accused of brandishing a rifle at a “No Kings” rally in Salt Lake City that led to the accidental shooting of a protester was released from jail while the investigation continues.
Salt Lake District Attorney Sim Gill’s office said Friday that it was unable to decide on charges against Arturo Gamboa, who had been jailed on suspicion of murder following the June 14 shooting.
Gamboa, 24, was taken into custody after he brought an assault-style rifle to the rally and was allegedly moving toward the crowd with the weapon raised, Salt Lake City police said. An armed safety volunteer for the event fired three shots, wounding Gamboa and killing a nearby demonstrator, Arthur Folasa Ah Loo.
According to arrest documents, two designated peacekeepers saw Gamboa separating from the crowd, moving behind a wall, and pulling out a rifle, CBS affiliate KUTV reported.
Gamboa did not fire his rifle, and it is unclear what he intended to do with it.
Hannah Schoenbaum / AP 
Police said the day after the shooting that witnesses reported seeing Gamboa lift the rifle when he was ordered to drop it and that instead he began running toward the crowd. He fled after the shooting but was arrested nearby and accused of creating the dangerous situation that led to Ah Loo’s death.
Salt Lake City police said in a statement the next day that Gamboa “knowingly engaged in conduct … that ultimately caused the death of an innocent community member.”
Three days after Gamboa was booked into jail, police issued a public appeal for any video footage related to the shooting or Gamboa. They said detectives were still trying “to piece together exactly what happened.”
His father, Albert Gamboa, told the Associated Press last week that his son was “an innocent guy” who was “in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Utah is an open-carry state, meaning people who can legally own a firearm are generally allowed to carry it on a public street. The volunteer has not been publicly identified as investigators have worked to determine who was at fault.
Judge James Blanch said in the release order that Gamboa must live with his father and is forbidden from possessing firearms. The conditions terminate after two months or if criminal charges against him are pursued, Blanch wrote.
Gamboa’s attorney, Greg Skordas, did not immediately respond to the AP’s telephone message left for him seeking comment.
Protest organizers have not said whether or how the safety volunteer who shot Ah Loo was trained or explained why he was armed. All attendees, including those in safety roles, were asked not to bring weapons, according to Sarah Parker, a national coordinator for the 50501 Movement. Parker’s organization on Thursday said it was disassociating from a local chapter of the group that helped organize the Utah protest.
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Ah Loo, 39, was a successful fashion designer who appeared on “Project Runway.”
The “No Kings” demonstration involving some 18,000 people was otherwise peaceful. It was one of hundreds nationwide against President Trump’s military parade in Washington, which marked the Army’s 250th anniversary and coincided with Mr. Trump’s birthday.
