GREELEY — The Eaton man accused of driving through a crowd of pro-police rally attendees has had the initial charges in his case increased.
Isaiah Cordova, 21 of Eaton, was initially arrested in July on seven counts of first-degree assault, seven counts of felony menacing, and one count of reckless driving. The charges stemmed from a pro-police rally and canned food drive, where Cordova is accused of recklessly jumping curbs and driving through a park nearly hitting more than a dozen people, including four young children.
On Jan. 6, the Weld County District Attorney’s office amended the charges to seven counts of second-degree assault causing injury with a deadly weapon, felony menacing with a weapon, seven counts of attempted murder with extreme indifference and an “enhancer” charge of committing a violent crime with a weapon.
The rally, which ran along Collins St. just west of U.S. 85 in the northern Weld County community of Eaton started at 3 p.m. and drew at least 300 people with flags, signs, and music. The rally, which was organized by the Northern Colorado Young Republicans, was the largest to date in Weld County. Previous rallies in Greeley, Evans and in front of the Weld Sheriff’s Office had all been peaceful.
About 30 minutes in, however, Cordova was seen in a red SUV and began taunting the crowd driving east along Collins yelling and flipping off supporters.
Eaton resident Carlee Hauska and her two young children saw the man drive by the first time, but she thought he gave up as she crossed the street to let her kids play with other children in the grassy area on the south side of the street. Hauska said her two boys and a neighbor boy were running into the grass when she heard glass shatter.
“I turned to look what was going on and heard him squeal his tires and turn around to face Heritage Market,” Hauska said at the time. “He just floored it and went into the grass.”
Hauska said her heart sank as she watched the three boys ages 3, 7 and 9 running toward the path of the SUV.
“I just ran and scooped up the kids and saw him turn around again into the grass,” Hauska said. “I’ve never been so scared of something. It’s something you only see in a movie. Just two minutes earlier and they would have been right there.”
An undercover Eaton police patrol car was nearby when the incident occurred and chased the suspect down the street.
“I never thought something like that would happen in a small town,” Hauska said. “I was so proud to see so many people out there. It speaks volumes to what a tight knit community we have.”
Cordova has a history of protesting and contempt for both President Trump and his supporters, as well as law enforcement according to his social media profile.
The life-long Eaton Resident graduated from Eaton High School in 2017, and at one point was studying to be a journalist, even submitting an opinion piece to Red Ink, the Eaton High School paper just days after Donald Trump was elected president in 2016.
“On the night of Nov. 8, I was out electioneering at the polling place at the Evangelical Free Church in Eaton holding a sign which read “NEVER TRUMP,” he wrote in part. “The people who stick in my mind, however, are those who could not bear to talk to me face-to-face and had to shout at me from across the parking lot. ‘We’re gonna build that wall,’ one man shouted at me.
Public posts on Cordova’s Facebook page date back to his high school years as to when Cordova began protesting and making his views known.
In August 2017 he posted about the very same type of action he’s accused of in July, calling it “terrorism.”
Cordova is free on a $5,000 bond. He is due back in court on March 5.
