Defendant in Longmont drive-by shooting set for trial

The defendant in a Longmont drive-by shooting case is set for trial this fall.

Yahir Solis, 19, is charged with felony counts of first-degree murder after deliberation; first-degree murder – extreme indifference; two counts of attempted first-degree murder after deliberation; four counts of attempted first-degree murder – extreme indifference; first-degree assault causing serious bodily injury with a deadly weapon; first-degree assault – extreme indifference; and illegal discharge of a firearm.

Solis is also charged with misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest and criminal mischief.

At an arraignment hearing Friday, Solis pleaded not guilty to all the charges and was set for a five-day trial starting Sept. 25, with a motions hearing May 31.

Defense attorney Benjamin Collett had asked for one more arraignment hearing, but Boulder Chief Trial Deputy Adrian Van Nice asked the case be set for trial.

Boulder District Judge Patrick Butler denied the request for another hearing, noting that Solis was given a longer period of time between his November preliminary hearing and Friday’s arraignment with the caveat that a plea be entered at that time.

Solis, who appeared with Collett virtually for the hearing, will remain in custody without bond.

The first-degree murder charge carries a mandatory life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole.

According to an arrest affidavit, three teen boys were walking through Kensington Park about 1:49 p.m. Aug. 20 when they noticed a silver sedan traveling eastbound on Longs Peak Avenue.

Two of the teens told police that when the car turned south on Kensington Street, they saw the driver lean out the window pointing a gun and begin shooting. The boys tried to run, but one of them was hit in the chest and another was hit in the leg.

The 13-year-old who was hit in the chest, Isahis “Zay” Rosales, was declared dead after being transported to Longs Peak Hospital. The 15-year-old who was hit in the leg survived, while the third person was not injured.

One bullet was also found in the door of a nearby townhome, according to the affidavit.

About six minutes after the shooting, police located Solis in a vehicle that matched the description of the vehicle in the shooting, near Second Avenue and Pratt Street. A gun was found in the vehicle.

Longmont police officers and detectives testified that the three juveniles had “multi-generational familial ties” to a gang called East Side Longmont, or ESL.

Solis was reportedly a member of a Lafayette gang and exchanged threatening messages on social media with the teen who was injured in the shooting.