ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — Colorado’s 18th Judicial District Attorney said criticism of her office has been unfair in the wake of news that charges will be dropped against a suspect accused of attempting to kidnap kids at an Aurora elementary school in April 2024.

“We are following state law,” District Attorney Amy Padden said. “The statute provides, under certain circumstances, that charges must be dismissed. The court will make the ultimate determination as to whether or not charges will be dismissed.”

State law requires that if a defendant is found incompetent and not restorable — as has happened in this case — a judge must dismiss charges.

“It doesn’t provide for exceptions of a case of a homicide or a serious sex assault,” Padden said. “There are no exceptions in the statute.”

Solomon Galligan, 34, is facing kidnapping and child abuse charges after surveillance video captured the suspect lunging at children during recess on April 19, 2024 outside of Black Forest Hills Elementary School.

Watch: Denver7 investigator Natalie Chuck sits down with Padden to ask her your questions. Hear her response to criticism

Arapahoe County DA speaks with Denver7 after blowback over dropped charges: Full interview

Galligan has a lengthy criminal history, but already has had multiple cases dismissed due to being found incompetent.

A motion to dismiss the current case filed on Monday by defense attorneys states that Galligan has had 23 competency hearings in the past 18 years.

The district attorney’s office has until Monday to respond to the motion to dismiss.

“As a prosecutor, it’s frustrating as someone who lives in this community, that has family who lives in this community, that our hands are tied.” Padden said.

The case has received national attention and the DA’s office responded to criticism on Wednesday, saying in a statement that disinformation has been spread about the case and the DA’s plans.

An Aurora city councilwoman recently called for a recall of Padden due in part to the response to this case, as well as another case where a teen was sentenced to probation after a fatal car wreck.

Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky previously told Fox News: “She has dismissed cases that absolutely should have been prosecuted. She has given out a lot of probation for felony crimes, misdemeanor crimes, crimes that should have warranted several years in prison.”

Padden said the misinformation included statements from the councilwoman that the charges against Galligan had already been dropped.

“She indicated that we had moved to dismiss the case. We hadn’t. She’s made some statements that she thinks we are not filing specific charges, that we are not giving appropriate sentences. Our office has asked her numerous times to identify those cases that she’s speaking about so that we can take a look at them,” Padden said. “I think the implication was that we had some sort of discretion as to whether or not the charges in a specific case would proceed. Again, it’s ultimately up to the court, but the statute is mandatory in its language.”

A state law passed in 2024 requires a judge to drop charges against suspects who are found incompetent and not restorable. Previously, the law stated that a judge “may” drop charges if a defendant is found incompetent and not restorable.

Critics of the new law state that it was passed with a financial mechanism to increase mental health services.

Padden echoed those concerns and raised others.

“I’m concerned about the mandatory nature of the dismissal in all cases, with no exceptions,” she said. “And I think we need to look at some exceptions that can be carved out. I think we also have a serious funding problem for mental health treatment overall, and particularly in this type of situation.

“We need to be able to fund these beds. We need more resources to treat mental health. We know that some individuals who commit crimes have mental health problems. And some of those individuals, if we’re able to treat the mental health problem, they won’t go forward and commit another crime. And so we need to have resources there.”

Denver7 Investigates has covered the fallout from this new law during the past several months.

In late 2024, Dr. Scott Green contacted Denver7 Investigates expressing concern that a suspect accused of stabbing him in his office in 2022 was about to be released after he was found incompetent and not restorable.

During our investigation, a bed opened up for the suspect, Evan McPherson, at the state mental health hospital in Pueblo.

Earlier this year, Joseph and Billie Jo Bowman contacted Denver7 Investigates to report that the man accused of crashing into their car while he was driving at more than 100 miles per hour in late 2021 was about to be released after he was found incompetent six times due to a traumatic brain injury suffered in the crash.

The suspect, Guillermo Ramirez, was facing more than a dozen charges. His passenger, Brisia Leon, was killed in the accident and Joseph and Billie Jo’s mother, Nelie, died 10 months later from complications of injuries suffered in the crash.

Padden previously stressed that Galligan will not be released back into the public, but will be civilly committed and stay in mental health treatment.

Currently, Galligan is at the Colorado Mental Health Hospital at Fort Logan and once the commitment goes through, will likely be moved to a civil unit. Where the treatment goes from there will be up to medical doctors.

“They need to follow the state law that applies to them, and that will be in their hands as to what happens to this individual,” Padden said.

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