District Judge William Herringer heard more than 3½ hours of testimony Tuesday from law enforcement officers who responded to a chaotic scene earlier this year at the 8th Avenue Tavern, where Michael Quirova is suspected of firing a gun indiscriminately into the bar, severely injuring two people.
Herringer is expected to issue a ruling Wednesday about whether enough evidence exists for prosecutors to move forward with seven counts of attempted murder filed against Quirova.
The shooting occurred about 11 p.m. Jan. 29, when Quirova is suspected of firing at least seven times randomly from a handgun into the pub’s patio, hitting Stephanie Celeste Faumui and Jeffrey Michael Starns.
Faumui was shot in a shoulder and Starns in a knee.
Police arrested Quirova, 27, in the 400 block of Goeglein Gulch Road after receiving a tip from a witness that the suspect was heading east from the 800 block of College Drive.
Law enforcement officers testified that Quirova was the only pedestrian that night matching a description of the suspect given to them by witnesses.
Defense attorneys John Moran and Mary Pero argued that three bullet holes left in the tavern’s patio screen were higher than 7 feet, 6 inches and two bullet casings were found on the patio’s roof – all too high to charge Quirova with the intent to commit murder.
Assistant District Attorney David Ottman said several bullets went through the patio screen at the tavern and two hit people.
“Mr. Quirova fired multiple times into a crowded room,” he said.
According to an arrest affidavit, officers held Quirova at gunpoint. Quirova resisted arrest and tried to pull away from officers, requiring the use of a Taser. Quirova continued to resist arrest, but was eventually handcuffed.
Quirova then told officers he was COVID-19 positive and coughed in an officer’s face, court documents show.
Several witnesses identified Quirova as the shooter. Investigators also matched fresh footprints in the snow from 8th Avenue Tavern to the 400 block of Goeglein Gulch Road to boots Quirova was wearing.
At the jail, Quirova started resisting again and fought jail staff members. He was taken to the ground and placed in a resistance wrap.
Law officers also testified that they discovered a gun case matching the suspected firearm in Quirova’s house after executing a search warrant several days after the shooting.
Durango police officers found the gun used in the shooting Feb. 2, about 50 yards from where Quirova was arrested on Goeglein Gulch Road.
Quirova is also charged with two counts of first-degree assault, assault in the second degree, possession of a weapon by a previous offender, violation of a parole order and two counts of resisting arrest.
Quirova had been recently released from Hilltop House community corrections center, which provides transitional housing to parolees and criminal offenders who are required to work and earn income while living in the community.
Quirova was wearing an ankle bracelet at the time of his arrest because he was still on parole.
Quirova has a criminal record dating to 2008 that includes convictions for burglary, possession of a controlled substance, vehicular eluding and flight escape.
According to a report in The Colorado Springs Gazette, in 2013, Quirova had a long standoff with police, in which he allegedly held a female hostage against her will inside an apartment.
A SWAT team forced entry and took Quirova into custody. According to state records, he was sentenced to prison and was eligible for parole in March 2020.
parmijo@durangoherald.com
