Boulder County, Colo. -On September 23, 2023, Derek Jordan assaulted Marius Suffian with a broken tree branch as Mr. Suffian walked home from work. The defendant hit Mr. Suffian more than a dozen times with the tree branch, including multiple times in the face and, also, while Mr. Suffian was on the ground. Boulder Police Officers quickly responded to the scene and found the defendant being restrained by a bystander who had witnessed the attack. Mr. Suffian, who is an at-risk adult, sustained facial injuries and transported to Boulder Community Health for treatment. Mr. Suffian suffered serious bodily injury from the attack, including a nasal fracture and a complex facial laceration with a laceration to his tear duct.

Today, the defendant pled guilty to one count of First Degree Assault – At-Risk Person, a class two felony and was remanded into custody pending sentencing. There is a stipulated range of 25 to 32 years in state prison. The victim and his family were supportive of the guilty plea with this sentencing range. The guilty plea will, also, bring this case to a resolution without the victim and witnesses having to testify at trial.

Sentencing is set for November 3rd at 900 am.

DA Michael Dougherty stated, “Due to the nature of this unjustified and senseless attack, community members and police officers quickly responded to support the victim. The person responsible for this brutal assault was quickly arrested and, with this guilty plea and sentence, he will be held fully responsible for his actions. Our prosecution team was honored to fight for justice for Mr. Suffian, his family, and the community.”

The District Attorney’s Office will have additional statements after the sentence is imposed.