Suspect accused of killing 5 at Colorado gay nightclub is charged with hate crimes
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The suspect accused of entering a Colorado gay nightclub clad in body armor and opening fire with an AR-15-style rifle, killing five people and wounding 17 others, was charged by prosecutors Tuesday with 305 criminal counts, including hate crimes and murder.
Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, sat upright during the hearing and appeared alert. In an earlier court appearance just a few days after the shooting, their head and face were covered with bruises, and they had to be prompted by attorneys to respond to questions from a judge.
Investigators said Aldrich entered Club Q, a sanctuary for the LGBTQ community in the mostly conservative city of Colorado Springs, just before midnight Nov. 19 and began shooting during a birthday celebration. The killing stopped after patrons wrestled the shooter to the ground, beating them into submission, witnesses said.
Aldrich had been held on charges of hate crimes, but prosecutors had said they weren’t sure if those counts would stick, because they needed to assess if there was adequate evidence to show it was a bias-motivated crime.
Dist. Atty. Michael Allen noted that murder charges would carry the harshest penalty — probably life in prison — but said it was important to show the community that bias-motivated crimes are not tolerated.
Allen did not detail the charges at Tuesday’s hearing but said they included “many counts of bias-motivated crimes.”
Judge Michael McHenry has ordered the arrest warrant affidavit in the case to be unsealed, dismissing the objections of Aldrich’s attorney, who said he was concerned about his client’s right to a fair trial because of the publicity surrounding the case.
Days after the horrific attack at Club Q in Colorado Springs, Colo., little is still known about Anderson Aldrich, the suspect in the shooting that killed five. A motive remains unclear.
Aldrich, who is nonbinary and uses “they/them” pronouns, according to court filings by the defense, was arrested at the club. Aldrich has not entered a plea or spoken about the events.
According to witnesses, Aldrich fired first at people gathered at the club’s bar before spraying bullets across the dance floor. The attack came on the eve of an annual day of remembrance for transgender people lost to violence.
More than a year before the shooting, Aldrich was arrested on allegations of making a bomb threat that led to the evacuation of about 10 homes. Aldrich threatened to harm their own family with a homemade bomb, ammunition and multiple weapons, authorities said at the time.
Aldrich was booked into jail on suspicion of felony menacing and kidnapping, but the case was apparently sealed, and it’s unclear what became of the charges. There are no public indications that the case led to a conviction.
Doorstep video obtained by AP shows Aldrich arriving at their mother’s home with a large black bag, telling her that the police were nearby and adding, “This is where I stand. Today I die.”
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