Colorado Springs suspect is charged with 305 counts in Club Q shooting that killed five
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The suspect accused of entering a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs and opening fire with an AR-15-style rifle, killing five people and injuring dozens more, was indicted Tuesday with murder, hate crimes and assault.
Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, wore a neon yellow prison uniform and appeared alert for the El Paso District Court hearing as charges were read. At the suspect’s earlier appearance, they were slumped over and had to be asked by lawyers to answer the judge’s questions.
Aldrich, who is non-binary and uses pronouns they/themaccording to court documents filed for the defense, he has been held without bail since the November 19 riot at Club Q in Colorado Springs that left five dead and dozens injured.
The 305 charges include first degree murder, first degree attempted murder, first and second degree assault and hate crimes. If he is convicted of first degree murder, Aldrich faces a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, sat upright in a chair during the hearing and appeared alert as he was read the charges against him in the Colorado shootings, including murder and hate crimes.
The 305 charges against him include first-degree murder, first-degree attempted murder, first-degree and second-degree assault, and hate crimes.
Aldrich, pictured in a sketch on November 23, is accused of killing five people in a shooting at a Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub.
Investigators said Aldrich entered Club Q, a sanctuary for the LGBTQ community in the largely conservative city of Colorado Springsjust before midnight on November 19 and began shooting during a drag queen’s birthday celebration.
Those killed were identified as Kelly Loving, 40; Daniel Aston, 28; Derrick Rump, 38; Ashley Paugh, 34; and Raymond Green Vance, 22.
The massacre stopped after patrons tackled the suspect to the ground, beating Aldrich into submission, they said.
The two men with military backgrounds subdued Aldrich until the police arrived. A former Army major and decorated veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, Richard Fierro, told reporters that he disarmed Aldrich and pistol-whipped him into submission.
The other man credited with subduing Aldrich, Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Thomas James, said in a written statement that he only wanted to “save the family I found.”
Aldrich had been detained on hate crime charges, but prosecutors had previously said they were unsure if those charges would stand because they needed to assess whether there was adequate evidence to show it was a hate crime.
District Attorney Michael Allen had noted that the murder charges would carry the heaviest penalty, likely life in prison, but also said it was important to show the community that hate crimes are not tolerated if there is evidence to support the charge.
In his booking photo, Aldrich appeared battered, with bruises on his face and neck from apparently sustained when bar patrons beat him.
In his booking photo, Aldrich appeared battered, with bruises on his face and neck from apparently sustained when bar patrons beat him.
Pictured: Investigators at the scene at Club Q nightclub, which was hosting a drag show, when they said Aldrich walked in and opened fire. The club’s owners say Aldrich arrived with “tremendous firepower”: an AR-15 rifle, six magazines of ammunition and a pistol.
According to witnesses, Aldrich fired first at the people gathered in the club bar before spraying bullets on the dance floor during the attack, which occurred the eve of the an annual day of remembrance for transgender people lost to violence.
More than a year before the shooting, Aldrich was arrested on charges of making a bomb threat which led to the evacuation of about 10 homes. Aldrich threatened to harm his own family with a homemade bomb, ammunition and multiple weapons, authorities said at the time.
Aldrich was jailed on suspicion of felony threat and kidnapping, but the case was apparently later sealed and it’s unclear what happened to the charges. There is no public indication that the case led to a conviction.
Video of the doorbell obtained by AP shows Aldrich arriving at his mother’s front door with a large black bag, telling her police were nearby, adding: “This is where I am. Today I die.
Derrick Rump (left) and Daniel Aston (right) were among the five killed Saturday night in the apparently premeditated attack carried out by gunman Aldrich, who was armed with an AR-15.
Photographs of victims of a mass shooting at a nearby gay nightclub are displayed at a memorial on November 22, 2022 in Colorado Springs.
Mourners gather outside Club Q to visit a memorial, which has been moved from a sidewalk outside the police tape surrounding the club, in Colorado Springs.
Although authorities have not publicly identified a motive, the shooting in Colorado was reminiscent of the 2016 Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando, Florida, where a gunman killed 49 people before he was fatally shot by police.
Colorado no longer has a death penalty statute. However, Aldrich could face a death sentence in federal court if prosecutors decide to charge him with crimes under the US code, which still has capital punishment on his books for certain crimes.
Attorneys assigned to represent Aldrich from the Colorado public defender’s office said in court documents that their client identifies as gender non-binary and prefers the pronouns “they” and “them.”
District Attorney Michael Allen said after Aldrich’s initial court appearance on November 23 that the suspect’s gender identity would not influence how the case would be prosecuted.
Aldrich was previously arrested in June 2021 in Colorado Springs after the suspect threatened to detonate a bomb and harm his mother with multiple weapons, according to a news release from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.