Shooter in Colorado LGBTQ+ club massacre intends to plead guilty to federal hate crimes

The shooter in the fatal 2022 attack at an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado is expected to plead guilty to federal hate crime and firearms charges under an agreement that would allow the defendant to avoid the death penalty, court documents show.

Anderson Lee Aldrich, 23, made a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to 50 hate crime charges and 24 firearm violations, according to the documents. Aldrich would get multiple life sentences in addition to a 190-year sentence under the proposed agreement, which needs a judge’s approval.

The Jan. 9 plea agreement was unsealed by the court after Aldrich had pleaded not guilty in court during an initial appearance Tuesday afternoon. The gun charges can carry a maximum penalty of death, according to the agreement.

"The parties further informed the court that there is a plea agreement in this matter, and it is anticipated that the defendant has agreed to plead guilty to all charges in the information," the Justice Department said in a news release Tuesday. "The time for the entry of the guilty plea has not yet been set."

The new charges follow Aldrich's guilty plea to five counts of first-degree murder and 46 counts of attempted first-degree murder last June in state court. Aldrich had also pleaded no contest to two counts of bias-motivated crimes, one a felony and the other a misdemeanor.

Aldrich was initially charged with more than 300 crimes in connection to the Nov. 19, 2022, mass shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs.

Aldrich is serving five consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole on the state murder charges and 46 consecutive 48-year sentences on the attempted murder charges. Last year, Aldrich was moved to the Wyoming State Penitentiary because of safety concerns in the high-profile case, according to the Colorado Department of Corrections.

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Club Q shooting was 'deliberate,' DOJ says

The attack at Club Q, which killed five people and injured 17, devastated the LGBTQ+ community and their loved ones in Colorado Springs, who considered the nightclub as a safe space.

Aldrich had entered Club Q armed with an assault weapon and opened fire before being stopped by two patrons, according to authorities. A Navy officer had grabbed the barrel of the suspect's rifle and an Army veteran helped subdue Aldrich until police arrived.

The Justice Department called the shooting a "willful, deliberate, malicious and premeditated attack at Club Q." The department also said Aldrich carried out the attack "because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity of any person."

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Aldrich had a history of making threats

Before the shooting, Aldrich was arrested in June 2021 after being accused of making a bomb threat that led to an armed standoff with SWAT teams, according to court documents. Their grandparents told police Aldrich held them hostage in their home, told them of bombmaking materials in the basement, and shared plans to be the next mass killer.

Aldrich also livestreamed the standoff on Facebook, and authorities seized weapons, ammunition and more than 100 pounds of explosive materials. Aldrich was charged with five felonies, including first-degree kidnapping, but those charges were eventually dismissed after Aldrich's family refused to cooperate.

And during hearings in the state case in February, prosecutors said Aldrich had managed a website that posted a "neo-Nazi white supremacist" shooting training video. A police detective also testified that online gaming friends said Aldrich expressed hatred for the police, LBGTQ+ people and minorities, and used racist and homophobic slurs.

Contributing: N'dea Yancey-Bragg and Christine Fernando, USA TODAY; Justin Reutter, The Pueblo Chieftain; The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Club Q shooting: Anderson Aldrich to plead guilty to hate crimes