The person who killed five people at a Colorado Springs nightclub in 2022 was sentenced to life in prison on Monday, after victims called the shooter a “monster” and “coward” who hunted down revelers in a calculated attack on a sanctuary for the LGBTQ+ community.
During an emotional courtroom hearing packed with victims and family members, Anderson Lee Aldrich pleaded guilty to five counts of murder and 46 counts of attempted murder – one for each person at Club Q on the night of the shooting.
Aldrich - who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns - also pleaded no contest to two hate crimes, one a felony and the other a misdemeanor.
“This thing sitting in this court room is not a human, it is a monster,” said Jessica Fierro, who’s daughter’s boyfriend was killed that night. “The devil awaits with open arms.”
The guilty plea comes just seven months after the shooting and spares victim’s families and survivors a long and potentially painful trial.
People in the courtroom wiped away tears as the judge explained the charges and read out the names of the victims.
“You are targeting a group of people for their simple existence,” said Judge Michael McHenry.
“Like too many other people in our culture, you chose to find a power that day behind the trigger of a gun, your actions reflect the deepest malice of the human heart, and malice is almost always born of ignorance and fear,” the judge continued.
Relatives and friends of victims were able to give statements in court to remember their loved ones and survivors spoke about how their lives were forever altered just before midnight on Nov. 19 when the suspect walked into Club Q and indiscriminately fired an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle.
The father of a Club Q bartender said Daniel Aston had been in the prime of his life when he was shot and killed.
“He was huge light in this world that was snuffed out by a heinous, evil and cowardly act,” Jeff Aston said. “I will never again hear him laugh at my dad jokes.”
Daniel Aston’s mother, Sabrina, was among those who said they would not forgive the crimes.
Another forgave Aldrich without excusing the crime.
“I forgive this individual, as they are a symbol of a broken system, of hate and vitriol pushed against us as a community,” said Wyatt Kent, Aston’s partner. “What brings joy to me is that this hurt individual will never be able to see the joy and the light that has been wrought into our community as an outcome.”
Aldrich’s body shook slightly as the victims and family members spoke. The defendant also looked down and glanced occasionally at a screen showing photos of the victims.
Aldrich did not reveal a motivation and declined to address the court during the sentencing part of the hearing. Defense attorney Joseph Archambault said “they want everyone to know they’re sorry.”
The sentencing follows a series of jailhouse phone calls from Aldrich to The Associated Press expressing remorse for the shooting.
Aldrich had been arrested over a year before the attack for threatening their grandparents and vowing to become "the next mass killer".
Aldrich faced more than 300 charges, including for murder and hate crimes. He pleaded guilty to five counts of murder and 46 counts of attempted murder. Aldrich also pleaded no contest to two counts of bias-motivated crimes, one a felony and the other a misdemeanour.
“I intentionally and after deliberation caused the death of each victim,” Aldrich told Judge Michael McHenry.
People in courtroom wiped away tears as the judge explained the charges and read out the names of the victims.
Monday's hearing follows a series of jailhouse phone calls from Aldrich to The Associated Press expressing remorse and the intention to face the consequences at this court hearing.
Several survivors told the AP about a planned plea agreement after being approached about Aldrich's comments.
They said prosecutors had notified them that Aldrich will plead guilty to charges that would ensure a sentence of life behind bars.
Federal and state authorities and defence attorneys have declined to comment on a possible plea agreement for Aldrich but Colorado law requires victims to be notified of such developments.
Aldrich faces more than 300 state counts, including murder and hate crimes.
The US Justice Department is considering pursuing federal hate crime charges, according to a senior law enforcement official familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing case.
Aldrich hinted at plans to carry out violent attacks at least a year before the Club Q assault.
In June 2021, Aldrich's grandparents told authorities that they were warned not to stand in the way of a plan to stockpile guns, ammo, body armour and a homemade bomb to become "the next mass killer."
Aldrich is reported to have been living with the couple at the time, who said their grandson wanted to "go out in a blaze."
Court records gained by KKTV say Aldrich had previously gone into a rage and threatened to kill their grandparents when told they planned to move to Florida last year
Aldrich was then arrested after a standoff with SWAT officers that was livestreamed on Facebook and the evacuation of 10 nearby homes, telling officers "If they breach, I'm a f----ing blow it to holy hell!" Aldrich eventually surrendered.
However, the charges against Aldrich were thrown out in July 2022 after Aldrich's mother and grandparents, the victims in the case, refused to cooperate with prosecutors, evading efforts to serve them with subpoenas to testify, according to court documents unsealed after the shooting.
Other relatives told a judge they feared Aldrich would hurt their grandparents if released, painting a picture of an isolated, violent person who did not have a job and was given $30,000 that was spent largely on the purchase of 3D printers to make guns, the records showed.
Aldrich was released from jail then and authorities kept two guns - a ghost gun pistol and an MM15 rifle - seized in the arrest.
But there was nothing to stop Aldrich from legally purchasing more firearms, raising questions immediately after the shooting about whether authorities should have sought a red flag order to prevent such purchases.
The El Paso County Sheriff's Office said it would not have been able to seek a court order stopping Aldrich from buying or possessing guns because the 2021 arrest record was sealed after the charges were dropped.
There was no new evidence that they could use to prove that Aldrich posed a threat "in the near future," the sheriff's office said.
Investigators later revealed that the two guns Aldrich had during the Club Q attack - the rifle and a handgun - appeared to be ghost guns, or firearms without serial numbers that are homemade and do not require an owner to pass a background check.
Aldrich told AP in one of the interviews from jail they were on a "very large plethora of drugs" and abusing steroids at the time of the attack.
But they did not answer directly regarding the hate crimes charges. When asked whether the attack was motivated by hate, Aldrich said only that was "completely off base."
Aldrich's lawyers who have not disputed their client's role in the shooting, have also pushed back on hate being the reason.
Some survivors who listened to the recorded phone calls saw Aldrich's comments as an attempt to avoid the death penalty which still exists in the federal system.
Colorado abolished it in 2020 and life without prison is now the mandated sentence for first-degree murder in the state.
They objected to Aldrich's unwillingness to discuss a motive and their use of passive, general language like "I just can't believe what happened" and "I wish I could turn back time."
