On Jan. 16, the shooter who killed five peopleDaniel Davis Aston, Kelly Loving, Derrick Rump, Raymond Green Vance and Ashley Paughand injured 40 others at the Colorado Springs LGBTQIA+ nightclub Club Q pled not guilty to federal hate crimes, media outlets reported,
Anderson Lee Aldrich was charged with more than 50 federal hate-crime violations related to the shooting that took place in November 2022. Last year, he pled guilty to state murder charges and was sentenced to more than 2,000 years in state prison, per ABC News.
"The defendant's attack on Club Q interfered with the club's ability to do business and provide a safe, fun, and welcoming environment for patrons who had gathered there during and after the drag show as part of a weekend of events related to Transgender Day of Remembrance," court documents indicated.
Although hate crimes resulting in death charge qualifies for the death penalty, court documents filed jointly by the Justice Department and Aldrich's lawyer show there has been a plea agreement that removed the death penalty off the table. According to The Hill, prosecutors instead agreed to multiple, concurrent life sentences and another 190-year prison sentence.
Andrew Davis