DENVER — The suspect in fatally shooting five people and wounding 17 others at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs was indicted Tuesday with hate crimes in addition to murder.
Investigators say Anderson Lee Aldrich walked into Club Q, a sanctuary for the LGBTQ community in this largely conservative city, shortly before midnight on November 19 and opened fire at a drag queen’s birthday party. The carnage ended when several of those present knocked Aldrich down and beat him to the ground.
The 22-year-old Aldrich’s hate crimes charge was in doubt because it had not been determined whether he had committed the hate crime.
Prosecutor Michael Allen had pointed out that homicide carries the harshest penalty – life imprisonment – but that it was important to show people that hate crimes are not tolerated as long as the charge can be supported by evidence.
Aldrich, who is non-binary, was arrested by police at the club. He has not entered a guilty or not guilty plea or spoken about the events.
According to witnesses, Aldrich first shot people in front of the bar and then fired rounds at people on the dance floor. The attack occurred on the eve of Memorial Day for Victims of Violence Against Transgender People.
More than a year before the shooting, Aldrich was arrested on allegations he made a bomb threat that led to the evacuation of a dozen homes. He threatened to attack his family with a homemade bomb, ammunition and various weapons, authorities said at the time. He was jailed on suspicion of criminal threat and kidnapping, but the case was apparently sealed and it was unclear what happened to the charges. There are no public indications that there was a conviction.