Patrick Crusius: Gunman Who Killed 23 People at a Texas Walmart in 2019 Pleads Guilty to Dozens of Charges

#image_title

 

Authorities said the gunman who killed 23 people and injured dozens more during a mass shooting at a Texas Walmart in 2019 pleaded guilty to dozens of charges.

 

Patrick Crusius, 24, pleaded guilty in court on Wednesday to a 90-count indictment and agreed to accept 90 consecutive life sentences, one for each count in the indictment, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

 

According to the release, the guilty plea included 23 counts for hate crime acts that resulted in the deaths of each individual murdered, as well as 22 counts for hate crimes that caused great bodily harm and involved an attempt to kill those injured in the shooting.

According to the release, he also admitted to 45 gun-related offenses, pleading guilty to 23 counts of using a firearm in a federal crime of violence resulting in death and 22 counts of using a firearm in a federal crime of violence.

 

His guilty plea came after federal prosecutors announced in January that they would not seek the death penalty, according to NBC News.

 

The gunman admitted to writing a hate-filled manifesto against Latinos and immigrants before the shooting, in which he “characterized himself as a white nationalist, motivated to kill Hispanics because they were immigrating to the United States,” according to the DOJ.

According to the release, the manifesto, titled “An Inconvenient Truth,” was uploaded online just minutes before he began his rampage.

 

According to the DOJ, the gunman stated that he killed and injured people at the El Paso Walmart because he expected them to be of Hispanic national origin, citing a statement of facts agreed to and signed by him that was entered into the court record at his guilty plea hearing.

 

According to the DOJ, he also stated that he intended to kill everyone he shot and admitted to choosing El Paso as the shooting location “to discourage Mexican and other Hispanic immigrants from coming to the United States.”

 

“Today, the Justice Department secured the guilty plea of Patrick Wood Crusius, a self-described white nationalist, in connection with the deadly mass shooting targeting people perceived to be Hispanic immigrants at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, in 2019,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said Wednesday.

 

“Nothing can undo the immeasurable loss suffered by the victims’ loved ones or the terror inflicted on the El Paso community in its aftermath,” he added. “Today’s action demonstrates unequivocally that the Justice Department will not tolerate hate-fueled violence that jeopardizes the safety of our communities.”

 

Leave a Reply