Texas man to plead guilty in racist El Paso shooting nearly six years later

WORLDWIDE:

A white supremacist who killed 23 people in a racist mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is expected to plead guilty to state murder charges on Monday, potentially closing a years-long legal case that shocked the nation and reignited debate over hate crimes and gun violence in the United States.

Patrick Crusius, 26, is due to admit guilt to capital murder in a plea deal that will spare him the death penalty and result in a sentence of life in prison without parole.

Crusius has already received 90 consecutive life sentences in federal court after pleading guilty in 2023 to hate crime and firearm charges for the 2019 attack, which targeted Hispanic shoppers near the U.S.-Mexico border.
Under President Joe Biden administration the implimentation of death penalty at the federal level has continued to decline.

Crusius was 21 when he allegedly drove more than 10 hours from his home near Dallas to El Paso, where he opened fire inside a Walmart frequented by shoppers from both the United States and Mexico.

Prosecutors said Crusius was wearing earmuffs to muffle the sound of gunfire when he began shooting victims in the car park area.

Crusius then entered the store, continuing to fire his AK-style rifle. He cornered a group of shoppers near a bank close to the entrance, killing nine people. He later fired into the checkout area and aisles.

As he exited the Walmart, he shot at a passing car, killing an elderly man and wounding his wife.

Crusius was arrested shortly afterwards. According to police, he confessed to officers after being stopped at an intersection.

Targeting Hispanic shoppers

Just before the massacre, Crusius posted a message online claiming the attack was “in response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas.” He wrote that Hispanics were poised to take over the U.S. government and economy.

Crusius, a white community college dropout, had previously posted on social media in support of former President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policies and used hashtags like #BuildtheWall.

After his arrest, Crusius told officers that he had specifically targeted Mexicans.

Joe Spencer, one of Crusius’ lawyers, said on Thursday that his client suffers from schizoaffective disorder, a condition that can involve hallucinations, delusions and mood swings. He described him as “an individual with a broken brain.”

The victims
Those killed in the shooting ranged in age from a 15-year-old school athlete to elderly grandparents. Several victims were Mexican nationals visiting the U.S. on shopping trips.

Among the dead were Jordan Anchondo and Andre Anchondo, who were shopping with their two-month-old baby. Authorities said Jordan died shielding the infant, while Andre protected them both. The baby survived.

Guillermo “Memo” Garcia and his wife, Jessica Coca Garcia, were in the Walmart car park raising money for their daughter’s football team when they were both shot. Coca Garcia suffered injuries to her legs but survived. Garcia died from his wounds nearly nine months later, raising the final death toll to 23.

One week after the attack, Coca Garcia stood from her wheelchair to speak at a vigil held across the street from the county jail where Crusius was being held.

“Racism is something I always wanted to think didn’t exist,” she said. “Obviously, it does.”

A long-running case

El Paso County District Attorney James Montoya said the decision to offer a plea deal came after speaking with victims' families. While many supported bringing the case to a close, he acknowledged that not all agreed.

Montoya, a Democrat, said he personally supports the death penalty and believes Crusius deserves it. However, he noted that pursuing capital punishment could have delayed a trial until 2028.
Delays and shifting priorities

When James Montoya took office as district attorney in January, he became the fourth person to oversee the case in nearly six years. One of his predecessors resigned in 2022 under pressure over delays in prosecuting the case. Montoya said the COVID-19 pandemic also contributed to the drawn-out timeline.

Stephanie Melendez, whose father David Johnson was killed while shielding his wife and granddaughter, said she initially supported seeking the death penalty. But as the years passed, her priorities shifted.

“I just wanted it to be over,” she said. “I was done reliving everything. I was done going to court for hours. I was done with the briefings that happened after that would last hours and it was just the same talk over and over again.”

“We were just ready to be done with it all because, honestly, it’s like reliving the trauma over and over again.”