Suspected Club Q shooter in court Wednesday for preliminary hearing

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The suspected Club Q shooter was in court Wednesday morning for a preliminary hearing.

The last time the suspect was in court was on Feb. 10 when the defense tried unsuccessfully to have Wednesday's hearing delayed.

The purpose of a preliminary hearing is for the prosecution to present their evidence and prove the case should continue to trial.

KRDO has a reporter in the courtroom providing real-time updates on the hearing. Follow along below:

8:35 A.M. Anderson Aldrich entered the courtroom in an orange jumpsuit.

8:40 A.M. Defense team asked for another continuance. The public defender said they have been working on another trial that hasn't finished and they are unable to get someone to the hearing they want to testify.

8:45 A.M. Hearing will proceed. Colorado Springs police officer Connor Wallick called to testify. He responded to Club Q on the night of the shooting.

Officer Wallick's testimony:

8:48 A.M. Wallick testified that he made it to Club Q in two minutes with two other officers. Wallick said when he got there, a person at the front door told him the suspect was down and he could see someone on the ground.

8:55 A.M. Wallick said he could hear screaming and crying upon arrival. He said the music was turned down and he could smell gunpowder. Wallick testified he was told the shooter was on the ground with another person on top of them. Wallick said the person on top of the shooter was holding a gun. Testified there were magazines and an AR-15-style gun on the ground.

8:57 A.M. Wallick testified the suspect wouldn't comply as the officer tried to handcuff them. Wallick said the suspect couldn't put their hands behind their back. The officer described the suspect's body armor, magazines, and a possible grenade on the front of their vest.

9:00 A.M. Officer Wallick testified the suspect would not tell the police his name. Also said the suspect tried to blame the person on top of them for the shooting.

9:06 A.M. Wallick said he cut off the suspect's vest and saw the suspect was bleeding "quite a bit from the head." The suspect told Wallick they were shot and going to die. Wallick said he assumed the suspect meant they were shot in the head but did not see a gunshot wound. Wallick said the suspect kept telling police to go get "that guy", referring to the person who disarmed Aldrich.

9:09 A.M. Wallick testified the man who disarmed the suspect was also detained by police. According to Wallick, the man who was detained was mad at the officers. Rich Fierro has previously said police detained him. He is in the courtroom Wednesday.

End of Officer Wallick's testimony

9:11 A.M. Colorado Springs Police detective Jason Gasper has been called to testify.

The hearing is expected to last three days, we have a reporter in the courtroom each day and will provide updates here.

Detective Gasper's testimony:

9:21 A.M. Gasper testified he got there around 2 a.m. He said he didn't process the scene until the next morning. Gasper testified a gold Toyota Highlander registered to Aldrich was parked in the first space of the Club Q parking lot.

9:24 A.M. Gasper said Aldrich's Colorado driver's license was found laying in the parking lot. He identified shell casings next to a victim's body.

9:48 A.M. Gasper said Club Q owner Matthew Haynes showed him the DVR recording from inside the club that night the morning after the shooting.

9:52 A.M. The prosecutor showed screenshots from DVR. Gasper testified Aldrich left the Highlander car door open and left the car running.

10:10 A.M. The prosecution showed photographs of items found in Aldrich's home. Included are a rough sketch outline of Club Q, a picture of a black mask, a part of an AR-15, and shooting targets with numerous small holes in them.

10:42 A.M. During cross-examination of Gasper the public defender confirms with Gasper that the targets and notes were found in Laura Voepel's bedroom and no forensics were done to prove they were written by Aldrich.

10:50 A.M. Defense enters a photo into evidence of Aldrich holding a drink at Club Q. Date stamp on the photo is Oct. 29

10:55 A.M. Defense asks Gasper if he's seen a manifesto written by or heard words from Aldrich at any time to show a hated towards the LGBTQ community. He answers "no."

11:05 A.M. During cross-examination Gasper confirms that there were other threats made to Club Q online in weeks previous to the incident that were being investigated by the FBI.

Detective Ashton Gardner takes the stand

11:20 A.M. Gardner was assigned to work with victim identification in this case. She was at Memorial Central Hospital after the shooting.

11:30 A.M. Prosecutors ask Gardner about the details of each shooting victim one by one.

11:44 A.M. Prosecutors ask Gardner specifically about Thomas James, one of the reported heroes. She says James grabbed the barrel of the rifle being used while it was still hot and it injured his hand. She says at that time Aldrich drew a handgun and shot James twice in the torso.

11:49 A.M. Gardner says James held the shooter down until others came to help him. She then says he gave up the ambulance he was supposed to ride in to another Club Q victim despite being shot twice.

12:15 P.M. Lunch break

1:30 P.M. Gardner says Richard Fierro, another of the reported heroes, described to police how he took the shooter's gun and beat them with it, "until you guys showed up."

Detective Rebecca Joines takes the stand

1:55 P.M. Colorado Springs Police detective, Rebecca Joines takes the stand.

2:05 P.M. District Attorney Michael Allen asks Joines if she's read all five autopsies. She says all five people died by gunshot wound and the manner of death was homicide.

2:08 P.M. Allen shows the court a handwritten note and hand-drawn map of Club Q that was found in Aldrich's apartment. Joines says it reads, in part, "Please relieve me of my own fate. I am drowning in my own wake."

2:10 P.M. Joines says an I.D. scanner shows that Aldrich had been at Club Q six times before Nov. 19.

2:11 P.M. Allen shows the court a receipt for a drink Aldrich bought at Club Q on Oct. 29. The receipt says he was served by Derrick Rump. Derick Rump was killed in the shooting.

2:15 P.M. Joines says Aldrich ran a neo-nazi website that posted four "terrorist training videos" before the Club Q shooting. She says an admin of the website told police that Adlrich, "hated the police and the LGBTQ community," often said the n-word, and called people "f**s" while gaming.

2:18 P.M. Joines says another admin of the site said Adlrich's mother is non-binary and forced Aldrich to go to gay clubs.

2:25 P.M. Joines says Aldrich was at Club Q the night of the shooting before it happened. Based on cell phone data, Aldrich was there at 10:14 p.m. on Nov. 19. She said she believes Aldrich was planning to live stream the shooting and tried to upload a video in the parking lot.

3:00 P.M. During cross-examination, the defense admits to evidence several different medications that Aldrich has taken for PTSD, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Joines says Aldrich's mother said Aldrich was special needs and has severe PTSD form being a victim of sexual assault.

You can watch the hearing live on Webex here.