A look at the Club Q case so far ahead of Monday’s expected plea deal
EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) - Monday morning, the suspect in the Club Q mass shooting is making another court appearance. Per an Associated Press report, the accused killer is expected to take a plea deal that would ensure a mandatory life in prison sentence.
Per the report, accused killer Anderson Aldrich has allegedly "expressed remorse" for the actions committed in November 2022 in recorded jail-house phone interviews with AP reporters.
Shortly after the possibility of a plea agreement went public, Club Q ownership and management released the following statement in response:
In an interview a week ahead of the court appearance, Richard Fierro -- an Army veteran and owner of a local brewery -- recalled being one of two people who saved lives by subduing the shooter until police arrived.
"When I got there, they were already fighting, and then I started jumping in and we ended up on the ground," he explained. "The shooter tried to shoot me. The shooter tried to shoot me again with his pistol but it didn't have any rounds in it. So, I took his pistol from him and then proceeded to bludgeon him. I'm hitting somebody in the back of the head, and I'm trying to -- and I told him -- I'm trying to kill you. You tried to kill my family. I'm motivating myself to do something that's inhuman."
Fierro also said that the gunman had a QR code on his chest and meant to wear a phone camera on his head -- presumably to record the shooting and broadcast it online -- but left the camera in his car.
13 Investigates learned if this case was to go to trial - even with a potential conviction - the accused killer would be eligible to appeal that conviction. If the accused pleads guilty Monday, June 26, however, that possibility would be off the table.
Ahead of Monday's hearing, the Fourth Judicial District Attorney's Office released the following statement:
Ahead of Monday's hearing, KRDO takes a look at how we got here.
Trouble in Lorson Ranch
Roughly 17 months before gunfire rang out at Club Q, the El Paso County Sheriff's Office responded to a reported bomb threat in Lorson Ranch around 2 p.m. on June 18, 2021. The suspect, who'd go on to be the suspect in the Club Q mass shooting, reportedly was armed with a homemade bomb, multiple weapons, and ammunition.
The area surrounding the Rubicon Dr. home was put on a shelter-in-place while around ten nearby homes were evacuated. After several hours of refusing to surrender, deputies detained the suspect around 6 p.m.
The suspect was initially charged with two counts of Felony Menacing and three counts of First-Degree Kidnapping.
KRDO and the rest of the world would later learn these charges were eventually dropped and the court documents associated with this case were sealed.
Attack on an LGBTQ+ save haven
At 11:56 p.m. on November 19, 2022, the Colorado Springs Police Department's Dispatch Center received a call reporting an active shooter at the LGBTQ+ nightclub Club Q. Within four minutes from the initial call, officers from all four patrol divisions descended on the nightclub.
Thanks to two men, eventually helped by others, the suspect was detained on the dance floor minutes into the shooting.
According to the affidavit, the suspect was armed with an AR-15-style assault rifle and was wearing a ballistic vest while carrying out the attack.
Per court documents, the suspect entered the nightclub and immediately began "opening fire indiscriminately at patrons inside of the club."
Five people lost their lives in the six-minute mass shooting.
Those victims are:
- Daniel Aston
- Kelly Loving
- Derrick Rump
- Ashley Paugh
- Raymond Vance
In the hours after the mass shooting, 13 Investigates interviewed a man who was inside Club Q when the accused killer opened fire.
Moving forward with charges
After being released from the hospital from injuries sustained while being detained by victims, charges against the Club Q mass shooting suspect began stacking up.
The accused killer faces charges of first-degree murder after deliberation, counts of attempted first-degree murder with extreme indifference, attempted first-degree assault, serious bodily injury with a deadly weapon, bias-motivated crime, and a crime of violence.
Combined, the suspect faces 323 charges.
Could more have been done?
In the weeks after the mass shooting, the community and survivors began questioning if more could've been done by law enforcement to prevent the bloodshed.
People pointed to the suspect's previous interaction with law enforcement during the 2021 Lorson Ranch bomb threat. Many argued that should've prevented the mass shooting.
Initially, investigators didn't directly acknowledge the Lorson Ranch incident, stating "no such records exist" when asked about the court documents. 13 Investigates learned that thanks to a 2019 piece of legislation called "Increased Eligibility For Criminal Record Sealing," when a criminal case is dropped or dismissed in Colorado - that charge record is automatically sealed.
This additionally prevented the District Attorney's Office from directly addressing that incident. District Attorney Michael Allen said his office's ability to be transparent has limits and those limits are set by local and state laws. He called on legislatures to amend the current Colorado sealing statute.
People began demanding those court documents become unsealed.
Also at the center of the conversation was Colorado's Red Flag Laws.
In 2019, then-El Paso County Sheriff Bill Elder went on the record with KRDO that he would not be enforcing the Red Flag Law. He went on to say he would "never" petition the court to take someone's guns away.
Elder would've been sheriff at the time of the Lorson Ranch incident.
Governor Jared Polis criticized the former sheriff's stance on the law during a November 29, 2022 interview.
"Well, that's worrisome, to rule it out under any circumstances. Again I think just as you might argue it's premature without knowing all the facts about whether it should have been invoked here, and that's fair. You know, we know an approximation of the facts and it looks like perhaps it should have been used. To rule it out categorically is very dangerous," said Polis.
The governor said that when someone is having a mental health crisis, it's essential to "temporarily remove access to weapons for both reducing the likelihood of a suicide as well as of a crime."
Court documents, however, would later reveal why the Red Flag Law and the 2021 incident would most likely not have prevented the Club Q mass shooting, according to the District's Attorney's Office.
Unsealing answers
On Dec. 8, 2022, nearly three weeks after the mass shooting, an El Paso County judge ordered to unseal the 2021 court case against the accused killer.
The unsealed court documents detailed what led up to the stand-off with police that June 2021 day. Per court records, the suspect's grandparents told investigators that the suspect wanted to be the next mass killer.
“You guys die today, and I’m taking you with me. I’m loaded and ready. You’re not calling anyone,” the suspect reportedly told their grandparents while drinking from a bottle of vodka as they held a handgun and loaded the magazine, according to the affidavit.
The suspect was reportedly upset with their grandparents' plans to sell their house and move to Florida. The suspect told their grandparents the move would "interfere with his plans to conduct a mass shooting and bombing,” the affidavit said.
The suspect's family members, however, later went on to claim the suspect was a "nice, loving young man who should not be in jail."
When SWAT showed up at the Lorson Ranch house to take the suspect into custody, the suspect reportedly told the SWAT team negotiation that he has a gas mask, armor piercing rounds, and is ready to go to the end,” the affidavit said.
The unsealed documents revealed the suspect faced a seven-count indictment on charges of kidnapping, menacing, and crimes of violence as well as a protection order against the suspect' on behalf of their mother, grandmother, and grandfather.
The sheriff's office stated all firearms found during a search of the Lorson Ranch home were seized and placed in the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office Evidence Facility. Additionally, bomb-making materials were also found, taken, and placed in the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office Evidence Facility.
The DA's Office said ultimately the victims refused to comply with court orders to appear and testify against the suspect. After multiple delays and reported struggles to get the witnesses to cooperate - the case was dismissed.
On July 5, 2021, the El Paso County judge presiding over the case dismissed the charges against the suspect and dismissed the Mandatory Protection Order (MPO). The suspect was then lawfully able to possess firearms again.
"The only way that it (the 2021 case) would have prevented the tragic tragedy is if the witnesses were actually present at trial, testified, and somebody was convicted," said Allen in a December press conference.
During that press conference - Allen insisted the 2021 case against the suspect wouldn't have prevented the Club Q mass shooting.
When asked to elaborate on his belief that if those charges had moved forward they still wouldn't have prevented the shooting, Allen said, "That case would not have necessarily prevented Club Q. As to the reasons for that I can't get into that because that will impact the Club Q investigation and prosecution. So, you're just going to have to accept that statement that it would not have prevented Club Q."
The EPCSO echoed that sentiment, stating the dismissal of the case prevented the department's ability to "present a factual basis for a potential ERPO request at that point was no longer available because the case in which those facts were detailed had been sealed."
Despite these findings, in June, intent to sue documents obtained by 13 Investigates indicated multiple family members of victims have plans to sue the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.
Healing from hate
It's been a little more than seven months since the mass shooting. Over those months, the LGBTQ+ community in Colorado Springs has come together to try and rebuild.
The owners of Club Q announced in January the nightclub would reopen. Michael Anderson, a bartender at Club Q leading the charge, told 9News they're working on making sure the nightclub is just as welcoming as it once was.
"I don't want to live in a state of tragedy forever. At some point, I want this story to turn to overcoming tragedy and what that's going to look like," Anderson said.
The rebuild will also feature a memorial of five engraved pillars, each 12 feet high, to represent the five victims. Seventeen boulders will be placed in remembrance of the surviving victims who were shot.
Flying above the memorials will stand a flagpole, 40 feet high - displaying the LGBTQ+ flag.
There will also be a security wall and thousands of mosaics to represent the thousands of people emotionally affected by the tragedy.
The father of one of the victims, Daniel Aston, told KRDO the natural impulse might be to try and forget the tragedy - but he doesn't want to.
"I always want to remember my son and honor his memory -- and I'm sure that all the other families feel the same way," he said.
Two local clinics that help the LGBTQ+ community also reopened their doors after temporary closures following the shooting.
Purple Mountain Recovery, which focuses on bringing people together and helping those who struggle with mental health conditions and substance abuse, reopened in March.
That same month Inside Youth Services, a center that works with LGBTQ+ youth, reopened after it closed due to threats.
Colorado Springs also held its first Pride Parade following the mass shooting. Hundreds of members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies took to the streets on June 11, 2023, to celebrate pride but to also honor those five who lost their lives.
People at the celebration told KRDo they hoped that day would outshine the hate in the world.
Is this justice?
While the accused killer might accept a plea deal - preventing what could be a lengthy trial - many victims say there will never be true "justice."
In February, KRDO spoke with Club Q victim Phylisha Collins. She survived having a bullet pierce her neck - an inch away from her spine. Every day, she lives with excruciating nerve pain, both on her face and leg. She was in the hospital for 20 days after being shot, and many times she was uncertain she would ever walk again.
Collins told us there "is no justice" for the suspect's "actions," actions that she will have to live with for the rest of her life. She said 'nothing' the shooter could do that would bring justice to what happened.
One of the men credited with taking the down accused killer, possibly preventing even more deaths, provided 13 Investigates with the following statement on the suspect's alleged "remorse" and AP's reporting.
I will say in this article he showed no accountability or remorse, his comments were all self centered excuses for his planned actions that night and to seek pity from public. It's a disgusting article
Richard Fierro
Fierro also lost someone close to him that night, his daughter's boyfriend Raymond Green Vance.
Former El Paso County District Attorney Dan May agreed with Fierro and Collins in an interview with 13 Investigates.
"You can't bring the person back. You can't take those events away. We can help them with their PTSD, but it always sort of is there. They're dealing with it," May said. "But that doesn't mean that they get past it. Those who have lost loved ones, we can never fill that hole in their heart that they've lost. They will always feel that loss."
In addition to living with the trauma of the mass shooting - many are left wondering if they'll ever feel safe again.
In a Good Morning America special, "Gunned down in LGBTQ+ safe space, these Club Q survivors refuse to hide in fear", survivors reflected on the tragedy and how they're rebuilding since it.
“Absolutely, there is still hate in this world,” Club Q survivor Charlene Slaugh, who is still recovering from 13 to 17 gunshot wounds, said. “However, I feel like we have a lot more support now.”
Adriana Vance, the mother of victim Raymond Green Vance, said her son's absence has been a painful reminder of the state of gun violence and hate in the U.S. right now.
“Nowhere is safe, I feel, it doesn't matter where you're at,” Vance told GMA. “To me, I feel like there's no safe zone. Because if people made a decision to do something, they're going to do whatever they can to accomplish that.”
Vance went on to say her son's death has been a reminder that there's still a fight to create safe spaces.
Survivor James Slaugh told GMA he refuses to bow to hate.
"My message since day one with Club Q, my message has been that we can't let these people try and force us back into whatever closet they want us to be in. I have already been shot with a bullet - what more can you do to me? You can bet I'm going to be loud. I'm going to be proud. I'm going to be fighting for every single person."
The accused killer is set to appear in court Monday, June 26 at 8:30 a.m. KRDO NewsChannel 13 will be streaming the available portion of the court proceedings and any following press conferences.
Editor's note, the unsealed court documents used he/him pronouns for the suspect. Following the Club Q mass shooting the suspect claimed they were non-binary with they/them pronouns. The reporting of the 2021 documents reflects the original investigation written as is.
