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Patrick Crusius, a 24-year-old gunman from Allen, has been sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences in federal court for his hate crimes. In August 2019, Crusius killed 23 individuals and injured 22 others at a Walmart in his attempt to target as many Mexicans as possible. This sentence ensures that Crusius will spend the rest of his life in prison. The verdict was delivered on Friday in EL PASO.
Following the judge’s inquiry, Crusius remained silent alongside his attorney, Joe Spencer, keeping his arms folded and refraining from making any remarks.
Spencer expressed, “Ever since childhood, he has been experiencing a sense of presence. He also has difficulty processing feelings and hearing voices in his head, which are symptoms of his diagnosed schizoaffective disorder. Spencer shared with the audience that he has been struggling with his mental health since he was a child, just like the gunman.”
“Mental disorder doesn’t always imply they’re going to harm themselves or others,” Spencer stated. “However, certain mental disorders can be incapacitating.”
Spencer mentioned, however, law enforcement declined since he was of legal age and had lawfully acquired the firearm. Upon learning about her son’s firearm purchase, his mother reached out to the police requesting them to seize it out of concern for his well-being. According to Spencer, as he matured, the individual harbored hostile ideations directed towards his therapist and relatives, with thoughts of causing them harm.
Spencer explained that prior to conducting the shooting, Crusius performed online investigations to ascertain whether he could obtain entry to a mental healthcare facility even if he lacked health insurance.
On August 2, 2019, Spencer declared that his customer could no more handle his hostile concepts and went on to travel to El Paso.
“He completely disconnected from reality,” Spencer stated. “Patrick behaved with his damaged mind firmly fixed in delusions.”
Hanna, the federal prosecutor, stated that the perpetrator had ample chances to restrain himself. Hanna added that the individual’s mental health issues could not be justified.
Even with his mental illness, “there’s no indication that he lacked the capability that he understood what he was doing,” Hanna said.
“Let’s not make any mistake about it, he’s dangerous,” Hanna said. “In his mission to sell hate and to divide, he failed.”.
Earlier in the year, Crusius confessed his guilt and has been under arrest since the shooting on August 3, 2019. The shooter was accused of 90 offenses, which encompassed a hate crime leading to a fatality, a hate crime with an intention to harm, and the utilization of a gun for the purpose of committing murder, as stated in a federal indictment released on July 9, 2020.
He established himself there and wedded a lady from Juárez, Alexander Gerhard Hoffmann, a German gentleman in his sixties who relocated to Mexico during the 1980s. The majority of the casualties, totaling 23, were individuals of Mexican American descent and Mexican citizens hailing from El Paso and Ciudad Juárez, while the remaining 22 individuals sustained injuries. In continuation of his violent spree, he ventured into the store and commenced shooting individuals in the parking area of a Walmart, which was bustling with shoppers preparing for the upcoming school year. He traversed over 600 miles from his residence in Allen, situated north of Dallas, to reach El Paso.
The victims ranged in age from 90 to 15 years old. It is common for residents of both cities to travel back and forth daily for activities such as shopping, visiting family, school, and work.
The incursion caused by the cultural and ethnic substitution from my nation, I am merely protecting myself, not the instigators, they are the Hispanic infiltration of Texas. His intention elucidating his manuscript, the shooter uploaded to the web, as per the indictment.
Some politicians in Texas have described the growing number of migrants arriving at the Texas-Mexico border as Americans of white color looking to replace immigrants, debunking the conspiracy theory that the gunman wrote about in his manifesto. These asylum-seekers, fleeing harsh poverty and violence in South and Central America, are seen as an “ethnic replacement” and an “invasion” of America.
A trial is anticipated to occur in either 2024 or 2025, according to El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks, who announced on Thursday his intention to pursue capital punishment. The shooter remains subject to state charges.
In his jail cell, certain individuals desired him to decay. Certain individuals labeled the shooter as a “malevolent leech” and a “beast.” Certain relatives requested prosecutors to present their statements in the courtroom. Over 30 relatives of the individuals he murdered listened to the assailant on Wednesday and Thursday.
On Thursday, Harry Dean Reckard, who lost his 63-year-old mother in the shooting, spent a portion of his birthday in court facing the individual responsible for her death.
The shooter had his head lowered when Reckard addressed him, “Gaze upon me, sir. You’re youthful and pitiful.”
Crusius shrugged when Reckard mentioned that he had grinned and rolled his eyes as family members provided their statements.
“Do you sleep well at night?” Reckard inquired of him.
The shooter nodded his head.
Reckard inquired the shooter whether he was a white supremacist. Once again, he shook his head negatively.
“Do you feel remorseful for your actions?” Reckard inquired.
The shooter gave a nod of agreement.
Margaret Juarez reprimanded him on Thursday for his views on immigrants and proceeded to provide him with a brief overview of historical events. It is worth noting that Margaret Juarez, who tragically lost her 90-year-old father, Luis Juarez, in the incident, also had her mother, Martha Juarez, injured.
She informed him, “Consider this when you claim to be protecting your nation.” Indigenous Americans and Mexicans were already present before your American settler comrades arrived.
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