𝗠𝗨𝗥𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗙 𝟮𝟯 𝗛𝗜𝗦𝗣𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗦 𝗜𝗡 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟵 𝗔𝗧 𝗘𝗟 𝗣𝗔𝗦𝗢 𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗣𝗢𝗡𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗠𝗣'𝗦 𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗜𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗛𝗘𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗖 𝗔𝗖𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗢 𝗔𝗧𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗬

                                                           

                                                               

Patrick Crusius, center

On August 3, 2019, Patrick Crusius walked into an El Paso Walmart carrying an automatic rifle, taking aim at Hispanic customers, killing 23, wounding 22.

The people who were killed ranged in age from a 15-year-old high school athlete to several grandparents, included immigrants, a retired city bus driver, teachers, tradesmen, including a former iron worker, and several Mexican nationals who had crossed the U.S. border on routine shopping trips.

According to El Paso Matters, a free, online newsletter, Crusius' attorney, Richard Spencer, claims that racist rhetoric by the President Donald Trump had motivated the killer.

“He thought he had to stop the invasion because that’s what his president was telling him, which is just not rational,” defense attorney Joe Spencer said in his first extended interview about the mass shooting that Crusius said was meant to stop “the Hispanic invasion of Texas.”

“He thought, if he doesn’t do it, then nobody’s going to do it. He’s got to start,” Spencer said.

As reported in El Paso Matters: 

"Crusius, now 26, is expected to plead guilty April 21 to charges of capital murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. District Attorney James Montoya announced on Tuesday that state prosecutors would no longer seek the death penalty, meaning Crusius will be sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole. He also has been sentenced to 90 consecutive life terms after pleading guilty to federal weapons and hate crime charges."

Spencer said Crusius told him that a key event leading to the murderous rampage in El Paso occurred in May 2019 in Panama City Beach, Florida, when Trump spoke at a rally.

“I mean, you have 15,000 people marching up and you have hundreds and hundreds of people and you have two or three border security people that are brave and great,” Trump said, then added falsely that Border Patrol agents weren’t allowed to use weapons.

“But how do you stop these people?” Trump said.

“Shoot them,” someone in the audience shouted, drawing laughter from the crowd and a smile from the president. 

“That’s only in the (Florida) Panhandle you can get away with that statement,” Trump said while shaking his head. “Only in the Panhandle.”