Texas Walmart Shooter Who Targeted and Killed Latinos to Plead Guilty to Federal Charges

In 2019, Patrick Crusius drove several hours just to go to a Walmart and shoot people, saying that it was "in response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas." Now, reports indicate that the racist and white supremacist Texas Walmart shooter will be pleading guilty.

Defense attorneys for the mass shooting suspect have asked for a hearing to be set so that their client, who is facing federal hate crimes and firearms violations, could plead guilty to all his federal charges, according to the Associated Press.

This comes after federal prosecutors chose not to include the death penalty as a possible punishment, even though he killed 23 people in his rampage. Crusius targeted Latinos in his killing spree, even admitting to it in his racist manifesto.

U.S. District Judge David Guaderrama ruled that the requested hearing be set for February 8, 2023, in El Paso, Texas. It will be a "motion for rearraignment" hearing.

He previously pled "Not Guilty" to around 90 hate crimes charges against him in 2020.

Texas Walmart Shooter Could Still Face Death Penalty in Texas State Court

While the federal government is not seeking the death penalty against the professed anti-Hispanic shooter, prosecutors in the state of Texas can still seek the death penalty for him, according to ABC-7 Amarillo.

Crusius is not only facing federal charges but also state charges. Should Texas state prosecutors choose to seek the death penalty against him, he might get executed should he be found guilty of his state capital murder charges.

His federal and state cases are progressing along parallel paths, but the federal case is taking place first as it seems. It's currently unclear when he will be facing trial for his state charges, though a status hearing is scheduled on Wednesday afternoon.

The state case against Crusius was stalled after the District Attorney leading the case, Yvonne Rosales, resigned in November over accusations of incompetence. Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed a new DA to replace her.

Crusius is facing multiple charges in the state of Texas, including 23 counts of committing a hate crime resulting in death, and 23 counts of using a firearm to commit murder.

Texas Walmart Shooter's Racist Manifesto Posted Online

Crucius had not been shy about his racist beliefs, believing that Hispanics are invading Texas, according to VOA News. He posted his manifesto on the now-defunct message board, 8chan, which was frequented by extremists and white supremacists.

According to his arrest warrant, he voluntarily surrendered to police, telling them he was the shooter and that he was targeting Mexicans.

It seems that he also timed his attack during a busy time for that specific El Paso Walmart, as it happened on August 3, 2019, a busy weekend with shoppers from both the United States and Mexico doing their shopping at the store. Many of those injured were Mexican citizens.

El Paso is known to be a largely Hispanic city, as it also forms an international metro area with Ciudad Juarez. The city sits right at the U.S.-Mexico border and is one of the biggest border crossings into the United States.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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