Colorado Springs shooting today: Club Q suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich named after 5 killed with ‘AR-15-style’ rifle

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Police name suspect in ‘heartbreaking’ Colorado Springs shooting

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The FBI has joined an investigation in Colorado Springs after a gunman killed five people and injured 25 others after opening fire within moments upon entering an LGBT+ nightclub on Saturday night.

Police and the district attorney’s office have named 22-year-old Anderson Lee Aldrich as a suspect. The suspect reportedly carried an AR-15-style rifle. Two firearms were recovered from the scene.

At least “two heroic people inside the club confronted and fought with the suspect” within minutes after he entered, according to chief Adrian Vasquez, speaking at a news briefing on Sunday.

Police responded within minutes after several 911 calls from the scene just before midnight on Saturday, when the club hosted drag performances and a DJ the day before the club would commemorate Transgender Day of Remembrance.

President Joe Biden urged members of Congress to reinsitute a ban on high-powered rifles like the AR-15-style weapon allegedly used in the attack. He also called on public officials to reject a “disturbing wave” of legislation designed to marginalize LGBT+ people as far-right activists and lawmakers continue to target drag events.

Key PointsShow latest update 1668990737Suspect has not talked with authorities, according to police chief

The suspect accused of killing five people and injuring 25 others has not spoken with the investigators and did not speak at the scene of the crime, according to Colorado Springs Police Department Chief Chief Adrian Vasquez in and interview with The New York Times.

He said the shooting spree lasted roughly one minute, just enough time to kill several people and injure two dozen others. The suspect was subued by customers inside the club moments before police arrived.

Alex Woodward21 November 2022 00:32

1668988854 Suspect wore body armor and carried ‘tremendous firepower,’ according to club owners

The owners of Club Q told The New York Times that the suspect arrived at the club on Saturday night with “tremendous firepower” inclugin six magazines of ammunition before he opened fire inside.

The suspect wore a military-style flak jacket, according to the owners, who reviewed surveillance video from the shooting.

Police arrived within minutes; at least two customers inside the club had subdued the suspect, with one person quickly grabbing a gun away from him and pinning him to the ground. When police arrived, the man was still on top of the gunman, according to Mayor John Suthers.

Club Q has been a “safe space” for the Colorado Springs LGBT+ community for more than two decades, they said.

Alex Woodward21 November 2022 00:00

1668987054Denver Broncos hold moment of silence

(AP)

Ahead of a game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, Colorado NFL team the Denver Broncos announced a moment of silence “remembering the lives lost” in the massacre.

“Our hearts go out to the victims of the senseless act of violence that occurred last night in Colorado Springs,” the organization accounced, sharing the team’s logo in rainbow colors. “There is no place for hate, and we stand with the LGBTQ+ community and all impacted. We will hold a moment of silence before today’s game remembering the lives lost.”

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 23:30

1668986154Update: 15 victims remain in hospital, including two people in critical condition

Fifteen victims are being treated at two hospitals as of Sunday afternoon, according to officials

Eleven patients are being treated at Memorial Central Hospital, and four victims are being treated at Penrose Hospital. Two of those victims are in critical but stable condition, and the other two are in stable condition.

Twenty-five victims were injured in the shooting, officials said

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 23:15

1668985254 ‘It’s almost like you can feel tragedy coming’

A former regular at Club Q who lives near the club stopped going “because of the growing hatred for our community that started in the Springs,” they told NBC News.

Parker Gray said a recent Pride celebration drew a smaller crowd compared to the city’s first Pride events a few years ago.

“The numbers thinned out at the club naturally with Covid, but I think people began to fear for their safety again, like they did back in 2016 when Pulse happened,” he said. You can just feel it. As a community, being through so much grief and so much loss after so many years, it’s almost like you can feel tragedy coming.”

In a post on Facebook, Gray said that “the devastation felt by our community in the wake of the Club Q shooting that occurred this weekend will never be healed.”

“But instead of leaning into this devastation and allowing it to be all consuming, I choose to do what my community has always done… pull together and fight back,” Gray added. “I choose to push forward and show that the fear we were told to feel will not be accepted here, not in this city, not in this country, and not by the LGBTQ community. We demand justice, we demand answers, and we grieve for those we have lost in the wake of evil. Together we are strong, and we will show up for each other, and our futures.”

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 23:00

1668984300AOC rebukes Lauren Boebert: “You don’t get to ‘thoughts and prayers’ your way out of this”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticized Lauren Boebert after the Colorado congresswoman demanded an end to “lawless violence” after a 22-year-old gunman allegedly opened fire inside an LGBT+ nightclub in his district, killing at least five people and injuring 25 others.

“You have played a major role in elevating anti-LGBT+ hate rhetoric and anti-trans lies while spending your time in Congress blocking even the most common sense gun safety laws,” the New York congresswoman said. You don’t get to ‘thoughts and prayers’ your way out of this. Look inward and change.”

She pointed to a legacy of political rhetoric from Republican officials that fueled hateful violence

And now after an anti-LGBT+ campaign, Colorado Springs. Connect the dots, @GOP,” she wrote.

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 22:45

1668982500 Joe Biden renews call for assault weapons ban after ‘senseless’ Colorado Springs shooting

President Joe Biden has reiterated his belief that America must reinstitute an assault weapons ban after an AR-15 was used in a mass shooting once again; this time, in the attack on a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs.

The president issued a statement on Sunday decrying the violence as “senseless” and adding that while police had yet to officially name a motive for the suspect’s rampage, it was clear that LGBT+ establishments and individual Americans were facing a wave of renewed hate from the far right.

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 22:15

1668980754 Joe Biden issues statement recognizing Transgender Day of Remembrance

In a statement recognizing Transgender Day of Rembrance on Sunday, President Joe Biden said that “there is no place for violence, hatred, and bigotry in America.”

“Yet, tragically, as last night’s attack in Colorado Springs reminds us, too many LGBTQI+ people in the United States – and around the world – continue to face unconscionable attacks,” he added.

This is especially true for transgender Americans. On Transgender Day of Remembrance, we honor the 32 transgender Americans known to have been taken from us this year by horrific acts of brutality,” he said. “The true toll is likely much higher, with Black and brown transgender women disproportionately targeted.”

The president said he is urging state leaders “to combat the disturbing wave of discriminatory state laws targeting young transgender Americans – legislation that hurts young people who aren’t hurting anyone.”

He also urged Congress to pass the Respect For Marriage Act, which passed a critical procedural hurdle on its way to full passage in the Senate last week, as well the Equality Act “and provide long overdue protections to transgender and all LGBTQI+ Americans.” “This is a matter of safety and basic dignity,” he added. “As we mourn the lives we’ve lost, let us resolve to continue building a country where every American can live free from fear and discrimination.”

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 21:45

1668979226Colorado Healing Fund is supporting Club Q victims

The state-run Colorado Healing Fund is collecting donations for victims and families impacted by the mass shooting that killed five people and injured 25 others, devasting the LGBT+ community in Colorado Springs.

The fund was established to help victims of mass casualty crime in Colorado and their families.

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 21:20

1668978023 ‘Heroic’ witnesses stepped in to stop shooting at Colorado Springs LGBT+ Club Q

A group of “heroic customers” stopped a gunman inside Club Q before police arrived.

“We owe them a great debt of thanks,” Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez said on Sunday.

Alex Woodward20 November 2022 21:00

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