Patrick Crusius, the man responsible for the 2019 massacre at a Walmart in El Paso that left 23 people dead, formally pleaded guilty to capital murder on Monday during a hearing in a Texas state court, ABC News reported.
The plea follows a decision by prosecutors not to seek the death penalty, effectively guaranteeing Crusius a life sentence without the possibility of parole. The mass shooting, which targeted Hispanic individuals, remains one of the most lethal acts of domestic terrorism in recent US history.
The attack took place on August 3, 2019, when Crusius, then 21, drove over 700 miles from the Dallas area to the border city of El Paso. Armed with a semi-automatic rifle, he opened fire on shoppers in and around a Walmart, many of whom had crossed the US-Mexico border for weekend errands.
Before the assault, Crusius had published a hate-filled manifesto online, echoing white supremacist rhetoric and expressing fears of a “Hispanic invasion.”
During his interrogation, Crusius told authorities that he was targeting “Mexicans”.
El Paso County District Attorney James Montoya announced that the prosecution would forgo capital punishment, citing the wishes of numerous victims’ families who preferred to avoid a prolonged trial process.
The plea comes after Crusius was sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences in federal court last year for hate crimes and firearms violations.