Overview

• Patrick Crusius, who killed 23 people in a 2019 racist mass shooting, will not face the death penalty in the state case, as announced by District Attorney James Montoya.
• Montoya informed victims' families of the decision, which mirrors the federal case where Crusius received 90 consecutive life sentences in 2023.
• The decision not to pursue capital punishment could lead to a quicker resolution of the state case through a guilty plea and life sentence.
• The attack at the Cielo Vista Walmart remains the deadliest terror attack targeting Hispanics in U.S. history and the sixth-deadliest mass shooting overall.
• Crusius' mental health diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder influenced decisions to forgo the death penalty in both federal and state cases.