Walmart gunman won’t face the death penalty

Patrick Crusius, who has admitted to killing 23 people and wounding 22 others in a racist mass shooting at an El Paso Walmart in 2019, will no longer face the death penalty, El Paso Matters has learned.

District Attorney James Montoya, who took office on Jan. 1, called family members of those killed on Monday to inform them he wouldn’t seek the death penalty in the Aug. 3, 2019, mass shooting, multiple family members told El Paso Matters. The family members asked not to be identified because of a gag order in place since 2022 that prohibited lawyers and potential witnesses from discussing the case with the media.

Montoya declined to comment when contacted by El Paso Matters on Monday, citing the gag order. Defense attorney Joe Spencer also cited the gag order in declining comment.

Read more: El Paso Matters