Most families of Walmart shooting victims wanted the case to end, El Paso DA says
Posted/updated on: March 28, 2025 at 3:51 pm(THE TEXAS TRIBUNE) District Attorney James Montoya said he decided against seeking the death penalty against the man who killed 23 people and wounded 22 others in a racist attack at an El Paso Walmart because most of the victimâs families wanted the case brought to a conclusion.
As a result, Patrick Crusius, 26, will plead guilty April 21 to capital murder and aggravated assault charges and be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
âI believe in the death penalty. I believe that this defendant deserves the death penalty for what he did,â Montoya said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon, a day after he notified most of the families of those killed of his decision on whether to seek capital punishment.
âWhat changed? The answer to that, what changed was I sat down and spoke to the victims, each of them, individually,â said Montoya, who was elected in November and took office in January. âIt became clear, as we met with the families one by one, that there is a strong and overwhelming consensus that just wanted this case over with, that wanted finality in the court process.â
Montoya acknowledged that some of the families wanted prosecutors to continue seeking the death penalty, and that he has heard criticism from the community for his decision. He said some families of those killed have become frustrated with the judicial system and no longer talk with the District Attorneyâs Office.
He said if he had continued to pursue the death penalty, the case might need to be moved out of El Paso and families could have to wait until 2027 or 2028 for a trial in the Aug. 3, 2019, mass shooting at the Cielo Vista Walmart.
âAnd after speaking with the families and giving them this assessment and speaking through with them what they truly want out of this process, as I mentioned, it became very clear that the vast majority of them want this case over and done with as quickly as possible,â the district attorney said.
What victimsâ families say
Jessica Garcia, who was injured in the shooting, said she felt torn about Montoyaâs decision. Garciaâs husband, soccer coach Guillermo âMemoâ Garcia, was the last victim to die from the shooting. He was hospitalized for nearly nine months before succumbing to his injuries.
Her daughter Karina, now a teenager, asked her mother Monday what decision would have been good enough â a question Garcia still doesnât know how to answer.
âMy kids will never know again what itâs like to be with their father,â Garcia said. âMy mother-in-law can never have her son replaced. Itâs never enough. I donât think thereâs any justice in this world that would be enough.â
Garcia said a part of her wants the case to be over so Karina and her son âlittle Memoâ can move on. She doesnât want them to relive tragedy with every upcoming development in the case, every news story, every condolence expressed. But Garcia also feels disappointed in the decision to not seek the death penalty.Â
She met with Montoya in his office when the district attorney was still deliberating over the decision. Garcia said Montoya walked her through the process of a death penalty case, explaining it could take years from conviction to sentencing to possible appeal to the day of lethal injection itself. Montoya noted the El Paso serial killer who has sat on death row for more than 32 years, she recalled.
To Garcia, giving up on the death penalty feels like giving up on Memo. It feels like giving Crusius exactly what he wants, even if his execution conflicts with her Catholic belief to avoid an âeye for an eyeâ retribution.
âLittle Memo is oblivious, he doesnât know whatâs going on,â Garcia said. âFor Karina, how do I tell her as a mom I want them to leave it in the past, but leaving it in the past doesnât mean weâre leaving daddy in the past or that we gave up on him or that we didnât seek enough justice for him?â
Karla Romero, whose mother, Gloria Irma MĂĄrquez, 61, was among those killed at the Walmart, told El Paso Matters that people should turn their focus to preventing future violence.
âThis highlights the evident systemic issues that continue to impact the justice system. Aside from the systemic problems, we must address racism, radicalization and violence that consume our societyâs overall health. Education serves as a tool to address these issues; knowledge is key. Through awareness, we shed light on these issues, and being aware of them sparks ongoing conversations that benefit our community,â Romero said.
âWe must invest in our education and pour resources into the education of El Paso County. It is imperative that we continue to strive to develop equity in the socioeconomic, health and educational aspects of our community to reduce susceptibility to the risk of prolonged violence. Violence is a moral responsibility and a call for action for state governors, policymakers, and the community.Â
âLastly, in honor of my motherâs memory, I am first her daughter above anything else; therefore, I call everyone into action to be an interventionist for peace.â
The judge presiding over the case, 409th District Judge Sam Medrano, issued a gag order in 2022 that prevented attorneys and potential witnesses in the case â including injured victims and family members of those killed â from talking to the news media about the case. At Montoyaâs request, Medrano lifted the gag order Tuesday.
Defense lawyer, El Pasoâs bishop react to the decision
Crusius, of Allen, Texas, drove 10 hours from his home to El Paso on Aug. 3, 2019, and opened fire outside and inside the Cielo Vista Walmart. Before entering the store, he posted an online screed that spewed racist rhetoric and said he wanted âto stop the Hispanic invasion of Texas.â
The attack was the deadliest in modern U.S. history targeting Hispanics. Most of the hundreds of people in the Walmart that Saturday morning were Hispanic or Mexican nationals doing routine shopping.
Crusius, then 21, was arrested shortly after the shooting while driving on Viscount Boulevard behind the Walmart and Cielo Vista Mall. Investigators said he confessed to the shooting.
In addition to the state charges of capital murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, Crusius also faced federal weapons and hate crimes charges, which carried a potential death sentence. But the U.S. Justice Department decided against seeking the death penalty in 2023, and Crusius quickly pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 90 consecutive life terms in federal prison.
Federal officials didnât say why they didnât seek the death penalty, but that the sentencing hearing in July 2023 both defense lawyers and prosecutors said Crusius had been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, a mental health disorder often characterized by hallucinations.
Montoya said the decision on where Crusius will serve his sentence will be made by state and federal prison officials. U.S. District Judge David Guaderrama recommended that Crusius serve his sentence in the so-called âsupermaxâ prison in Colorado, but prison officials arenât bound by that recommendation.
Joe Spencer, one of the attorneys representing Crusius in the state and federal cases, said Montoya made the right decision.
âI think Mr. Montoya really had no choice in what he wanted to do. I think heâd have done more harm to this community if he had tried the case. I donât think there would have been anywhere near the type of closure that some members of the community thought they might get by a jury trial,â Spencer said in an interview with El Paso Matters.
El Paso Catholic Bishop Mark Seitz, who has cited church teachings on the sanctity of life in opposing the death penalty for Crusius, praised Montoyaâs decisions.
âAs followers of Christ, we believe in the sanctity of every human life and remain opposed to the death penalty even in the face of this hateful and violent act. While we believe that the community needs to be protected from anyone who would commit such a crime, our community will not be safer or better by seeking more bloodshed,â Seitz said.
Montoya said he has long believed that Crusiusâ fate should be decided by an El Paso jury.
âBut, in my opinion, the benefits of having a trial to the detriment of the families is simply not worth it,â he said at the news conference.Â
Montoya said actions by former District Attorney Yvonne Rosales â who resigned in 2022 â complicated the prosecution of the case. Montoya lost the Democratic runoff to Rosales in 2020, and a number of prosecutors handling the Walmart case â including Montoya â were pushed out or resigned.
Rosalesâ aides also were accused of targeting the JuĂĄrez family of one of those killed at the Walmart, Alexander Gerhard Hoffmann, because they didnât go along with efforts to attack Medrano and a former prosecutor in the case. No charges were ever brought, though Rosales and Assistant District Attorney Curtis Cox invoked their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination when questioned about the alleged scheme in court, and process servers were unable to find another Rosales aide, El Paso attorney Roger Rodriguez.Â
âIt really breaks my heart that a representative of this office, a representative of the state of Texas, engaged in that misconduct. At the end of the day, it doesnât change the facts about this case, and her conduct as a whole contributed to the delay,â Montoya said. âBut the misconduct that her and her colleagues engaged in, to me, weighed very little in the ultimate decision of bringing this case to an end.â
Rosales could not be reached for comment.
Montoya said he continues to believe prosecutors could have convinced a jury to sentence Crusius to death, although there is no certainty of that and a single juror could block the death penalty.
âThis defendant will die in the penitentiary. He will not get out. He will die in prison. And fundamentally, thatâs what this comes down to is, are we going to drag this out for a year, two years, for decades so we can stick a needle in his arm?â he said.
The original article can be found at The Texas Tribune.