El Paso Walmart mass shooter likely to go to trial in 2026, court documents show
It will be until at least 2026 before the El Paso Walmart mass shooter will go to trial on state charges in connection with one of the deadly mass shootings in U.S. history , court documents show.
Judge Sam Medrano of the 409th District Court issued Monday, Sept. 23, an "Order of Court Setting" showing a timeline on how the trial of Patrick Crucius could play out in El Paso.
The order states that the empaneling of a jury in the death penalty case will begin Nov. 12, 2025, and continue until Nov. 14, 2025. However, individual voir dire, the legal term used for jury selection, has a "tentative date" of Jan. 12, 2026.
It is unknown how long jury selection will take. In a high-profile case like the El Paso Walmart mass shooter, it could take months since state prosecutors and defense attorneys will argue over who should be selected as jurors. It will be hard to find El Paso jurors who were not impacted by the mass shooting or who will come to jury selection without already determining the guilt of the gunman and what sentence he should receive.
El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks is seeking the death penalty for the gunman.
The next court appearance in the case is a "Motion for Discovery" hearing set for Oct. 31. Discovery is the legal terminology for evidence.
The hearing will continue with the defense attorney and El Paso District Attorney's Office state prosecutors arguing over evidence. It will also address a motion filed by defense attorneys claiming prosecutorial misconduct by the El Paso District Attorney's Office and a request for the death penalty to be removed as a possible punishment for the gunman.
What are key dates set in El Paso Walmart mass shooter case?Medrano set a timeline for when pretrial motions must be filed and heard by the court. The schedule is:
Medrano's timeline is the first time El Pasoans get any official announcement of when the gunman could go to trial on state charges in connection with the Aug. 3, 2019 mass shooting that left 23 people dead and dozens injured.
He is facing one count of capital murder of multiple persons and 22 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in state court.
The state death penalty case has been delayed for more than five years for several reasons. The reasons include the federal case against the gunman happening first, three different El Paso district attorneys handling the case , the COVID-19 pandemic , and prosecutors and defense attorneys continuing to bicker over evidence .
While the district attorney's office has elected to seek the death penalty, the U.S. Attorney's Office chose not to pursue the death penalty against the gunman.
With the U.S. Attorney's Office not seeking the death penalty, the gunman pleaded guilty Feb. 9, 2023, in federal court to 23 counts of hate crimes resulting in death, 23 counts of use of a firearm to commit murder during and in relation to a crime of violence, 22 counts of hate crimes involving an attempt to kill, and 22 counts of use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
He was sentenced July 7, 2023, to 90 consecutive life sentences in federal court for the mass shooting. He was ordered to serve his federal prison sentence at ADX Florence supermax federal prison near Florence, Colorado. However, he remains in state custody at the El Paso County Jail as his state death penalty case remains pending.
The gunman also was ordered Sept. 25 to pay more than $5 million in federal restitution for the financial losses suffered by the victims and their families because of his actions.
Aaron Martinez may be reached at or on Twitter
