Surveillance camera footage from inside and outside of Club Q, capturing the entirety of the deadly attack on the LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, will be played inside a courtroom this week during a key court hearing for the accused shooter, set to start Wednesday.
The footage shows Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, pull up to the club the night of Nov. 19 and open fire, prosecutors have said, and will shed light on what unfolded inside before patrons disarmed Aldrich, halting further bloodshed.
Five people were killed in the shooting and at least 18 others were injured.
The preliminary hearing in 4th Judicial District Court will assess whether evidence is strong enough to support a trial for Aldrich, who is charged with 323 counts, including 10 counts of first-degree murder, five of which are first-degree murder after deliberation and five of which are accusations of first-degree murder with extreme indifference.
Aldrich also faces more than 70 counts of attempted first-degree murder, 48 counts of bias-motivated crimes and dozens of counts of first-degree assault.
The shooting shattered the sense of safety for many who frequented Club Q — a rare haven in a region with a tumultuous history for embracing the queer community. The attack revived efforts to scale up resources for the LGBTQ community, including a possible pride center.
In previous hearings, prosecutors said that more than 5,000 pages of evidence has been collected as part of the case, including 911 audio, photographs and body-worn camera footage from the first officer to arrive at the club.
The hearing is expected to last at least two days and could extend into a third.