Club Q: Judge Warned of Potential Danger of Suspected Gunman
A judge in a kidnapping case against the person accused of killing five people last month at the LGBTQ+ nightclub Club Q previously warned the suspected gunman could become violent.In court transcripts obtained by the Associated Press, the judge who dismissed a 2021 kidnapping case against 22-year-old Anderson Lee Aldrich raised concerns that Aldrich could be violent in the future.Aldrich reportedly had a stockpile of weapons at this grandparents’ house and had a standoff with police.The news wire reports that Judge Robin Chittum had been told by Aldrich’s grandparents, who had claimed to have been kidnapped, that Aldrich had mental health struggles.
The judge said Aldrich should receive treatment or “it’s going to be so bad.”Regardless, Chittum approved a defense attorney’s motion to dismiss the case in a four-minute hearing in July.
By that time, the AP reports, Aldrich’s grandparents had stopped cooperating with authorities. Prosecutors did not attempt to keep the case open.Related: Who Were the 5 Victims of the Club Q Shooting?"You clearly have been planning for something else," Chittum told Aldrich during the hearing in August 2021.
Aldrich had testified about liking to shoot guns as well as about his mental health."It didn't have to do with your grandma and grandpa.
