愛污传媒

Skip to main content

Texas Walmart shooter agrees to pay more than $5M to families over 2019 racist attack

Share
AUSTIN, Texas -

A white Texas gunman who killed 23 people in a racist attack on Hispanic shoppers at a Walmart in 2019 agreed Monday to pay more than $5 million to families of the victims.

Patrick Crusius was sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences in July after pleading guilty to federal hate crime charges following one of the nation's worst mass killings. U.S. District Judge David Guaderrama signed off on the amount that Crusius must pay in restitution.

There is no indication Crusius, 25, has significant assets. He was 21 years old and had dropped out of community college when police say he drove more than 700 miles from his home near Dallas to target Hispanics with an AK-style rifle inside and outside the store. Moments before the attack began, Crusius posted a racist screed online that warned of a Hispanic "invasion" of Texas.

He once worked at a movie theater, a job that his attorneys have said Crusius was forced to leave because he was having violent thoughts.

Crusius pleaded guilty in February after federal prosecutors took the death penalty off the table. But Texas prosecutors have said they will try to put Crusius on death row when he stands trial in state court. That trial date has not yet been set.

Under the agreement between Crusius and the government, Crusius will pay $5,557,005.55.

Joe Spencer, an attorney for Crusius, and a spokesperson for the Justice Department did not immediately return messages Monday. Both sides had filed a joint agreement with the court, which was then approved by Guaderrama.

In January, the Justice Department proposed changes to how it runs federal prisoners' deposit accounts in an effort to ensure victims are paid restitution, including from some high-profile inmates with large balances. The move came as the Justice Department faced increased scrutiny after revelations that several high-profile inmates kept large sums of money in their prison accounts but only made minimal payments to their victims.

The 2019 attack was the deadliest of a dozen mass shootings in the U.S. linked to hate crimes since 2006, according to a database compiled by The Associated Press, USA Today and Northeastern University.

Before the shooting, Crusius had appeared consumed by the nation's immigration debate, tweeting .BuildtheWall and other social media posts that praised then-President Donald Trump's hardline border policies. Crusius went further in his rant posted before the attack, sounding warnings that Hispanics were going to take over the government and economy.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

A unique form of clouds made an appearance over the skies of Ottawa on Sunday evening.

Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.

Local Spotlight

Bernie Hicks, known as the 鈥楤atman of Amherst,鈥 always wanted to sit in a Batmobile until a kind stranger made it happen.

Bubi鈥檚 Awesome Eats, located on University Ave West took to social media to announce the closure on Friday.

Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.

Some Manitobans are cleaning up Sunday morning, after intense winds barreled through southern parts of the province Saturday.

Avry Wortman, 13, scored two touchdowns on Sunday during her team's win in the under 14 Greater Moncton Football Association.

A gargantuan gourd 鈥 affectionately named 鈥極rangina鈥 by the urban gardeners who grew it in the front yard of their Vancouver home 鈥 earned the massive honour of being named B.C.鈥檚 heaviest giant pumpkin Saturday.

Chantal Kreviazuk is set to return to Winnipeg to mark a major milestone in her illustrious musical career.

From the beaches of Cannes to the bustling streets of New York City, a new film by a trio of Manitoba directors has toured the international film festival circuit to much pomp and circumstance.

A husband and wife have been on the road trip of a lifetime and have decided to stop in Saskatchewan for the winter.