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Colorado prosecutors on Wednesday filed 43 new criminal charges against the man suspected of killing 10 people, including a police officer, in a supermarket.
Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 22, was originally charged with 10 counts of first degree murder and one count of attempted murder before prosecutors filed an amended complaint following the March 22 mass shooting of a King Soopers in Boulder.
He now faces a 54-count complaint including 10 counts of first degree murder, 33 counts of attempted murder, one count of first degree assault and 10 counts of using d ‘a large capacity magazine banned while committing a crime.
The first degree murder conviction carries a life sentence without the possibility of parole, Boulder DA Michael Dougherty told reporters Thursday.
“We’re going to work as hard as possible to achieve the right result and to make sure the shooters are held fully accountable,” he said.
The prosecutor said investigators still did not understand what might have motivated the shooter.
“I understand the community and certainly the families of the victims want to know why this King Soocpers and why Boulder?” Dougherty said.
“I know that in other mass shootings that have taken place across the United States, there have been times when they have been unable to identify a motive. And you don’t need a reason to prove that someone acted with intent and after deliberation in court. But if our community and especially for these families, they want to know why. So we’re going to keep working as hard as we can to find that out.
The murder charges have been listed in the order investigators believe were killed by Alissa. The 10th count of murder stems from the fatal shooting of Boulder police officer Eric Talley, who was the last victim, according to Dougherty.
Talley, 51, had been the first officer to arrive at the King Soopers. He was a father of seven and an 11-year veteran of the Boulder Police Department.
The other victims were Denny Stong, 20; Neven Stanisic, 23; Rikki Olds, 25; 49-year-old Tralona Bartkowiak; Suzanne Fountain, 59 years old; Teri Leiker, 51 years old; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; and Jody Waters, 65.
The new criminal complaint also lists the alleged targets of Alissa’s gunfire. They include Patrick Kruse, Angela Peacock, James Graham, Kelly Rae Dorr, Sarah Moonshadow, Nick Edwards, and Christopher Tatum.
The court document also mentioned officers allegedly shot by Alissa, including Bryan Capobianco, Pam Gignac, Richard Steidell, Bryan Plyter, Alexander Kicera, Jenny Schmeits, RJ “Richard” Smith, Brandon Braun, Michael West, Jeffrey Brunkow and Samuel Kilburn.
Capobianco and Gignac were with Talley and among the first three Boulder cops to confront the shooter, Dougherty said.
“Less than 30 seconds after Officer Talley was shot and killed and the other two officers were attempted murdered, a second wave of officers then engaged and entered King Soopers.” , said Dougherty.
The first-degree assault charge against Alissa stems from the “serious injuries” suffered by Elan Shakti, according to the complaint.
“She was running away in an attempt to escape and fell and fractured her T6 vertebrae,” said Dougherty, adding that there were around 115 people inside the store and 25 in the parking lot when shots were hit. fire broke out that day.
The suspect was arrested at the scene after being shot in the leg by police. This officer shot Alissa seven times and hit her once, the prosecutor said.
Alissa’s attorney could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday.
The accumulation of charges opens the door to more evidence, allowing prosectors to paint a more complete picture of what happened at King Soopers, according to Aya Gruber, professor at the University of Colorado School of Law. .
“I think they bring in as many victims as possible to give them victim status under the law. In addition, the more charges there are, the more evidence that becomes admissible, ”said Gruber.
“At some point, stacking charges becomes detrimental, but it is generally acceptable if the charges primarily involve different victims.”
Liza Torres contributed.
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