COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado — As news spread Sunday morning of the deadly mass shooting at Club Q, many people felt compelled to visit the crime scene to leave flowers, notes, and balloons in remembrance of the lives lost.
Choong-Fai and his family were among the mourners who stopped by. "I don't know if we have a reason, it just felt like the right thing to do," he said.
He said his young daughters have a lot of questions about why someone would act so violently.
"We struggled to figure out whether we wanted to talk about it with our young ones, but we decided in the end to be just honest because there's a lot of hate in this world and unless you shine a light on that, it doesn't change."
The authorities are well aware of the special role Club Q serves in the community. During a news conference Sunday morning, Colorado Springs Police Public Information Officer Lt. Pam Castro called the club a Safe Haven for members of the city's LGBTQ community.
"We are all shocked and saddened that this occurred here last night," she said.
Fourth Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen was asked whether the mass shooting would be investigated as a hate crime.
"This will be investigated and is being investigated in that lens," Allen replied.
They went on to explain that Colorado's bias-motivated crime statute could elevate the sentence facing the suspect, 22-year-old Anderson Aldrich.
"But it will not elevate beyond what will likely be charged in this case which will include First-Degree Murder, Extreme Indifference Murder, those types of charges which are all Class 1 Felony Murder charges."
Colorado's Bias-Motivated Crimes statute is a criminal charge that can range from a misdemeanor to a low-level Class 4 or 5 felony. Prosecutors can apply the charge when a suspect injures a victim, threatens them, harasses them, or vandalizes their property in an attempt to intimidate them because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.
Allen and Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers also gave messages of resilience and hope in their remarks to the media.
"We are a strong community that has shown resilience in the face of hate and violence in the past and we will do so again," Suthers said.
The elected leaders want the LGBTQ community to feel loved and supported in Colorado Springs.
"Every person regardless of who they are has a right to be secure from fear and physical harm, and actions to strike fear in specific communities will not be tolerated in our community," said Allen.
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