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7NEWS
24-04-2025
- 7NEWS
Loved ones of shooting victims make jaw-dropping gesture for killer in US courtroom
Speaking to the gunman who killed her brother and 22 other people, Yolanda Tinajero did not raise her voice or condemn him for his racist attack at a Walmart in 2019. Instead she told him Tuesday that she forgave him, and wished she could give him a hug. The judge, in a surprising turn in an El Paso courtroom, allowed her to do just that. Their brief embrace — while Patrick Crusius was still shackled — was among many emotionally charged moments during two days of impact statements given by victims' family members and survivors. Some described their pain and devastation while others assured him the community had met his hatred with love and unity. Later, another person also hugged the man who pleaded guilty in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the US. Crusius, a white community college dropout, had posted online a screed about a Hispanic invasion of Texas before opening fire with an AK-style rifle at the store near the US-Mexico border on August 3, 2019. Crusius didn't address the families and survivors at his plea hearing Monday. He will serve multiple life sentences after pleading guilty to capital murder and 22 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. 'We would have opened our doors to you to share a meal, breakfast lunch or dinner, Mexican-style, so then your ugly thoughts of us that have been instilled in you would have turned around,' Tinajero told him. 'Hug you very tight' Tinajero said her brother, 60-year-old Arturo Benavides, was a 'kind, sweet-hearted person', whose wife of over 30 years is broken hearted over her loss. 'Now she lives alone in their home full of memories that she can't forget,' she said. 'I feel in my heart, to hug you very tight so you could feel my forgiveness, especially my loss, but I know it's not allowed,' Tinajero said. 'I want you to see and feel all of us who have been impacted by your actions.' Later, the judge asked her: 'Ma'am, would it truly bring you peace and comfort if you could hug him?' 'Yes,' she replied. Her daughter, Melissa Tinajero, told reporters: 'I don't know how she was able to do it. I could not do that. But she showed him something he could not show his victims.' When Adriana Zandri learned about the hug, she asked to do the same. On Monday, she had delivered her victim impact statement, speaking about the devastating loss of her husband, Ivan Filiberto Manzano. 'I'd like to ask permission, on behalf of myself and my children, to hug Mr Patrick,' she said in Spanish. Judge Medrano responded, 'Ma'am, would that help you and your family find comfort, peace, and healing?' 'Yes, sir,' Zandri replied. She then crossed the courtroom, accompanied closely by several security officers. Crusius, who had been informed of her request beforehand, embraced her as best he could with his hands in shackles. 'A survivor, not a victim' Stephanie Melendez told Crusius that she did not want to address him but rather read a letter to her father, 63-year-old David Johnson, who was killed when he shielded his wife and 9-year-old granddaughter from the gunfire. Melendez thanked her father for making her study, giving her a curfew and telling her when she was 16 that she needed to get a job. 'You made me into the strong woman I am today,' she said. Her daughter, Kaitlyn Melendez, now 14, told Crusius: 'I am a survivor, not a victim.' 'I'm going to walk out these doors and move forward with my life and not let you haunt me anymore.' 'A disgrace to humanity' Dean Reckard, whose 63-year-old mother Margie Reckard was among those killed, expressed anger and forgiveness as he addressed Crusius. 'You're a disgrace to humanity and to your family,' Reckard said, adding that he hopes Crusius wakes up each morning wishing he were dead. But Reckard also said he forgave the gunman who will spend the rest of his life behind bars. 'In order to be forgiving, you have to forgive others,' he said. 'That's the only reason I forgive you. May God have mercy on your soul.' Thousands of people attended Margie Reckard's funeral after her partner of 22 years, Antonio Basco, invited the public to the service, saying he felt alone after her death. 'Left me sad, bitter' Liliana Munoz of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, said in court Monday that she was shopping for snacks when Crusius opened fire, forever changing her life physically, economically and emotionally. In her statement, she said she used to be a 'happy, dancing person,' but now is afraid every morning when she awakes. Since she was shot, she has had to use a cane to walk and wears a leg brace to keep her left foot from dragging. 'It left me sad, bitter,' said the 41-year-old mother. She also granted Crusius forgiveness. 'You brought us together' Javier Rodriguez was 15 and starting his sophomore year in high school when he was shot and killed at a bank in Walmart. On Tuesday his father Francisco Rodriguez shouted at Crusius: 'Look at me, I'm talking to you.' He told Crusius that he and his family have to go to the cemetery to commemorate his son's birthday. 'I wish I could just get five minutes with you — me and you — and get all of this, get it over with,' he said. But Rodriguez also referred to comments made about Crusius' impact on El Paso during his sentencing. 'Like the judge said yesterday, you came down to El Paso with the intention of tearing us apart, but all you did, you brought us together,' he said.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Woman hugs man who fatally shot her brother, 22 more in racist Walmart attack
Speaking to the gunman who killed her brother and 22 other people, Yolanda Tinajero did not raise her voice or condemn him for his racist attack at a Walmart in 2019. Instead she told him Tuesday that she forgave him, and wished she could give him a hug. The judge, in a surprising turn in an El Paso courtroom, allowed her to do just that. Their brief embrace — while Patrick Crusius was still shackled — was among many emotionally charged moments during two days of impact statements given by victims' family members and survivors. Some described their pain and devastation while others assured him the community had met his hatred with love and unity. Later, another person also hugged the man who pleaded guilty in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the U.S. Crusius, a white community college dropout, had posted online a screed about a Hispanic invasion of Texas before opening fire with an AK-style rifle at the store near the U.S.-Mexico border on Aug. 3, 2019. Crusius didn't address the families and survivors at his plea hearing Monday. He will serve multiple life sentences after pleading guilty to capital murder and 22 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. 'We would have opened our doors to you to share a meal, breakfast lunch or dinner, Mexican-style, so then your ugly thoughts of us that have been instilled in you would have turned around,' Tinajero told him. Tinajero said her brother, 60-year-old Arturo Benavides, was a 'kind, sweet-hearted person,' whose wife of over 30 years is broken hearted over her loss. 'Now she lives alone in their home full of memories that she can't forget,' she said. 'I feel in my heart, to hug you very tight so you could feel my forgiveness, especially my loss, but I know it's not allowed,' Tinajero said. 'I want you to see and feel all of us who have been impacted by your actions.' Later, the judge asked her: 'Ma'am, would it truly bring you peace and comfort if you could hug him?' 'Yes," she replied. Her daughter, Melissa Tinajero, told reporters: 'I don't know how she was able to do it. I could not do that. But she showed him something he could not show his victims.' Stephanie Melendez told Crusius that she did not want to address him but rather read a letter to her father, 63-year-old David Johnson, who was killed when he shielded his wife and 9-year-old granddaughter from the gunfire. Melendez thanked her father for making her study, giving her a curfew and telling her when she was 16 that she needed to get a job. 'You made me into the strong woman I am today,' she said. Her daughter, Kaitlyn Melendez, now 14, told Crusius: 'I am a survivor, not a victim.' 'I'm going to walk out these doors and move forward with my life and not let you haunt me anymore.' Dean Reckard, whose 63-year-old mother Margie Reckard was among those killed, expressed anger and forgiveness as he addressed Crusius. 'You're a disgrace to humanity and to your family,' Reckard said, adding that he hopes Crusius wakes up each morning wishing he were dead. But Reckard also said he forgave the gunman who will spend the rest of his life behind bars. 'In order to be forgiving, you have to forgive others,' he said. 'That's the only reason I forgive you. May God have mercy on your soul.' Thousands of people attended Margie Reckard's funeral after her partner of 22 years, Antonio Basco, invited the public to the service, saying he felt alone after her death. Liliana Munoz of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, said in court Monday that she was shopping for snacks when Crusius opened fire, forever changing her life physically, economically and emotionally. In her statement, she said she used to be a 'happy, dancing person,' but now is afraid every morning when she awakes. Since she was shot, she has had to use a cane to walk and wears a leg brace to keep her left foot from dragging. 'It left me sad, bitter,' said the 41-year-old mother. She also granted Crusius forgiveness. Javier Rodriguez was 15 and starting his sophomore year in high school when he was shot and killed at a bank in Walmart. On Tuesday his father Francisco Rodriguez shouted at Crusius: 'Look at me, I'm talking to you.' He told Crusius that he and his family have to go to the cemetery to commemorate his son's birthday. 'I wish I could just get five minutes with you — me and you — and get all of this, get it over with,' he said. But Rodriguez also referred to comments made about Crusius' impact on El Paso during his sentencing. 'Like the judge said yesterday, you came down to El Paso with the intention of tearing us apart, but all you did, you brought us together,' he said. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Daily Mail
23-04-2025
- Daily Mail
Woman's incredible courtroom act towards racist Walmart mass shooter who killed her brother and 23 others
In a shocking moment in court, a family member hugged the Texas gunman who killed her brother in the El Paso Walmart shooting that killed over 20 people. As Patrick Crusius, 26, pleaded guilty to capital murder and aggravated assault charges for the 2019 massacre, he was faced with anger and grief from family members of the victims. But two women, in an unexpected moment, hugged the shooter, who admitted to specifically targeting Hispanic people in the attack that killed 23 and injured 22. Yolanda Tinajero, who lost her brother Arturo Benavides, was the first of the two to ask Judge Sam Medrano for permission to hug the killer. 'Ma'am, would it truly bring you peace and comfort and healing to hug him?' Medrano asked her. 'Yes,' Tinajero answered. After being granted permission, the victim's sister wrapped her arms around the gunman as she sobbed, KTSM reported. Adriana Zandri, who lost her husband Ivan Eliberto Manzano, was the second to hug Crusius as he kept his gaze to the floor. Crusius was 21 when he committed the despicable act and drove more than ten hours from his home in suburban Dallas to El Paso. He wore earmuffs as he opened fire with an AK-style rifle on the Walmart parking lot before moving inside the store on August 3 As Zandri embraced her husband's killer, cries were heard throughout the courtroom and the handcuffed killer sat awkwardly in orange and white striped prison garb. 'My children have lost their hero, their prince, their column, their support and their father,' she said on Monday. 'He's not going to be there to teach my daughter how to play basketball. He is not going to be present to give my daughter's hand in her wedding ceremony. 'The only thing that I wanted was for them to not grow up with hatred in their hearts because the day they begin feeling hatred toward you is when their life will be over.' Crusius was 21 when he committed the despicable act and drove more than ten hours from his home in suburban Dallas to El Paso. He wore earmuffs as he opened fire with an AK-style rifle on the Walmart parking lot before moving inside the store on August 3. Crusius cornered shoppers at a bank near the entrance before shooting at the checkout area and people in aisles. When he exited the store, he fired at a passing car and killed an elderly man while wounding his wife. He was apprehended shortly after and confessed to officers who stopped him at an intersection, according to police. The gunman posted on an online message board prior to the deadly shooting that he was inspired to commit the act 'in response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas.' He claimed Hispanics were going to take over the government and economy. Crusius was apparently consumed by the nation's immigration debate, tweeting #BuildtheWall and posts praising border policies of President Donald Trump, who was in his first term at the time. After the shooting, Crusius admitted to officers he had targeted Mexican people. The individuals who were killed ranged in age from teenagers to grandparents. They included immigrants and Mexican nationals who had crossed the U.S. border on routine shopping trips. The victims who were killed were identified as: Andre and Jordan Anchondo, Arturo Benavides, Leonardo Campos, Angie Englisbee, Maria and Raul Flores, Guillermo Garcia, Jorge Calvillo García, Adolfo Cerros Hernández, Alexander Gerhard Hoffman, and David Johnson. Luis Alfonzo Juarez, Maria Eugenia Legarreta Rothe, Maribel Loya, Ivan Filiberto Manzano, Ivan Filiberto Manzano, Gloria Irma Márquez, Margie Reckard, Sara Esther Regalado Moriel, Javier Rodriguez, Teresa Sanchez, and Juan Velazquez also lost their lives. His defense lawyer, Joe Spencer, claimed that Crusius has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, which can be marked by hallucinations, delusions and mood swings. 'This explanation of a severe mental illness and toxic political environment does not, in any way, justify or excuse the horrific violence that Patrick committed,' Spencer clarified. 'He bears responsibility for the choices he made and the devastation that he caused.' But the mental health defense claims were rebutted by the family members of victims. Dean Reckard, son of Margie Reckard, said to the gunman on Monday: 'I noticed your family isn't here. They'll probably have to hide for the rest of their lives because of the evil you brought upon their name. I'm not buying into this mental illness issue that your lawyers want us to believe. 'To me, you're just a copycat killer who wanted some attention. My hope is you wake up each morning wishing you were dead.' Misty Jamrowski, mother of Jordan Anchodo, said: 'You remind me of a man who had mental illness as well, and was racist as well. His name was Adolf Hitler. His objective was Jewish people. Your objective was Mexican people.' Other family members stood up to face the killer. Raul Melendez, family member of David Johnson, said: 'What he did was cowardly. You know, I never thought I'd see the day that I'd see a clown in handcuffs.' Francisco Rodriguez, father to the youngest victim in the shooting, Javier Rodriguez, said: 'My son was 15 years old at the time. He was pretty much a bystander. He just went down there with his uncle to the bank. Look at me. Look at my son. 'You had the balls to come down here and do what you wanted to do right? Look at him. I'm only asking you two minutes. Two minutes of your time. You had over 10 hours to think about what you were going to do. Now you can't give me two minutes? Thanks to you, now I go to the cemetery with my family on my son's birthday.' Before Crusius pleaded guilty to capital murder and 22 counts of aggravated assault on Monday, he had already been sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences in federal court after pleading guilty to hate crime and weapons charges in 2023. Last month, El Paso County District Attorney James Montoya offered him a plea deal that took the death penalty off the table. 'This is about allowing the families of the 23 victims who lost their lives on that horrific day - and the 22 wounded - to finally have resolution in our court system,' Montoya said last month.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Sister of victim in El Paso Walmart mass shooting hugs gunman in court
The sister of one of the 23 people killed in a racist attack in 2019 at an El Paso Walmart moved an entire courtroom when she decided to hug the gunman responsible for the tragedy after he pleaded guilty. Yolanda Tinajero said she wanted to hug 26-year-old Patrick Crusius so he could feel her pain – and her forgiveness. Her brother, Arturo Benavides, a decorated U.S. Army veteran, was killed on Aug. 3, 2019, when Crusius carried out one of the deadliest mass shooting and the worst domestic terror attack on Hispanic people in U.S. history. Crusius pleaded guilty on April 21 and will spend life in prison without parole. "In my heart, I want to hug you very tight so you could feel my forgiveness, especially my loss," Tinajero said in court on April 22 during a victim impact statement. "But I know it's not allowed. I want you to see and feel all of us who have been impacted by your actions that have brought us all closer with God's love, which shows you that this great city of El Paso is a very forgiving place." In a powerful moment, Judge Sam Medrano asked Tinajero if she wanted the opportunity to hug the gunman. She got up from her seat at the witness stand and walked over to the gunman. The gunman leaned forward and the two embraced. Tinajero whispered into the gunman's ear as they hugged for about a minute. For the first time in nearly six years, the gunman showed emotion in the courtroom as he hugged her and nodded his head, "yes" as Tinajero spoke to him. The powerful moment brought everyone in the courtroom to tears, including the law enforcement officers standing guard. "I feel an empty space in my heart, but in this empty space, I still have room for forgiveness for you," Tinajero said in her victim impact statement. "At first, I was very angry at you, but God helped me to suppress this anger with forgiveness." More: Forgiving a 'monster': El Paso Walmart victims' families, survivors address mass shooter After giving her victim impact statement, Tinajero's daughter Melissa's voice broke with emotion, biting her lip to hold back tears as she spoke to reporters about her mother hugging the gunman. 'My mother chose to embrace him in an act of love and forgiveness for herself," Melissa Tinajero said. "I don't know how she did it, but that's who she is and no matter what, she found a place of forgiveness and a place of compassion that he didn't have for others. "And I think she just wanted him to know that love conquers all and also to feel the loss that we are experiencing.' Melissa Tinajero said she wanted the shooter to know 'the enormity' of the damage he caused to everyone associated in any way to the massacre, their families and the El Paso community. 'It's just touched tons and tons of lives in our city,' Melissa Tinajero said. During emotionally charged victim impact statements, Crusius was described over and over as a monster. The gunman drove nearly 700 miles from Allen, Texas, to El Paso that day and carried out the shooting in the Walmart parking lot and inside the store. He admitted to law enforcement that he carried out the attack to stop what he claimed was the invasion of Hispanics into the United States. U.S. and Mexican citizens were killed in the attack. Still, forgiveness was a theme of many who spoke. "I, Mario Perez, forgive Mr. Patrick and I leave it all in the hands of God," Mario Perez Briones, who survived two gunshot wounds, said during his victim impact statement. "I hope that one day (the gunman) feels sorry for what he did and he asks God for forgiveness. May God forgive him." Another woman, Adriana Zandri, also hugged the gunman after asking the judge permission. Mariscal Olivia Rodriguez, who was shot during the attack, described the horror she saw on the day of the shooting. "He's a monster on earth, and I am sure that he will be judged after his death," Rodriguez said. Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@ or on X/Twitter @AMartinezEPT. Contributing: Jeanine Santucci and Christopher Cann, USA TODAY This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Sister of victim in El Paso Walmart shooting hugs gunman in court
USA Today
23-04-2025
- USA Today
Sister of victim in El Paso Walmart mass shooting hugs gunman in court
Sister of victim in El Paso Walmart mass shooting hugs gunman in court Show Caption Hide Caption How El Paso came together after Aug. 3 mass shooting at Walmart It's been nearly six years since the Walmart mass shooting. The community remembers the 23 lives lost as the gunman spends his life in prison. The sister of one of the 23 people killed in a racist attack in 2019 at an El Paso Walmart moved an entire courtroom when she decided to hug the gunman responsible for the tragedy after he pleaded guilty. Yolanda Tinajero said she wanted to hug 26-year-old Patrick Crusius so he could feel her pain – and her forgiveness. Her brother, Arturo Benavides, a decorated U.S. Army veteran, was killed on Aug. 3, 2019, when Crusius carried out one of the deadliest mass shooting and the worst domestic terror attack on Hispanic people in U.S. history. Crusius pleaded guilty on April 21 and will spend life in prison without parole. "In my heart, I want to hug you very tight so you could feel my forgiveness, especially my loss," Tinajero said in court on April 22 during a victim impact statement. "But I know it's not allowed. I want you to see and feel all of us who have been impacted by your actions that have brought us all closer with God's love, which shows you that this great city of El Paso is a very forgiving place." In a powerful moment, Judge Sam Medrano asked Tinajero if she wanted the opportunity to hug the gunman. She got up from her seat at the witness stand and walked over to the gunman. The gunman leaned forward and the two embraced. Tinajero whispered into the gunman's ear as they hugged for about a minute. For the first time in nearly six years, the gunman showed emotion in the courtroom as he hugged her and nodded his head, "yes" as Tinajero spoke to him. The powerful moment brought everyone in the courtroom to tears, including the law enforcement officers standing guard. "I feel an empty space in my heart, but in this empty space, I still have room for forgiveness for you," Tinajero said in her victim impact statement. "At first, I was very angry at you, but God helped me to suppress this anger with forgiveness." More: Forgiving a 'monster': El Paso Walmart victims' families, survivors address mass shooter 'Love is better than hate' After giving her victim impact statement, Tinajero's daughter Melissa's voice broke with emotion, biting her lip to hold back tears as she spoke to reporters about her mother hugging the gunman. 'My mother chose to embrace him in an act of love and forgiveness for herself," Melissa Tinajero said. "I don't know how she did it, but that's who she is and no matter what, she found a place of forgiveness and a place of compassion that he didn't have for others. "And I think she just wanted him to know that love conquers all and also to feel the loss that we are experiencing.' Melissa Tinajero said she wanted the shooter to know 'the enormity' of the damage he caused to everyone associated in any way to the massacre, their families and the El Paso community. 'It's just touched tons and tons of lives in our city,' Melissa Tinajero said. Forgiving a 'monster' During emotionally charged victim impact statements, Crusius was described over and over as a monster. The gunman drove nearly 700 miles from Allen, Texas, to El Paso that day and carried out the shooting in the Walmart parking lot and inside the store. He admitted to law enforcement that he carried out the attack to stop what he claimed was the invasion of Hispanics into the United States. U.S. and Mexican citizens were killed in the attack. Still, forgiveness was a theme of many who spoke. "I, Mario Perez, forgive Mr. Patrick and I leave it all in the hands of God," Mario Perez Briones, who survived two gunshot wounds, said during his victim impact statement. "I hope that one day (the gunman) feels sorry for what he did and he asks God for forgiveness. May God forgive him." Another woman, Adriana Zandri, also hugged the gunman after asking the judge permission. Mariscal Olivia Rodriguez, who was shot during the attack, described the horror she saw on the day of the shooting. "He's a monster on earth, and I am sure that he will be judged after his death," Rodriguez said. Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@ or on X/Twitter @AMartinezEPT. Contributing: Jeanine Santucci and Christopher Cann, USA TODAY
