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2022 Colorado Springs Nightclub Shooting

SOLVED2021Club Q, 3430 N Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, Colorado3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence · crimes against children — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On the night of November 19–20, 2022, a mass shooting occurred at Club Q, a gay bar in Colorado Springs, Colorado, during a dance party on the eve of the Transgender Day of Remembrance. According to police, a gunman entered the club armed with an AR-15–style rifle loaded with a 60-round drum magazine, a Polymer80 handgun, additional ammunition magazines, and body armor, and began firing at employees and patrons. Five people were killed — Daniel Aston, Kelly Loving, Raymond Green Vance, Ashley Paugh, and Derrick Rump — and 25 others were injured, 19 of them by gunfire.

The attack was stopped when a U.S. Navy petty officer, Thomas James, grabbed the barrel of the shooter's rifle and struggled with him; he was shot twice in the torso during the struggle. U.S. Army veteran Richard M. Fierro then joined the fight, wrestled the handgun away, and struck the shooter repeatedly. A transgender woman, Drea Norman, also came out of hiding to help subdue the gunman. Police received the first 911 call at 11:56 p.m. on November 19, and the suspect was in custody within about five minutes. Thirty-nine patrol officers, 34 firefighters, and 11 ambulances responded, and the injured were transported to three area hospitals.

The shooter was identified as Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, of Colorado Springs. Aldrich was injured while being restrained and was hospitalized before being charged. In June 2021, Aldrich had been involved in a standoff after threatening to bomb a house and holding relatives hostage, resulting in kidnapping and menacing charges that were later dismissed and sealed; no red-flag order was sought under Colorado's 2019 law. Aldrich's attorneys stated in court documents that Aldrich identifies as non-binary.

Aldrich was initially charged with ten felony counts, later expanded to 305 counts including first-degree murder, attempted murder, and hate crimes, and then to 317 counts. On June 26, 2023, Aldrich pleaded guilty to state charges and was sentenced to five consecutive life terms plus an additional consecutive 2,211 years, without possibility of parole. On January 16, 2024, federal prosecutors charged Aldrich with 50 federal hate crimes. On June 18, 2024, Aldrich pleaded guilty to the federal charges and was sentenced to 55 concurrent life sentences without parole, plus a consecutive 190 years.

The shooting prompted national political reaction, congressional testimony from survivors and the club's co-owner, and scrutiny of Colorado's red flag law and anti-LGBTQ political rhetoric, alongside vigils and memorials held in Colorado Springs.

Key facts

Victims
Derrick Rump, Daniel Aston, Raymond Green Vance, Kelly Loving, Ashley Paugh
Date
2021
Location
Club Q, 3430 N Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2021-06-17

    Aldrich's grand-aunt contacted the FBI to report that Aldrich was allegedly planning to kill Christians and government employees.

  2. 2021-06-18

    Aldrich held maternal grandparents hostage and later engaged in an hour-long standoff with SWAT after threatening to blow up a house; explosive-grade materials and weapons were recovered upon surrender.

  3. 2022-07

    Kidnapping and menacing charges from the 2021 standoff were dismissed.

  4. 2022-11-19

    Shooting began at Club Q in Colorado Springs; five people were killed and 25 others injured before the gunman was subdued by patrons and taken into custody.

  5. 2022-11-20

    A vigil for victims was held at All Souls Unitarian Church in Colorado Springs.

  6. 2022-12-06

    Aldrich was charged with 305 criminal counts, including first-degree murder, attempted murder, assault, and hate crimes.

  7. 2022-12-14

    Survivors testified before the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform.

  8. 2023-01-13

    Additional felony charges brought total criminal counts to 317.

  9. 2023-06-26

    Aldrich pleaded guilty to state charges and was sentenced to five consecutive life terms plus 2,211 years without parole.

  10. 2024-01-16

    Aldrich was charged with 50 federal hate crimes.

  11. 2024-06-18

    Aldrich pleaded guilty to federal charges and was sentenced to 55 concurrent life sentences without parole, plus a consecutive 190 years.

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People

  • Derrick Rump

    VICTIM

    Killed after the gunman fired through the patio door.

    citation on file

  • Daniel Aston

    VICTIM

    Bar supervisor and performer at Club Q; killed in the shooting after shielding a coworker.

    citation on file

  • Raymond Green Vance

    VICTIM

    Killed in the shooting; boyfriend of Richard Fierro's daughter.

    citation on file

  • Anderson Lee Aldrich

    CONVICTED

    Pleaded guilty to state murder and hate-crime charges (sentenced June 2023) and to federal hate-crime charges (sentenced June 2024); received multiple consecutive and concurrent life terms without parole.

    citation on file

  • Kelly Loving

    VICTIM

    Killed in the shooting at the bar area of Club Q.

    citation on file

  • Ashley Paugh

    VICTIM

    Killed in the shooting at the bar area of Club Q.

    citation on file

Places

Club Q, 3430 N Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, Colorado

38.8811, -104.7584

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On November 19–20, 2022, a gunman opened fire at Club Q, a gay bar in Colorado Springs, Colorado, killing five people and injuring 25 others before being subdued by patrons. Anderson Lee Aldrich later pleaded guilty to state and federal charges, including hate crimes, and was sentenced to multiple life terms without parole.
Where did the shooting happen?
Club Q, 3430 N Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Who was convicted?
Anderson Lee Aldrich (Pleaded guilty to state murder and hate-crime charges (sentenced June 2023) and to federal hate-crime charges (sentenced June 2024); received multiple consecutive and concurrent life terms without parole.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.

Sources

  1. 2022 Colorado Springs nightclub shootingwikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Contemporaneous coverage — Colorado Springs Club Q mass shootingnews · CNN · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage — Colorado Springs shootingnews · Associated Press · 2026-07-07

Last verified JUL 2026

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