The 2019 Walmart mass shooting state trial date remains in limbo following an at-times contentious and drawn out hearing Thursday that concluded without a decision.
The two-hour hearing was largely dominated by a witness called by defense attorneys to describe the challenges they are having with organizing the large terabytes of case files provided by the state, and finger-pointing by the defense and prosecutors over the exchange of evidence.
About a dozen relatives of people killed during the white supremacist attack on Aug. 3, 2019 sat quietly on a courtroom bench during the lengthy testimony.
“My goal is always to find a way to get that information organized in the most efficient manner,” said Todd Cooper with ArcherHall, a team of digital forensics and e-discovery experts.
Cooper testified that there were more than 90,000 duplicate files and organizing the remaining files would take at least six months and would largely have to be coded individually to get into a search-friendly format. He said organizing the files is crucial for the defense to be able to efficiently review and mark necessary documents and refer back to them.
The defense maintains that the more than a million discovery documents in the case totaling nine million pages packed in dozens of thumb drives and hard drives, leaves them in a position where they cannot even begin to speculate when they could set dates for pretrial motions and other steps necessary before a trial can be considered.
The prolonged hearing ended abruptly.
“OK we’re done,” 409th District Court Judge Sam Medrano Jr. said when defense attorney Joe Spencer and District Attorney Bill Hicks began arguing during closing statements.
Medrano, who took a moment to speak, said it is rare for the court to address the community and not the lawyers that are in the courtroom.
“Both sides have outstanding lawyers that are zealous from their point of view, but I think it’s important for this court to remind this community that this did happen almost four and a half years ago,” Medrano said.
He went on to mention how the case has been delayed by a variety of factors including the COVID-19 pandemic, the transition from longtime District Attorney Jaime Esparza to Yvonne Rosales in 2021, Rosales’ resignation in December 2022 amid criticism that included failures in the mass shooting case and possible witness tampering, and a decision to move first on the federal case, and finally to the appointment of Hicks.
Hicks, a Republican, was appointed DA by Gov. Greg Abbott in December 2022 after Rosales’ resignation, and is running for election in November against the winner of a three-person March 5 Democratic primary. Hicks is seeking the death penalty.
“It’s going to be five years in August, but the court sees this as something this court has had for less than half a year,” Medrano said, referring to the fact that the U.S. attorney took the case to court first.
Patrick Crusius of Allen, Texas, faces state charges of capital murder and aggravated assault in the Aug. 3, 2019, mass shooting at the Cielo Vista Walmart that killed 23 and injured 22 others.
Crusius, 25, pleaded guilty last year to federal hate crimes and weapons charges after the U.S. Department of Justice decided not to seek the death penalty. The Justice Department never explained the decision. A federal judge sentenced him to 90 consecutive life terms.
Defense lawyers and prosecutors hinted during his three-day sentencing hearing in federal court last July that his schizoaffective disorder diagnosis played a role in the U.S. government not seeking the death penalty. The state is seeking the death penalty.
“I’m hoping this community understands that everyone wants a resolution to this case, but not at the expense of justice,” he said without setting another date for a status hearing and demanding to speak with the attorneys following the hearing.
Crusius is being held at the El Paso County Jail and was not at the hearing.
