Former FBI counter-intelligence official, Frank Figliuzzi, cited reports that someone matching the suspected shooter's name, age, and hometown as the Club Q shooting called in a bomb threat. It prompted Figliuzzi to ask how the shooter was allowed access to guns.
"Even the complainant may have been his mother and the target of the threat may have been his mother's home," he explained. "If that comes out to be accurate and confirmed, of course, it will raise questions of why this individual was permitted to possess a weapon. And the larger question of what criteria should forbid or preclude someone from possessing a weapon? This person reportedly, according to police, had two weapons -- including a long gun that he used in this episode. Here we are again talking about mass violence. Talking about what looks right now in the early stages to be a targeted event. As the reporters said, November 20th is Transgender Remembrance Day. It's important in the law enforcement community when they are investigating things like this to look at anniversaries, days of remembrance, and what does the calendar say about maybe a possible motive."
As with previous shootings, he explained that the FBI would go bullet by bullet to reconstruct the shooting, so they can fully understand what unfolded. He also said that the police were probably already at the shooter's home looking through things to see if they can identify the motive.
"Let's assume for the moment that there is hate as motivation. Sometimes, by the way, the suspects will actually speak freely to the police and say 'Absolutely. I am against trans people or gay people. That's why I did this,'" Figliuzzi said. "Even if you confess to that, it's possible that the homicide charges times five and then 18 assault charges on top of that. It would not change the sentence. We're talking about likely life or worse, depending on what's available in Colorado. It's not necessarily true that hate crime would actually enhance the sentence in any appreciable way. Prosecutors might say look, the guy spending the rest of his life in jail."
The hate crime addition would be in an effort to deter future hate-based homicides with political motivations.
"I think there's actually a reason — a societal reason to charge hate even if it doesn't enhance the sentence. The federal government will make a similar decision," he explained.
The Colorado Springs attack is the 601 mass shooting in 2022.
See his full comments below: