A woman hugs the man who fatally shot her brother and 22 more in a racist attack at a Texas Walmart—
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.
Theirbriefembrace—whilePatrickCrusiuswasstillshackled—wasamongmanyemotionallychargedmomentsduringtwodaysofimpactstatementsgivenbyvictims’familymembersandsurvivors.
Somedescribedtheirpainanddevastationwhileothersassuredhimthecommunityhadmethishatredwithloveandunity.Later,anotherpersonalsohuggedthemanwhopleadedguiltyinoneofthedeadliestmassshootingsintheU.S.
Crusius,awhitecommunitycollegedropout,hadpostedonlineascreedaboutaHispanicinvasionofTexasbeforeopeningfirewithanAK-stylerifleatthestoreneartheU.S.-MexicoborderonAug.3,2019.Crusiusdidn’taddressthefamiliesandsurvivorsathispleahearingMonday.Hewillservemultiplelifesentencesa
