Document release shows seriousness of prior case against accused Club Q shooter

Thursday's release of 133 pages of material on a previous case against accused Club Q shooter Anderson Aldrich, had 4th Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen trying to explain why the case was dropped earlier this year. 

"The court then dismissed properly that case because the witnesses were not cooperating with the prosecution," said Allen. "Without those witnesses getting on the stand there's no way to get a conviction on those charges."

Allen spent a good deal of an afternoon news conference claiming reporting on the lack of pursuit of an extreme risk protection order was harmful to the prosecution and thus to the victims. 

"Those people would also have to testify in that case as well," said Allen. 

Colorado's Red Flag law allows a family member or law enforcement agency to go to the courts to seek an extreme risk protection order. The El Paso County Sheriff's Office did not pursue one after the incident in June 2021 that included three kidnapping charges and two menacing charges for an incident in which Aldrich was accused of holding hostage Pamela and Jonathan Pullen and Laura Veopel, the suspect's grandparents and mother.

When calling law enforcement, Pamela Pullen told law enforcement that Aldrich was making a bomb in the basement and that the bomb Aldrich told her, was, "Powerful enough to blow up a police department and a federal building." The grandparents through marriage had been caring for Aldrich, who was 21 at the time, since childhood. They planned to move to Florida, but Aldrich, according to the documents told the grandmother, "It would interfere with his bomb-making."

The situation in the home deteriorated during the talk of a move. "Pamela stated Anderson pointed the gun at her and Jonathan and told them, 'You guys die today and I'm taking you with me. I'm loaded and ready. You're not calling anyone.'" When Aldrich went back down to the basement, the grandparents fled the house and called authorities.

Also in the case file is a letter from the brother and sister of the grandparents dated November 29 of last year, expressing concern for Pamela and Jonathan Pullen and asking the court to keep Aldrich incarcerated and adding that Aldrich was in need of counseling.  

"My brother and I had many conversations over the years about this young man and what could be done, but nothing changed," they wrote. "When my brother's family lived in San Antonio during Anderson's high school years, he attacked my brother; my brother then had to go to the ER."

And there were more allegations. Since moving to Colorado the brother and sister wrote, Aldrich punched holes in walls and broke windows and locks. "My brother and his wife had to sleep in their bedroom with the door locked and bat by the bed." They wrote of a counselor's worries after a visit. The counselor contacted the police. Police wanted to hold Aldrich for 72 hours wrote the brother and sister, "the grandmother Pam would not let him be taken." There were concerns Aldrich was not disciplined. After the arrest in 2021, family indicated Pamela Pullen gave Aldrich $30,000. "Much of which went to his purchase of two 3D printers – on which he was making guns," said the letter. Law enforcement has said Aldrich had a ghost gun at the time of the 2021 arrest and in the Club Q shooting, when he also had an AR-15-style weapon. The sheriff's office collected the guns after the 2021 arrest and did not give them back after the case was dropped on the request of the defendant. The sheriff's office still had the guns at the time of the Club Q shooting, said Allen.

Allen said, the mother and grandparents would not be compelled to testify against Aldrich, so the case was dropped. Then at the request of the defense, the records were sealed, with documents showing the prosecution did not object.

Allen said Thursday he favors opening such cases when there is a felony after the fact.