Defense Asks Judge to Hold El Paso DA Bill Hicks in Contempt Over Walmart Shooting Comments

Defense lawyers for the man accused in the 2019 Walmart mass shooting in El Paso have asked a judge to hold District Attorney Bill Hicks in contempt of court, arguing that his public comments about the case violate a gag order.

The motion, filed Tuesday on behalf of Patrick Crusius, says Hicks has repeatedly disregarded an order issued in 2022 by 409th District Judge Sam Medrano. That order largely bars attorneys and other parties in the case from speaking to the media. Defense attorneys have previously accused Hicks of violating it in court filings and hearings, but this was the first time they formally laid out a case for contempt.

Hicks rejects the accusation. He told El Paso Matters he was "confident that all of my comments have been in conformity with the spirit of the order and the Code of Professional Responsibility." Defense attorney Joe Spencer declined to comment, citing the gag order.

The motion argues that Hicks has shown he will not stop. "Because Mr. Hicks has indicated through his conduct that he will not stop violating the gag order, the only way for this court to protect Mr. Crusius's right to a fair trial and enforce its jurisdiction is to institute contempt proceedings against the state through Mr. Hicks," it said. It also contends that Hicks is trying to influence the jury pool for an eventual trial.

Medrano imposed the gag order in July 2022 after concluding that then-District Attorney Yvonne Rosales was making statements to the media that could affect the defendants' fair trial rights. It says attorneys, their staffs and law enforcement officers involved in the case "shall not discuss this case with the media," with limited exceptions for general descriptions of the case. Rosales resigned in December 2022 while facing a petition to remove her from office, and Gov. Greg Abbott appointed Hicks to replace her. Hicks has since discussed the case in several news conferences and interviews, and says his remarks fall within the order's limits.

If Medrano finds Hicks in contempt, he could be fined or jailed. The defense also wants the judge to consider other remedies, including additional or unlimited peremptory strikes of potential jurors, an admonishment about the state's alleged misconduct to be read to jurors during jury selection, before certain witnesses testify and before deliberations, or barring prosecutors from seeking the death penalty.

The next hearing in the case is set for Dec. 11. It continues two days of hearings held Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 on the defense's allegations of prosecutorial misconduct. It is unclear whether Medrano will take up the contempt request then. Hicks, a Republican, lost the Nov. 5 election to Democrat James Montoya and will leave office at the end of the year.

Crusius is charged with 23 counts of capital murder and 22 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon over the Aug. 3, 2019, shooting at the Cielo Vista Walmart, and could face the death penalty. No trial date has been set, though a scheduling order Medrano issued earlier this year could lead to a trial in 2026. In 2023, Crusius pleaded guilty to federal hate crimes and weapons charges in the shooting and was sentenced to 90 consecutive life terms with no possibility of parole.