Los Angeles (AFP) - The suspect in the mass shooting that left five people dead and 18 injured in an LGBTQ club in the United States appeared in court Wednesday.
Anderson Lee Aldrich remained seated, wearing orange jail clothes during the brief video appearance in which no charges were levied, and no pleas entered.
Aldrich was flanked by two public defenders, who said in court documents filed Tuesday that the suspect identifies as nonbinary, and uses they/them pronouns.
The defendant spoke only to confirm their name and that they had been shown a video outlining their rights.
Aldrich has not been formally charged, but is being held on suspicion of murder.Under Colorado's judicial system, formal charges are not expected for another 10 days.
The hearing came less than four days after a gun-wielding attacker stormed Club Q in Colorado Springs, strafing customers and staff.
Five people died and at least 18 were hurt in an attack that ended when US Army veteran Richard Fierro, who was visiting the club with his wife, sprang into action.
Fierro told reporters he had grabbed the attacker's pistol.
"I don't know exactly what I did, I just went into combat mode," he said."I just know I have to kill this guy before he kills us.
"I grabbed the gun out of his hand and just started hitting him in the head, over and over," he told the New York Times.
City officials and those inside the club have praised Fierro's bravery and quick thinking, which is credited with saving multiple lives.
The small LGBTQ community in Colorado Springs, a city of around half a million people at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, has been in mourning since Saturday's tragedy.
A bank of flowers and teddy bears formed a makeshift memorial outside the club, while on Monday night a candlelit vigil was held in a city center park.
A tentative court appearance for Aldrich was scheduled for December 6.
