Ahmad Alissa Sentenced After Verdict in Colorado Grocery Store Shooting

Ahmad Alissa's Actions and Jury Verdict

Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, who killed 10 people during a March 22, 2021, massacre at a King Soopers grocery store in Boulder, Colorado, is being sentenced Monday after a jury rejected his insanity claim and found him guilty of first-degree murder charges. Sentencing began Monday afternoon and is expected to include about a dozen victim impact statements. In addition to the 10 counts of murder, Alissa, 25, was also convicted of 45 other felony counts, including attempted murder, assault, and using a prohibited large-capacity magazine during the commission of a crime.

Legal Proceedings and Mental Health Considerations

Alissa's attorneys didn’t deny he committed the shooting. To determine whether he was legally insane at the time of the shooting, jurors needed to weigh whether they believed he was able to form intent or distinguish right from wrong. Over the past few weeks, jurors heard 10 days of testimony, during which the prosecution argued that despite being diagnosed with schizophrenia after the shooting, Alissa was legally sane when he carried out the attack.

Prosecution and Defense Arguments

• The evidence in this case is straightforward. What happened on March 22 of 2021 is not a mystery; it was on video,” Assistant District Attorney Ken Kupfner stated.
• Prosecutors argued that Alissa acted “after deliberation, and with intent.”
• Alissa’s defense attorney Kathryn Herold claimed “this tragedy was borne out of disease, not choice.”
• Herold emphasized that “but for the psychosis he was suffering, this tragedy would never have happened.”

This is a developing story and will be updated with further information as it becomes available.