Feds Indict In Deadly 2015 Colorado Planned Parenthood Shootings

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — Robert Dear, who already faces dozens of state charges in a deadly 2015 rampage and five-hour standoff at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic, faces 68 new criminal charges in a federal grand jury indictment announced Monday by federal prosecutors in Denver.

Dear has admitted he carried out the attack that killed three and injured several others, but the case has been stalled for years because courts have repeatedly ruled the now-61-year-old man mentally incompetent to stand trial. The delay, and a looming five-year statute of limitations on federal charges, prompted U.S. Attorney Jason Dunn to take the case to a grand jury.

“The dozens of victims of this heinous act, as well as the Colorado Springs community itself, deserve justice,” Dunn said in a news release. “After four years of lengthy delays in state court, and in consultation with the 4th Judicial District Attorney and victims, this office made the decision to charge Mr. Dear.”

Three people were killed, including a police officer, and eight others were wounded, including four police officers, in the Nov. 27, 2015, attack.

Authorities said Dear arrived at the clinic with a full cache of weaponry — four SKS rifles, five handguns, two more rifles, a shotgun, and more than 500 rounds of ammunition. Authorities also said they believe he wanted to wage war on the clinic because abortions are among the services Planned Parenthood provides there.

Two people were shot and killed and four others were injured at various locations outside the clinic before Dear forced his way in by shooting open a door to the side of the main entrance, then engaged in a five-hour standoff with police in which he fired approximately 198 bullets, authorities said.

At the time, 27 health care providers, employees, patients and companions were inside the clinic, and they hid in various rooms until police could rescue them. One of those injured was shot when a bullet went through a wall and into a room where the person was hiding.

One police officer was killed during the standoff, and four others were injured.

The indictment charges Dear with 65 counts of violating the Freedom of Access To Clinic Entrances Act and three counts of use of a firearm during a crime of violence resulting in death where the killing is murder. If convicted of the federal charges, Dear faces a maximum penalty up to and including death, or a minimum of 10 years up to life in prison.

Federal prosecutors haven’t indicated if they’ll seek the death penalty. But the U.S. Attorney’s Office said it will consult with Dear’s attorneys and the families of the victim, who are “an important part of this decision-making process. “No decision will be made before conferring with them,” the office said.

Dear was taken into custody Monday morning at a state mental hospital in Pueblo, Colorado, where he has been held since shortly after his arrest. He made an initial appearance in federal court Monday.

The 179 state criminal counts against Dear, including first-degree murder, and the case remains pending. His mental competency to stand trial is evaluated every 90 days.