[17] A 2021 article by Denver-based magazine 5280 noted the club to be a place "where LGBTQ folks [went] for drag performances, dance parties, and drinks.

[24][25] According to the police chief, the shooting began when Anderson Lee Aldrich entered Club Q while a dance party was being held.

Aldrich rushed to the bar area and opened fire on several victims there, including Kelly Loving, Raymond Green Vance, and Ashley Paugh.

[29] Thirty-eight seconds after the shooting started, a U.S. Navy petty officer who was trapped in the patio, Thomas James, rushed towards the shooter and grabbed the barrel of their rifle.

A total of 39 patrol officers from all four divisions of the Colorado Springs Police Department, along with 34 firefighters and 11 ambulances, responded to the scene.

[38] On November 24, Colorado Springs evangelical ministry Focus on the Family was targeted with a graffiti message, reading: "Their blood is on your hands.

[56] Aldrich changed names on April 28, 2016, shortly before turning 16, citing a desire to remove associations with Aaron Brink, who by that point had multiple criminal convictions.

[57][58] Neighbors allege Aldrich to have made hateful comments towards the LGBTQ community in the past, including frequent usage of homophobic slurs.

[62] Experts in online extremism have voiced the possibility that Aldrich's proclaimed self-identification could be disingenuous,[63][64] while the Center for Countering Digital Hate acknowledges the suspect's past actions and impact on the LGBTQ community.

Angered at the development, Aldrich complained about losing access to the material stored in the basement which was intended for "conduct[ing] a mass shooting and bombing".

[66][67] Upon surrendering, a tub filled with explosive-grade material — including ammonium nitrate and tannerite — was recovered alongside handguns, ballistic vests, and gas masks; Aldrich was jailed and charged with multiple counts of kidnapping and felony menacing.

[65] The case made negligible progress, with Voepel and the grandparents refusing to accept any subpoena (under technical grounds) to avoid testifying against Aldrich.

"[70] Aldrich had allegedly created a "free speech" website that hosted violent and racist content — including a video that advocated killing civilians to "cleanse society" — as of the night of the shooting.

An El Paso County judge authorized the sealing of Aldrich's prior arrest records, saying the public release of the documents could "jeopardize the ongoing investigation.

[78][79] On June 26, Aldrich pleaded guilty to the shooting and was formally sentenced to a total of five consecutive life terms plus an additional 2,211 years in prison, all without any possibility of parole.

The United States President Joe Biden said, "While no motive in this attack is yet clear, we know that the LGBTI+ community has been subjected to horrific hate violence in recent years.

[83] The El Paso County government said "We are deeply saddened by the senseless shooting that occurred early this morning in Colorado Springs at Club Q" and they sent their condolences and support to the victims and families.

[19] The co-owners of Club Q attributed the shooting to a different kind of anti-LGBTQ hatred,[92] inflamed by some Republican politicians and right-wing influencers[93][94] and rooted in the demonization of drag queens as "groomers".

We are greatly troubled by any violence in our communities and condemn most especially violent acts that are the result of intolerance..."[97] In their responses to the shooting, several far-right media pundits promoted the LGBTQ grooming conspiracy theory,[98][99][100][101] as well as perpetuating moral panic.

[106] YouTube political commentator and podcast host Tim Pool responded by criticizing the venue's drag show performances, saying, "We shouldn't tolerate pedophiles grooming kids.

Club Q had a grooming event";[107] while other right-wing and conservative political commentators such as Matt Walsh, Candace Owens, Chaya Raichik, and Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene all continued to publish content targeting LGBTQ people, some of which focused specifically on the Colorado area.

[108][106][109][99] After issuing a statement in which she offered her prayers to those affected by the shooting and called for the lawless violence to end, Representative Lauren Boebert (R-CO) was accused of hypocrisy based on her history of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric.

[112][113] Jenna Ellis, a former lawyer for Donald Trump, was criticized for saying that the five people killed during the shooting were "now reaping the consequences of ... eternal damnation" because she claimed that there was "no evidence" the victims were Christian.

[119] A significant rise in homophobic and transphobic posts following the shooting have been tracked by LGBTQ advocates both in far-right forums such as Gab and even in more mainstream social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

Haynes also read aloud examples from some of the hundreds of the hateful messages received following the shooting, including one that said "the shooter was doing God's work".

Survivor James Slaugh said that LGBTQ issues should not be politicized, and urged respect for basic human rights: "Outside of these spaces, we are continually being dehumanized, marginalized and targeted.