STEM School Shooting: Erickson Sentenced To Life In Prison

CENTENNIAL, CO — Former student Devon Erickson was sentenced Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 2019 STEM School Highlands Ranch shooting, which left one student dead and eight others injured.

Erickson, who was 18 at the time of the shooting, pleaded not guilty on Jan. 2, 2020, to first-degree murder and dozens of other charges. His attorneys said he was forced to go through with the shooting.

Erickson's trial began May 31 this year, and a jury returned its verdict June 15 — he was found guilty of 46 counts, including first-degree murder.

Erickson was eligible to face the death penalty in Colorado because he was charged before the state abolished it; however, prosecutors chose not to seek it.

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Alec McKinney, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, pleaded guilty in February 2020 to first-degree murder in the shooting death of 18-year-old Kendrick Castillo. McKinney was sentenced in July 2020 to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

During Erickson's trial, McKinney testified that they both spent weeks planning the shooting, and decided to blame the shooting on him.

Erickson agreed to participate in the attack as long as it looked like he was pressured into it and or could emerge as a hero by killing McKinney, said George Brauchler, chief deputy district attorney.

Brauchler said the students' concocted "victim-hero" strategy unraveled after Castillo rushed Erickson when he pulled out a gun inside a darkened classroom as students watched a movie. Erickson's gun went off, Castillo was killed and others tackled him, he said.

Their other possible scenario, in which McKinney killed himself, was stymied after an armed security guard apprehended him, Brauchler said.

Castillo’s parents, John and Maria Castillo, have been in the courtroom for every proceeding since the shooting. His mother told the court Friday that “a life without Kendrick is not a life.”

More:

• Knights Of Columbus Honor Kendrick Castillo
• Slain Colorado Student Died After Lunging At Shooter: Classmates
• Colorado School Shooting: 5 Heroic Acts That Saved Lives
• STEM School Security Guard Won't Face Criminal Charges

The Associated Press contributed to this report.