18-year-old to plead guilty in North Carolina shooting that left 5 dead, lawyers say

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — An 18-year-old man plans to plead guilty in a 2022 shooting in North Carolina that killed five people, including his older brother — to avoid a trial next month, his attorneys said Tuesday.

A written notice filed in Wake County Court by attorneys for Austin Thompson says their client wants to plead guilty to all charges against him.

Thompson was 15 years old when authorities believe he went on a killing spree in his Raleigh neighborhood with his 16-year-old brother on Oct. 13, 2022. His scheduled Feb. 2 pretrial hearing was scheduled for Wednesday.

But through the intended plea, Thompson “has decided he wants to spare the community and victims as much further trauma as possible,” attorneys Kelly Manette and Deonte’ Thomas wrote. Attorneys did not immediately respond to emails Tuesday seeking more information on the decision.

Thompson’s legal proceedings were delayed in part because he was recovering from a gunshot wound that a prosecutor concluded was self-inflicted before his arrest. His lawyers said he suffered a brain injury.

Prosecutors did not disclose a possible motive for the shooting but said in court filings that they believed Thompson’s actions, among other factors, were “particularly heinous, cruel or cruel” and that he attempted to avoid custody.

Thompson’s attorneys said in Tuesday’s filing that “the severe brain injury he suffered made it impossible for Austin to explain why he committed the shooting, even though he always admitted he did it.”

Thompson was charged with five counts of murder as an adult, two counts of attempted murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and assaulting an officer with a firearm. Any plea hearing will be held at a later date.

Because of his age at the time of the attack, Thompson could not face the death penalty if convicted. The presiding judge will have to decide whether to sentence him to life in prison without parole or the possibility of parole after at least 25 years in the murder case.

Wake County District Attorney Lorin Freeman said Tuesday that she was aware of the plea notice. “We are ready to move forward. Our thoughts are with the victims’ families,” Freeman later added in a text message.

Thompson hoped that “the material presented at the sentencing hearing will bring as much peace and closure as possible,” his attorneys wrote.

Prosecutors contend that Thompson shot and stabbed his brother James, whose body was found in their home.

Police officers Gabriel Torres, 29, and Nicole Connors, 52, were killed after Thompson shot several neighbors on a street in the Hedingham community. They believe another neighbor was injured.

They also allege that he later shot two other people on the nearby Neuse River Greenway Trail: Mary Marshall, 34, and Susan Karnatz, 49.

Clad in leather with several weapons tucked into his belt, Thompson was cornered by law enforcement in a nearby shed and arrested after an hour-long standoff that resulted in another police officer being injured.

Thompson’s attorneys indicated last year that they intended to use “diminished capacity” and “voluntary intoxication from prescribed drugs…” in their defense.

In 2024, Thompson’s father pleaded guilty to improperly storing a handgun that authorities said was found with his son after the shooting. He received a suspended sentence and probation.

Investigators seized 11 weapons and 160 boxes of ammunition — some of them empty — from Thompson’s home, according to the search warrant.