Sentencing Hearing Continues for Austin Thompson in Hedingham Mass Shooting

Austin Thompson, who pleaded guilty to five counts of murder in the Oct. 13, 2022 Hedingham neighborhood mass shooting, faced continued victim-impact testimony and evidentiary review as his multi-day sentencing hearing moved forward in Raleigh. The state presented a two-page confession note and an extensive breakdown of the defendant’s internet searches before resting after testimony from an FBI profiler on violent behaviors.

Jasmin Torres, the widow of Raleigh police Officer Gabriel Torres, returned to the witness stand to describe the daily consequences of the killing for her young daughter. “My daughter is now 5. She only knows her daddy through photos and recounting through videos. By the time she was two and a half, she knew her way through a sea of tombstones to find her daddy’s grave,” Torres said, adding directly to Thompson, “He would be able to tuck her in (at night), if it wasn’t for you.” Officers from the Raleigh Police Department watched Torres testify from the back row of the courtroom.

Prosecutors introduced a loose-leaf confession recovered in Thompson’s home that included the line, “I did this because I hate humans.” Courtroom presentations also laid out an “extensive breakdown” of Thompson’s search history leading up to the shooting, with queries that ranged from school shootings to photos of Knightdale High School, the school the evidence indicates he had attended. An FBI profiler took the stand to explain patterns of violent behaviors, after which the state announced it had rested its case.

Alan Thompson, the defendant’s father, spoke in court for the first time during the hearing day identified in coverage as Feb. 5, 2026. Reporters and a courtroom photo caption differ on how that day was counted in the sequence of hearings; some coverage called it Day 3 while a photo caption labeled it the fourth day. The record of multiple emotional witnesses includes spouses and family members across the continued testimony.

Judge Paul Ridgeway will decide Thompson’s punishment after the defense presents its case next week. It is not yet clear what evidence the defense will offer or whether Austin Thompson will address the court himself. The potential penalties described in court include this wording: “Thompson faces a minimum of 25 years in prison - one life sentence with the possibility of parole - for killing five people in Raleigh's Hedingham neighborhood.” The court was also told the maximum exposure would be “five life sentences plus an additional 1,634 months in prison.”

The hearing remains open to the public and has been livestreamed for community viewing. For Raleigh residents and families directly affected by the Hedingham shooting, the coming defense presentation and Judge Ridgeway’s sentencing decision will determine how the legal system addresses culpability, accountability, and the possibility of parole. The court is scheduled to resume at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday for the defense’s presentation.