List of Albuquerque police shootings

The police force of Albuquerque, New Mexico has been involved in a number of shooting incidents and has used other forms of force, many of these involving the use of SWAT teams. The city's police department was the subject of a Department of Justice Investigation in 2014 which found that the department "engages in a pattern or practice of use of excessive force, including deadly force, in violation of the Fourth Amendment".^[1] The report also stated that the department suffered from "structural and systemic deficiencies-including insufficient oversight, inadequate training, and ineffective policies".^[1]

Incidents of police shootings

Date	Officer name(s)	Suspect name(s)	Outcome	Notes	Officer Outcome
September 22, 2004	Sean Wallace	Leo Lopez	Lopez killed	shot during traffic stop after officer feared vehicle threat during heroin investigation[2][3]	Acquitted [2]
June 5, 2007	Russell Carter	Jay Martin Murphy	Murphy killed	barricaded self in home Jay Murphy Jr., 19, tried to calm police down[4]
November 6, 2009	Brandon Carr	Roderick Jones	Jones killed		Carr fired 18 months later[5]
January 9, 2010	Andrew Cooke	Aaron Renfro	Renfro killed	passenger in car stopped for speeding	Cooke cleared by grand jury[6]
January 13, 2010	Brett Lampiris-Tremba, Sean Wallace also present	Kenneth Ellis III[7]	Ellis killed	Ellis holding gun to his own head	Judge in civil suit ruled Ellis' rights violated Brett Lampiris-Tremba sued APD for promotion and back pay[8]
January 29, 2010	Sean Wallace	Wayne Cordova	Cordova killed	Cordova suspected of fleeing after possibly stealing a car	Wallace now a K-9 officer who works with SWAT Wallace later shot Alan Gomez[9] the District Attorney ruled this a justifiable homicide[9]
March 4, 2010	Roger Legendre	Jose Castillo, Tanya Martinez, Raymond Carillo[10]	Castillo charged with assaulting a police officer	Police shot at car after beer shoplifting incident, Giant gas station, Coors, and Quail Castillo driving	Legendre was later promoted to sergeant[11]
March 29, 2010	Kevin Sanchez	Mickey Owings[12]	Owings killed	Sanchez shot at moving vehicle in Walmart parking lot, I-40 and Quail Pregnant female in Owings vehicle unharmed 40+ witnesses	*The city's independent review officer ruled the shooting was justified[13] The DoJ used this shooting as an example of "Albuquerque police officers' own recklessness" leading to use of violence[13] Wrongful death lawsuit filed[14]
April 14, 2010	Zach Stephenson	Benjamin Marquez	Marquez shot 3-4 times in upper body	Marquez smoking a cigarette while pumping gas at Broadway and Gibson
June 10, 2010	Eric Brown, Anthony Sedler	Chris Hinz Northeast Heights near Juan Tabo Boulevard and Spain Avenue	Hinz killed	Hinz intoxicated at home. Police said he was firing his weapon inside his home[15]	Sedler later shoots Parrish Dennison
June 14, 2010	Aaron Zwicky	Julian Calbert	Calbert killed	Calbert had kidnapped two women One called 911 from Calbert's car trunk[16]	A grand jury found the shooting justified[17]
July 27, 2010	Jeremy Hollier, Anthony Glodon	Len Fuentes, a diagnosed schizophrenic, was reportedly unable to access treatment[18]	Fuentes killed 3400 block Crest SE	domestic violence call[19]	Hollier arrested in 2012 for felony domestic violence, still with APD[20]
August 17, 2010	Josh Brown	Enrique Carrasco	Carrasco shot at Montgomery and San Mateo after slashing his girlfriend's tires	Carrasco jumped on Brown's hood and repeatedly stabbed officer's driver-side window with a knife and broke it, then tried to open the door, said Public Safety Director Darren White
September 14, 2010	Leah Kelly	Chandler Barr	Barr hospitalized, survived being shot, 2nd and Central	Police called because Barr was cutting his arm with a "butter knife" Kelly was smoking a cigar as she pulled trigger	Barr filed suit for $340,000 in medical bills and pain and suffering[21] A federal jury found no liability.[22]
October 19, 2010	Drew Bader, Ramon Ornelas	Daniel Gonzales	Tucumcari police asked NM State Police for help, State Police call in Albuquerque SWAT	Gonzales came to door with two rifles	APD SWAT officers cleared[24]
October 31, 2010	David Sprague	Alexei Sinkevitch 6500 block of Tierra Prieta NW	Sinkevitch had rifle, and bled to death on floor of his home[25]	911 reports of hit-and-runs on Estrella Brillante NW Callers took plate Police traced to Sinkevitch
November 11, 2010	Brian Pitzer, Doug Moore	Russell Tenorio 1400 block Alamo SE	Tenorio survived, in hospital 2½ months, lost a kidney.	Tenorio had fetal alcohol symptom, was threatening to hurt himself[26]	Pitzer announced he was "going lethal" before entering the home,[26] resulted in a federal lawsuit[27]
February 9, 2011	Byron "Trey" Economidy (Detective)	Jacob Mitschelen	Mitschelen killed	traffic stop[28]	wrongful death lawsuit settled for $300,000[28]
April 12, 2011	Christopher J. Brown	Christopher Torres	Torres shot in his parents' back yard	father says police used a battering ram to enter the house even though he was present and offered to let them in[29]	Jury award over $10 million, later settled for $6 million[30]
May 10, 2011	Sean Wallace	Alan Gomez[31]	Gomez killed while holding spoon. Wrongful death suit settled in December 2013 for $900,000[32]	"the officer shot Gomez without verifying a threat, and after receiving information that Gomez could not have been a threat because he was no longer armed."[33]	Earlier wrongful death suit settled for $235,000. Wallace first shot a civilian on September 22, 2004, in Chimayó when he was an NMSP narcotics agent; tort claim notice filed late December 2004[34] Shot and killed second civilian January 29, 2010.[35]
June 4, 2011	Troy Nikko, William Thomas, Michael Oates[36]	Raymond Garcia	Garcia killed Lomas and Palomas[37]	Garcia caught carjacking, officers pinned his car in near a chainlink fence in front of Cross Country Auto Sales[38]
June 26, 2011	Damian Lujan	Orlando Paisano	Paisano tased, shot eight times, Bell and Dallas SE[39]	Paisano holding bayonet, police say[39]
August 30, 2011	Jim Perdue	Michael Marquez	Marquez shot in field, 60th and Central	Michael Marquez an armed robbery suspect	District Attorney ruled shooting justified First shooting under new system[40]
January 4, 2012	Mario Perez	Mark Macoldowna, James Kellogg,[41] Kymberly Bates	Macoldowna killed, Bates and Kellogg arrested	armed robbery of St. Pius X complex
March 19, 2012	Martin Smith	Daniel Tillison Marquette and Texas	Tillison killed[4]	wrongful death lawsuit alleges Smith was diagnosed with PTSD and APD knew of it[42]	DA found no probable cause for charges[43]
March 21, 2012	Russ Carter	Gary Atencio	Atencio shot on Laguna Pueblo after pursuit	Carter's 3rd shooting[4]	wrongful death lawsuit dismissed[44]
April 19, 2012	Mike Hill	Dennis Aragon	Aragon shot three times but was expected to survive	police say Aragon fired shots in the air then pointed rifle at police
August 6, 2012	Jason Peck (APD sgt)	Dominick Solis-Mora[45]	Solis-Mora shot in stomach then recovered	Solis-Mora said to sell $240 worth of meth to undercover Peck	DA and APD Internal Affairs clear Peck of wrongdoing Solis-Mara subsequently involved a number of other criminal incidents
March 5, 2013	Perdue, Sedler and Aragon	Parrish Dennison	Dennison killed Menaul and Louisiana	Dennison driver of woman trying to sell stolen banjo[46]	Sedler had previously shot Chris Hinz[47] Sedler cleared of wrongdoing[48]
March 19, 2013	APD	Kendall Caroll 13000 block Constitution	killed by State Police, APD also fired	Carroll had previously shot and wounded a police officer[49]
July 5, 2013	Jeff Bludworth, Katherine Wright	Vincent Wood	convenience store Montgomery and San Mateo	previously transported to mental health facility	Shooting ruled justified Wrongful death lawsuit settled for $55,000[50]
October 26, 2013	Officer Luke McPeek and others	Christopher Chase[51]	Chase killed	Chase had "cop killer" tattooed on his knuckles[52]	award ceremony[53]
October 28, 2013	Brian Pitzer	Joaquin Ortega shot Jefferson and Central[54]	Ortega hospitalized then jailed on charges of robbery and carjacking		Prosecutors found no probable cause to charge Pitzer[55] Pitzer involved in two prior shootings, neither fatal[56]
November 15, 2013	Peter Romero	Robert Garcia Sr.	Garcia shot but survived, received 3-year sentence Traffic stop, San Mateo Carlisle	Garcia had rifle, had been drinking Later admitted he was attempting suicide by cop	Garcia apologized to Romero
December 1, 2013	Luke McPeek, David Munoz and Jim Edison	Shane Sherrill	Sherrill had felony warrants, holding brake pad	No charges filed against police[57]
December 8, 2013	Hector Marquez, Nathan Cadroy-Croteau	Andy Snider	Snider killed	Snider said to charge officers with hammer[58]	Wrongful death lawsuit filed 2015[59] Both officers still on active duty
January 9, 2014	Russell Carter (Detective, Sedler and Ornelas also present	Jeremy Robertson's tires, Walgreens in Rio Rancho	Robertson uninjured[60] Robertson charged with fleeing, assaulting officer/[60]	Robertson wanted for parole violations	Both Sedler and Ornelas on SWAT team Sedler's 2nd shooting, Ornelas' 3rd[47]
March 16, 2014	Keith Sandy (Detective), Officer Dominique Perez	James Boyd	Boyd killed	camping without a permit displaying knife to officers who tried to frisk him	Both charged with open count of murder
March 25, 2014	James Eichel	Alfred Redwine	Redwine killed	Redwine was upset because he had just lost custody of his 5-year-old son
April 21, 2014	Jeremy Dear	Mary Hawkes	Hawkes killed	Hawkes suspected of having been in a stolen car. Car's owner later told police Hawkes had dated his room-mate[61]	Police claim 5 body cameras malfunctioned[62] Dear fired for repeatedly not turning on his camera, particularly in use of force incidents. Dear appeals firing and is reinstated. City appeals his reinstatement.[63] Family files wrongful death lawsuit.[64]
May 3, 2014	Daniel Hughes	Armand Martin	Martin killed in his Ventana Ranch home[65]	Martin suffered from depression, "just went crazy," wife said.[66] Martin ran out of his home while discharging his handgun.	DA and APD Internal Affairs clear Hughes of wrongdoing[67]
May 22, 2014	Ryan Graves, Brian Fuchs	Ralph Chavez	Chavez killed, 2nd at I-40	Chavez suspected of rape Fuch's camera not on Graves' blocked by uniform, but did record audio Chavez said to pull knife, advance on officers	DA declined to press charges[68]
January 9, 2015	Greg Brachle	Jacob Grant (APD detective)[69]	Friendly fire incident, Jacob was working undercover and the other cops thought that he was a criminal. The criminal complaint describes a meth purchase. Charges were filed against Damian Bailey and Edmond Vester for trafficking cocaine, and conspiracy to commit trafficking[70]	Officer Brachle's 2nd shooting Grant will need medical for the rest of his life, settled lawsuit for $6.5 million and medical expenses	police oversight board recommended firing but Brachle had already retired "APD said since that shooting, the department has improved supervision, training and equipment for undercover officers. In addition, it is now mandatory to attend all briefings before each operation.[71][72]
May 29, 2016	unknown	Dennis Humphrey[73]	Humphrey shot in his garage Morningside and Goodrich[73]	911 call reported he was drunk and walking around outside his house with a rifle[74]
July 3, 2019	One Albuquerque detective[75]	Unidentified man[75]	Unidentified man killed in apparent shootout with detective[75]
August 22, 2019	Paul Durham, Kyle King and Randy Serrano, accompanied by two other officers	Roger Schafer[76]	Schafer shot at a bus stop at Eubank and Copper NE	"Multiple 911 calls" reported Schafer was tossing a gun from hand to hand, "pulling the action back" and pointing the gun at traffic. It was a BB gun.[76]
October 14, 2019	APD and SWAT[77]	Daniel James Wood[77]	Wood killed[77]
October 25, 2019	At least three officers[78]	Unidentified man[78]	Unidentified man killed after confronted by officers accusing him of attempted carjacking[78]
January 6, 2020	Two Albuquerque detectives[79]	Orlando Abeyta[80]	Abeyta killed[80]
March 30, 2020	Joseph Bush, Edgar Sandoval[81]	Valente Acosta-Bustillos[81]	Acosa-Bustillos killed[81]
August 11, 2020	Unknown APD officers	Ken Reiss	Reiss killed	Reiss had called 911 to report multiple people breaking into his house. When police arrived, they saw a man running in the alleyway. They say he shot at them. They fired multiple times according to neighbors. As Reiss lay screaming they shot four more times according to neighbors, then the screaming stopped.[82] According to body camera footage released by the police, Reiss was indeed holding a gun but the footage does not show him shooting at the police. -second police shooting resulting in death in less than 6 hours
August 28, 2022	Dustin Ketchum, Marcos Flores, Kenneth Skeens	Keshawn Thomas	Thomas killed	Thomas had been sleeping in his vehicle which was parked at a gas station. A passer-by called for a welfare check, as the vehicle had not moved for several hours. APD officers made contact with Thomas, the sole occupant of the vehicle. They questioned Thomas, who was intoxicated, outside of his vehicle. During questioning Thomas mentioned to them he had a firearm in the vehicle. They allowed him to return to his vehicle in order to retrieve his cellphone. Officers claim that he then pointed a firearm at them, causing them to open fire on Thomas. Thomas was transported to a local trauma center where he later died.[83][84]	The officers involved received verbal and written reprimands, Skeens was fired due to a matter unrelated to this case. Lawsuit settlement was later granted to Thomas' family in March 2025.[85] Retrial against Skeens related to wrongful arrest of Matthew McManus gets underway starting April 1, 2025.[86]

Other use of force incidents

Date	Officer name(s)	Citizen name(s)	Outcome	Notes	Officer Outcome
January 1, 2012	Aaron Zwicky	Patrick Dennison Coors and Central	fatal car crash Zwicky attempting to respond to shots fired in South Valley	Zwicky previously shot Julian Calbert in 2010
February 5, 2015	SWAT	Nicholas Leyba, Moon and Indian School	minor injuries, charged with kidnapping, criminal sexual penetration
April 7, 2015	SWAT	Dustin Goodwin 1400 blk Pennsylvania	arrested	domestic violence suspect tried to prevent girlfriend from leaving alcohol, firearms involved[87]
April 14, 2015	SWAT	Marquette and Pennsylvania	hospitalized with dog bites	charged with domestic violence, burglary while fleeing[88]
April 22, 2015	BCSO SWAT	Michael Quevedo, 800 block Dolly (off La Vega)	arrested	warrants, domestic violence, felon with firearm	SWAT because "info the detective had and his history"[89]
May 10, 2015	SWAT	1800 block Hiawatha NE	arrested	15-hour standoff, man hiding in television cabinet	domestic violence
October 1, 2015			monitor: officers kneed suspect in head, report does not match video		"no meaningful followup"[90] officer's supervisor delayed filing a report[91]
November 10, 2015	SWAT	Bell/Pennsylvania	arrested	search warrant, man refused to leave apartment	felony warrants
December 22, 2015	Andrew Quillman, Shawna Romero also present[92]	José Rodriguez,[93] Central/Utah	killed	attempted carjacking, could not drive shift[92][94]
May 24, 2016	APD and US Marshalls	Mario Montoya Central/Western Skies	Montoya's wife arrested for harboring a fugitive[95]	Montoya supposed to be at a halfway house
June 19, 2016	SWAT	Lomas/Juan Tabo	arrested	"man was not cooperating with officers' requests to come out of a vehicle"[96]
September 30, 2016	Rodney Locke[97]	Kay Moss-Freese, woman in wheelchair	Moss-Freese killed	Locke quit APD February 2016	Locke arrested
October 22, 2016		Michael David Pacheco, Walgreens Coors/Central[98]	arrested	shots fired at Walgreens miss, Pacheco flees; officer-caused accident at 64th/Churchill