In Santa Fe, New Mexico, a former police officer has been convicted of voluntary manslaughter for the fatal shooting of a Black man during an altercation at a gas station in 2022. The jury’s decision in the trial of Las Cruces police Officer Brad Lunsford marks the latest development in cases tied to allegations of systemic violence against Black individuals by law enforcement, particularly in the wake of the 2020 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Lunsford, a white officer, had pleaded not guilty to the charges. His defense attorney, Jose Coronado, plans to request a review of the verdict on legal grounds. Coronado expressed his disappointment with the jury’s decision, questioning the prosecution’s ability to meet the burden of proof.
According to prosecutors, Lunsford shot Presley Eze at close range following a scuffle that ensued after police were called to a gas station where Eze was accused of stealing beer. Reports indicate that Eze attempted to grab a second officer’s stun gun before being shot by Lunsford. Attorney General Raúl Torrez criticized the use of lethal force, highlighting Lunsford’s immediate resort to his service weapon, resulting in Eze being shot in the back of the head.
Following the announcement of the verdict, Torrez issued a statement underscoring the importance of accountability, stating, “Today’s verdict reinforces a core principle: no one is exempt from the law, not even those tasked with upholding it. Officer Lunsford’s actions were not just a tragic error in judgment; they represented a flagrant abuse of power that tragically ended Presley Eze’s life.”
The charge of voluntary manslaughter with a firearms enhancement carries a potential sentence of up to nine years in prison. Trial evidence included footage from police body cameras capturing the altercation where Eze was forcibly removed from a vehicle, leading to the fatal confrontation.
Philip Stinson, a criminal justice professor at Bowling Green State University, highlighted the challenges prosecutors face in convicting on-duty officers in fatal shooting cases due to legal precedents that often favor law enforcement. Stinson emphasized the reluctance of jurors to question split-second decisions made by officers in potentially dangerous situations, making convictions rare.
Data compiled by Stinson and his research group revealed that over the past two decades, 205 nonfederal law enforcement officers have been arrested for homicide or manslaughter, resulting in 66 convictions, with 27 of those convictions related to manslaughter or homicide charges.
Stinson added that convictions, when obtained, often lead to lesser offenses due to the complexity of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. He noted that the U.S. sees more than 900 fatal shootings by on-duty state and local law enforcement officers annually.
In pursuing charges against Lunsford, Torrez characterized Eze’s death as a tragic outcome stemming from poor police tactics and an unnecessary use of force in apprehending an individual accused of a minor offense.
