The investigation into the Dec. 8 road rage shooting of a 30-year-old Las Cruces man has been completed and no charges are expected as the driver who discharged his gun appeared to have done so in self-defense.
On Wednesday, Las Cruces Police investigators interviewed the 30-year-old man who was shot. The man alluded that he and two friends aggressively pursued a 28-year-old man driving a two-door car on Rinconada Boulevard. That information was confirmed by other witnesses to the incident.
Investigators learned that the 30-year-old man was the center passenger and with two friends in a white single-cab pickup that was pulling a trailer at about 5 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8. The three men apparently became upset when the two-door car pulled up behind them but stopped too close to their trailer at a traffic light on Rinconada and Northrise Drive.
Occupants got out of the pickup and briefly tried to confront the 28-year-old driver of the car. When the light turned green, the 28-year-old tried to enter Highway 70 eastbound but was denied access to the onramp by the driver of the pickup.
The 28-year-old drove north on Rinconada but was aggressively followed by the pickup. The car made a U-turn on Rinconada but was blocked in by the pickup near the intersection of Rinconada and Settler’s Pass. That’s where the three occupants of the pickup exited and began throwing rocks and beer bottles at the car.
The 28-year-old man in the car, fearing for his safety, pulled out a 9mm handgun and fired 2-3 rounds toward the aggressors, striking the 30-year-old man once in the abdomen. The 28-year-old originally fled the scene but called police a short time later and acknowledged his involvement in the incident.
Through their investigation detectives learned the three occupants of the pickup intended to cause bodily harm to the driver of the car. The 30-year-old remains hospitalized in critical but stable condition at University Medical Center in El Paso.
The Las Cruces Police Department is not publicly identifying those involved since no charges are expected to be filed.
Information from Las Cruces Police