Las Cruces—Dominic Montoya was sentenced to 26 years today for the brutal murder of fellow inmate Adam Avalos in April 2006. Although Montoya waived his right to be physically present he participated telephonically. Sentencing came after a hearing on the Supplemental Criminal information filed to establish his prior convictions which would enhance sentence on each count by 1 year.
A jury found Montoya guilty in June of this year and sentencing had been set for last month before Judge Douglas Driggers. Before he could be sentenced it was discovered that Montoya was in possession of another blade which he used to slash his arms, face and neck resulting in the SWAT team being dispatched and his hospitalization.
Montoya was already serving a 57½ year sentence for prior convictions, one of which was murder before he was convicted for the murder of Avalos. The sentence for murdering Avalos must be served after completing all prior sentences.
Just before the murder of Avalos, Dominic experienced another breakup with his girlfriend, he admitted to “obsessing about it for a couple of days”. While Avalos was showering Montoya entered the common shower area of the prison pod to cut himself with a razor. Avalos told Dominic “she’s not worth it.” Angered by the comment, Montoya attacked Avalos, brutally killing him and writing messages in his blood on the shower walls.
Montoya claimed insanity and said he experienced a black out of the entire event.
In her address to the court, Adam’s sister, Jennifer Martinez stated, “I am disappointed in the Dona Ana County Detention’s classification system which allowed Dominic such close proximity to my brother. I am disappointed in the criminal justice system that took 8 years to get justice.”
Assistant District Attorney, Gerald Byers, stated, “The criminal justice system has a responsibility to ensure a defendant receives a fair trial, the court took steps to ensure that. Delays were from the defendant claiming incompetency. This was a particularly vicious murder, he (Dominic Montoya), showed no remorse and did not apologize to the family. I feel the sentence was appropriate.”
Information from: Third Judicial District Attorney's Office