On Tuesday, more than two years after Albuquerque, New Mexico officers fatally shot James Boyd, a mentally ill homeless man camping in the city’s hills, the trial for both of his shooters ended with a hung jury.
After deliberating for two days, the jury was unable to come to a unanimous decision needed to convict Officers Officers Dominique Perez and Keith Sandy of second-degree murder. Only three of the 12 jurors, which included six women and six men, wanted a guilty verdict. The other nine voted to acquit both men. After polling the jurors to see if they needed more time to deliberate, Judge Alisa Hadfield declared a mistrial.
Boyd, a 38-year-old who suffered from schizophrenia, was illegally camped out in the Albuquerque foothills when officers apprehended him in March 2014. In footage captured on helmet and body cameras, officers fired a flash-bang device that disoriented Boyd, who seemed to be walking down the hill at the time. He dropped his bags and appeared to draw something from his waistband, as three officers and a K9 closed in on him. While Boyd stood in place, Perez and Sandy opened fire within seconds, fatally striking him in the arm and back.
Nearly a year after the incident, Bernalillo County District Attorney Kari Brandenburg filed charges against the two officers — a move that quickly turned her into a target of police hostility.
During the trial, which began in late September, Perez testified that he “had a feeling [Boyd] was going to lunge forward.” He also said Boyd was very close to a K9 officer at the scene. But Boyd, who had a pocket knife at the time, didn’t move toward the officers. He was also 10 feet away.
Sandy testified that Boyd “was going to try to flank [them],” even though the 38-year-old was outnumbered by four to one in the video. “He was going to attack us from a different angle. That’s when I made the decision to shoot,” Sandy said.
Randi McGinn, a special prosecutor who took on the case, tried to make the case that “anticipatory shootings” aren’t reason enough to kill. But the jury was unable to reach the same conclusion.
McGinn said she will not personally seek a retrial. On Tuesday, she said the next district attorney (DA)— Raul Torrez — will make the ultimate decision to proceed with a new trial or let Perez and Sandy walk. Torres, who is running unopposed in the upcoming DA election, remains undecided.
Today, neither officer works for the APD. Perez was fired last October, and Sandy retired in 2014.
Historically, cops are rarely charged for fatal shootings or other types of lethal force. It’s even more rare for the ones who are charged to be convicted and locked up. Last year, a record 18 officers were charged for fatal shootings, but none of them were convicted. This year, Officer Peter Liang was convicted of fatally shooting Akai Gurley in New York, but he was sentenced to five years of probation.