SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - A New Mexico judge has declared a mistrial in the murder trial of a teenager accused of killing a man from Michigan in 2018.
State District Judge T. Glenn Ellington said in his ruling on Tuesday that the state’s key witness would require an attorney present in order to testify in the case. The witness, Jesus Arrieta-Perez, is facing federal charges in another case.
During opening arguments, prosecutors objected to defense attorney Stephen Aarons bringing up federal charges against Arietta-Perez, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
Prosecutor Tony Long said if Arietta-Perez was to be asked about his pending federal gun and drug charges, it could violate his rights in his federal case.
Ellington ruled that prosecutors would be allowed to ask Arietta-Perez about his federal charges as they pertain to the 2018 murder case. He then declared a mistrial.
“This would have been a helpful discussion to have had last Friday,” Ellington said before stopping the case.
The case accused Zachary Gutierrez, then 17, of killing 64-year-old Richard Milan, who was driving through New Mexico with his wife on a cross country trip.
Police said Milan was walking his dog on Sept. 26, 2018, when he encountered a group of teens, exchanged words with Gutierrez and was shot twice.
Police said they believed Gutierrez started the altercation and stood over Milan’s body, laughing, after shooting him. Police also said that Gutierrez had a long history of encounters with law enforcement.
Gutierrez’s attorneys have said that evidence has risen that Arrieta-Perez might have been the one to shoot Milan. Arrieta-Perez is a Mexican national who has been charged in federal court with unlawful possession of a firearm.
Arrieta-Perez had initially said that he did not see who shot Milan, Aarons said. But after being arrested on a weapons charge and questioned by agents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Arrieta-Perez claimed Gutierrez shot and killed the 64-year-old man, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
Aarons has suggested that Arrieta-Perez change his story to ensure himself a better deal. Aarons told the court Tuesday that the circumstances surrounding Arrieta-Perez’s change of story were central to Gutierrez’s defense.
The judge agreed the issue was relevant to the case, but because it was intertwined with Arietta-Perez’s pending charges, he would need a lawyer to represent him in order to testify.
No murder weapon has been found in the case.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.