2 males get life sentences in New Mexico capturing loss of life of 11-year-old that prompted gun ban

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Two males had been sentenced Wednesday to lifelong phrases in jail within the capturing loss of life of an 11-year-old boy outdoors an Albuquerque baseball stadium in 2023 that prompted the New Mexico governor to situation a controversial gun ban, the district lawyer’s workplace in Albuquerque stated.

Investigators say a truck carrying a mom and three younger youngsters was mistaken for one more car within the capturing as autos had been leaving the stadium. Gunfire killed 11-year-old Froylan Villegas and paralyzed cousin Tatiana Villegas, whereas Foylan’s mom and child brother had been unhurt.

A jury in February convicted Jose Romero and Nathen Garley, each of their early 20s, of first-degree homicide, tampering with proof, capturing at or from a car and different costs within the loss of life of Villegas.

The lads had been sentenced to life in jail plus 46 years, guaranteeing they may keep beneath Corrections Division custody completely, prosecutors stated.

Within the aftermath of the capturing and others that killed youngsters, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham declared a public well being emergency over gun violence, briefly suspending the precise to hold weapons in some parks and playgrounds within the larger Albuquerque space. The choice touched off protests and authorized challenges by advocates for gun rights.

District Lawyer Sam Bregman, a Democratic candidate for governor in 2026, stated in a press release that the shootings “shook our whole group” and praised his workers for pursuing accountability.