Carlsbad youth accused of killing 15-year-old had handcuff key taped to his private parts.

John Gamble, 16, was somehow able to obtain a new handcuff key which he used to unlock restraints while en route to a court appearance, Warden D.P. Lyons of the Eddy County Juvenile Detention Center told the Current-Argus.

"He was patted down before being placed in restraints, and the guards found nothing" and was placed in the back of a van with two other inmates, Lyons told the paper.

"He had a handcuff key taped to his scrotum, which he used to unlock the restraints," Lyons said. "When the guards opened the door, he bolted past them and ran toward the railroad tracks."

Lyons told the Current-Argus that Gamble was recaptured after about 10 to 12 minutes when detention officers found him hiding in the bed of a pickup truck near the Pecos River.

An investigation is under way to determine how Gamble came to possess a new handcuff key, Lyons told the paper.

Lyons said Gamble was returned to the juvenile detention center where he was placed under a precautionary suicide watch while awaiting evaluation by a mental health counselor, the Current-Argus said.

He is scheduled to stand trial in March.

9:40am 10/21/08 -- Security Up as Carlsbad Teen Goes to Court: Judge keeps suspect in 15-year-old's killing behind bars, cites death threats against defendant.

The attorney for 16-year-old accused killer John Gamble on Monday denied charges of first-degree murder, kidnapping, retaliation against a witness and evidence-tampering in the Oct. 12 death of Joseph Garcia, 15, the Carlsbad Current-Argus reported.

But state District Judge Thomas Rutledge turned down a request by public defender Paul Johnson to release Gamble pending a probable-cause hearing set for next Monday, the Current-Argus said.

Johnson argued that Gamble was not a flight risk, was not a danger to himself or others and had been doing well in the Phoenix Program, Carlsbad Municipal Schools' alternative high school, the paper reported.

Rutledge, however, denied the request, citing security concerns, including a report of death threats issued against Gamble, the Current-Argus said.

Increased security measures were in evidence at the Eddy County Courthouse Monday, according to the paper.

"Clearly he is out of the control of his parents, and the court's concern is that he could leave this jurisdiction," Rutledge said in denying the motion. "Whether he is a threat to himself or to others, it is more accurately put that others are a threat to him."

Rutledge also addressed the Carlsbad community, saying, "I want to make it clear that Mr. Gamble is presumed not to have done the things of which he is accused," the Current-Argus reported.

6:15am 10/17/08 -- Carlsbad Teen Faces Murder Charge: Suspect, 16, accused of kidnapping, killing 15-year-old whose body was found Sunday.

John Gamble, 16, of Carlsbad, was arrested Thursday and charged with the killing of 15-year-old Joseph Garcia, whose body was found lying on a dirt road Sunday evening, the Carlsbad Current-Argus reported.

According to a Carlsbad Police Department news release, Gamble is facing charges of first-degree murder, kidnapping, retaliation against a witness and tampering with evidence, the paper said.

The exact cause of Garcia's death hasn't been determined, and while there were preliminary indications of blunt-force trauma, more specific information has not been released because of the ongoing investigation, the Current-Argus reported.

"There have been a number of rumors pertaining to the incident," the police department release said. "Our efforts have been designed to protect the integrity of the case and to attempt to get a faster resolution."

Police said there were indications at the scene that the incident was a homicide, the Current-Argus said.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Carlsbad police detective Lt. Bryan Burns at (575) 885-2111, extension 240, or Eddy County Crime Stoppers at (575) 887-1888.