Both sides rest in first Young Park murder trial

LAS CRUCES — The first murder trial stemming from the March 2025 shootout in Young Park neared its conclusion Friday. The defense rested its case after defendant Tomas Rivas, 21, took the stand, where he faced a withering cross-examination by District Attorney Fernando Macias.

Rivas is one of four defendants charged with murder and conspiracy charges over a shooting that took place in the midst of a large crowd at a car meet. Dominick Estrada, 19, whom the state alleges was the defendants’ intended target, was killed along with bystanders Andrew “AJ” Madrid, 16, and Jason Gomez, 17. Over a dozen other people were wounded as dozens of shots were fired in a matter of seconds, with testimony this week bringing to light that others in the park, including Estrada, fired their own weapons in the melee.

Rivas’ younger brother, Nathan Rivas, 18, is also facing murder and conspiracy charges along with Gustavo Dominguez, 18, and Josiah Ontiveros, 16.

The day began with a motion from defense attorney Thomas Clark to strike certain counts from the grand jury indictment. State District Judge Douglas Driggers ruled that the state’s evidence did not support convicting Rivas of willful and deliberate murder in the death of Dominick Estrada, but allowed the jury to consider a conviction for first-degree “depraved mind” murder, or the killing of a human being “by any act greatly dangerous to the lives of others, indicating a depraved mind regardless of human life.”  

Despite the change to the count involving Estrada, Rivas still faces first-degree murder charges for each of the three deaths. The jury may also consider lesser counts of second-degree murder or voluntary manslaughter, and will receive instructions for judging Rivas’ claim of self-defense. A count of conspiracy to commit willful, deliberate murder was dropped.

While Rivas did not fire the shot that killed Estrada, the prosecution argued that Rivas and the other defendants came to the park “to get Dom,” firing upon Estrada in the direction of a crowd of more than 100 people, continuing until he ran out of ammunition. He then fled to El Paso with the other shooters in an effort, prosecutors said, to construct an alibi before Rivas disposed of his weapon and the red jacket he wore that night.

The defense’s only other witness was Craig Martin, a private investigator and former New Mexico State Police detective testifying as an expert witness. Martin went over crime scene diagrams and bystander videos in detail, testifying to the complexities of the crime scene after the defense examined state witnesses and pulled at threads in the police investigation, highlighting elements that might raise doubt about the prosecutors’ case. 

In much of the video footage, Tomas Rivas is hard to discern, visible only because of his red jacket, as he backs up in the direction of the park, briefly visible in an apparent firing stance and then recedes south across the parking lot toward his brother’s red Mercedes.

On the stand, Rivas testified that he and the other defendants were there to enjoy the car show when Estrada and his sibling, Jacob Zuniga, accosted them and produced firearms. Another man allegedly grabbed Dominguez and put him in a headlock, an act Rivas said escalated quickly to a gun battle in which Rivas acted to defend himself.

Rivas also admitted to lying to law enforcement repeatedly as Macias confronted him with changing accounts he had provided. Rivas said he left the park and misled investigators out of panic, fearful of being arrested and separated from his own children.

“You could have told the truth. You never did,” Macias said.

Macias also presented a handwritten note Rivas had addressed to his younger brother, which had been also been presented to the jury earlier in the week, arguing it was an effort to coordinate a story about the shooting — a claim Rivas denied. In the note, Rivas wrote: “....tell them how Jojo and Tavo shot those three because (they’re) charging us with murder.” The references are to fellow defendants Josiah Ontiveros and Gustavo Dominguez, respectively. 

Rivas said he only reached for his 9mm Glock when he saw Estrada and Zuniga draw weapons, saying, “I felt that we were in danger.” He also claimed he told his brother to stop driving to El Paso, but was not heeded.

Driggers emphasized to the jury that they were to avoid discussions, news accounts and any publicity involving the case over the weekend. On Monday morning, the jury will receive its instructions guiding its verdict and the two sides are set to present their closing arguments before delivering Rivas’ fate to the jury’s deliberations.

Algernon D’Ammassa is the Journal’s southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com.