Death of Albuquerque man handcuffed by Taos County deputy classified as 'homicide'

TAOS — The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator has classified the death of an Albuquerque man who died after a Taos County Sheriff’s deputy handcuffed him outside a bar in August as a homicide.

An autopsy report OMI released to the Journal on Tuesday says 64-year-old Patrick Walsh died on Aug. 2 due to the “toxic effects of cocaine and ethanol in the setting of physical restraint.” It also lists atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease and obesity as significant contributing factors in his death.

Lapel cam video from the Taos County Sheriff’s Office showed Deputy Donivan Byers intervening as two men struggled to keep Walsh out of the road on N.M. 522 by Midtown Market and Lounge in Arroyo Hondo. Walsh’s face was bleeding, and bystanders said he had fallen or jumped out of a truck prior to the deputy’s arrival.

After taking Walsh by the arm and commanding him to stop moving, Byers took Walsh to the ground beside a bus stop, handcuffing him face-down before turning him onto his side with the help of a bystander, the lapel video shows.

About a minute later, one of the men who had been attempting to control Walsh told the deputy, “Hey, his face is starting to turn purple.”

Taos County medics arrived after sundown and pronounced Walsh dead at the scene.

According to the autopsy, Walsh had 101 milligrams per deciliter of alcohol in his blood and 240 nanograms per milliliter of cocaine in his body at his time of death. Walsh’s blood also contained cocaethylene, “a toxic compound formed when cocaine and alcohol are used together,” according to the autopsy.

“Cocaine is an illicit stimulant that can increase heart rate and blood pressure. (Alcohol) is a central nervous system depressant that can alter breathing. When cocaine and ethanol are used together, cocaethylene is formed within the body, and is toxic to the heart,” the autopsy states.

The autopsy noted “skin tears” on the bridge of Walsh’s nose and on the inside of his upper lip, scrapes on his forehead, nose and lips; and bruises and scrapes on his arms, hands and legs, including “small injuries on the wrists from handcuffs.”

The autopsy revealed more significant internal injuries, including “rib fractures and small hemorrhages under the skin of the wrists, consistent with Mr. Walsh resisting restraint,” according to the autopsy.

The autopsy determined that Byers only applied pressure on Walsh’s buttocks and hips when he handcuffed him.

“No pressure was placed on his back or neck,” the autopsy states. “He was rolled onto his side, where he was reportedly still conscious.”

Despite affirming that excessive force was not used during the incident, the OMI report concluded that Walsh’s “manner of death is medically best classified as a homicide” because it “occurred in the setting of physical restraint.”

Taos County Sheriff Steve Miera told the Journal on Tuesday that Byers was responding to a “medical call” and restrained Walsh “to prevent him from hurting himself or others until medical personnel could arrive and render the proper aid.”

“It’s the official position of Taos County Sheriff’s Office the deputy did nothing wrong,” the sheriff said during a phone interview. “Walsh died as a result of a culmination of physical health issues, alcohol intoxication, drug impairment — the combination of the two — physical exertion that he expended when he jumped from the vehicle and his activity back and forth in the parking lot prior the deputy’s arrival.”

Miera added that lapel video supports that statement, “as well as OMI’s report.”