SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO
Doña Ana sheriff says man shot by deputies was brandishing knife
Suspect had barricaded himself in burning home during Tuesday fatal incident
Published
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Doña Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart addressed the fatal shooting of a Las Cruces man by sheriff’s deputies at a brief news conference in Las Cruces on Thursday.
Around 8 p.m. Tuesday, the county fire department responded to a structure fire at a residence on Watson Lane, located near Tortugas Pueblo and the Mesilla Park area. The sheriff’s office and marshals from the town of Mesilla responded to the scene to assist.
The scene was a sprawling single-family dwelling that appeared to consist of numerous extensions built onto the home over time, with several entrances.
As firefighters confronted the fire, Stewart said they located a man inside who refused to leave the home, despite the uncontrolled fire in progress. Stewart said the fire appeared to have been set from numerous locations on the property.
Stewart identified the man as Dylan Leonard, who is listed as the property owner.
After Leonard refused to leave, the fire department notified deputies, who Stewart said entreated the man to leave the residence. “He refused several times over,” she said.
As officers were standing near one of the entrances, at 8:34 p.m., Stewart said Leonard suddenly emerged from the home, brandishing a knife and rushed at the deputies. She showed a still image from one of the deputies’ body-worn cameras, showing a bare-chested man in the dark holding an object in his right hand that appears to be a knife based on his shadow, with his left hand raised in front of him, appearing to be advancing forward toward the camera.
“This went down very, very quickly,” Stewart said. “He moved at the deputies and shots were fired. Our deputies along with Mesilla marshal units on scene fired as well.”
Stewart said deputies rendered medical aid, but Leonard died at the scene. One deputy sustained a “very minor injury,” Stewart said, and was released from a local hospital after receiving treatment.
The incident is under investigation by a multi-agency police shooting task force, and the deputies involved are on standard administrative leave.
It was the second time this month law enforcement in Las Cruces killed an individual.
On Feb. 8, Las Cruces police shot Johnny Ray Morales, 28, after he fired two shots at a officer outside a Walmart in the middle of town and ran.
Algernon D’Ammassa is the Journal’s southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com.
