Justices affirm murder convictions of two men in Albuquerque shootings

The New Mexico Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously affirmed the first-degree murder convictions of two men in unrelated killings in Albuquerque.

The convictions of Breon Lamont Kindred and Adelio David Gallegos Jr. require each man to serve at least 30 years in prison before he becomes eligible for parole.

Justices upheld the conviction of Kindred, 32, in the 2020 fatal shooting of a man riding a bicycle in Southeast Albuquerque.

A 2nd Judicial District Court jury convicted Kindred in 2023 in the shooting death of 29-year-old Lavon King on June 27, 2020.

Jurors rejected the argument of Kindred’s attorney, who told jurors that Kindred fired in self-defense when he observed King reaching for a gun holstered on his left hip.

Kindred’s attorney, Nicholas Hart, also told jurors that Kindred believed King was riding a bicycle he had stolen from Kindred.

Jurors repeatedly viewed security video that prosecutors said showed Kindred riding up behind King on a motor scooter carrying a gun moments before the shooting.

The scooter crashed in the street and Kindred fell to the pavement, prosecutor Lawrence Hansen told jurors. Kindred then jumped up and fired fatal gunshots at King, Hansen said. Kindred then rode away on the bicycle.

On appeal, justices rejected Kindred’s argument that a trial judge erred by allowing prosecutors to allow rap lyrics and a Facebook Live post into evidence.

In the second case, justices upheld the conviction of Gallegos, 45, in the 2021 shooting death of 63-year-old Mike Guerra during a dispute that arose from a minor automobile collision outside an Albuquerque methadone clinic.

The fatal shooti ng was captured on surveillance video and shown repeatedly to jurors during the three-day trial.

The trial centered on whether the chronic drug user can be convicted of first-degree murder, which requires proof of a “willful and deliberate” killing, or a lesser charge of second-degree murder or voluntary manslaughter.

Gallegos’ attorney, Keren Fenderson, told jurors that Gallegos shouldn’t be convicted of first-degree murder because the longtime drug user didn’t make a “deliberate” decision to kill Guerra.

The 2nd Judicial District Court jury apparently agreed with prosecutors that, despite his drug use, Gallegos acted deliberately when he retrieved a rifle from his car and shot Guerra once in the stomach on Madeira SE, just south of Central. The two men began arguing after Guerra backed into Gallegos’ car.

On appeal, justices rejected Gallegos’ argument that prosecutors lacked evidence to convict him of first-degree murder, and in closing arguments misstated the law that distinguishes first-degree from second-degree murder.