Trial begins in killing that began with unlocked store

Stephen McCorkle was working the graveyard shift at a Northeast Albuquerque gas station when he made the tragic error of leaving the door unlocked when he left to use the bathroom, prosecutors told jurors on the first day of his first-degree murder trial.

The result, captured by the store’s security video, was a free-for-all of theft as people entered and exited the convenience store for the next 30 minutes in 2024, carrying away armloads of merchandise and some $400 in cash.

Among the opportunistic thieves was James Rendon, 36, who was fatally shot by McCorkle shortly after the burglary, according to attorneys for both the prosecution and the defense.

Prosecutors allege that McCorkle retrieved a handgun from the store, got in his car and tracked down the thieves, then fired two fatal gunshots at Rendon about a quarter mile northwest of the Shwan gas station at Lomas and Louisiana NE.

McCorkle's attorney, Christophe Chino, said in opening statements Monday that McCorkle shot Rendon in self-defense during a confrontation between the men at Georgia and Mountain NE.

In a later interview with police, "Mr. McCorkle makes it very clear he was acting in self-defense when he went to recover that money," Chino told jurors. When McCorkle confronted Rendon and a second man, they came after McCorkle and forced him back into his car, he said.

McCorkle fired two gunshots in self-defense but had no idea he had fatally shot Rendon, Chino said.

"Mr. McCorkle is not a cold-blooded murderer," he said. "Mr. McCorkle was acting in self-defense. Mr. McCorkle was trying to protect his life, his livelihood."

Albuquerque police found Rendon fatally shot shortly after 6 a.m. on Nov. 11, 2024, in the 1300 block of Georgia NE, according to a criminal complaint filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court. Officials found $20 and $100 bills stuffed in Rendon's pants, it said.

Prosecutors said the fatal series of events started about 4:30 a.m. when McCorkle left the Shwan gas station where he was working the graveyard shift to use the bathroom located outside the building.

"Here's where he made his first of many mistakes that day — he left the gas station door unlocked," prosecutor Dana Beyal told jurors.

"Not only was the door unlocked, but the cash register was unlocked too, and he was gone for about half an hour. Door unlocked, middle of Albuquerque."

Security video played for jurors showed that minutes after McCorkle exited, people entered the store and saw no employee minding the store. Among them was Rendon, Beyal said.

"He took several things from the store, including some money from the cash register," she said. The amount stolen was $300 to $400 cash. At about 5 a.m., McCorkle returned and found Rendon and others ransacking the store.

Store security video showed that the thieves surrendered some of the money and cash, then ran from the store. McCorkle entered the store, saw the extent of the damage, and retrieved a handgun, Beyal said.

"He is pacing around," she said. "He's looking at the damage. He's trying to figure out what's missing. And I'm sure he's thinking, ‘What's going to happen? Am I going to lose my job?’"

McCorkle "gets in his vehicle and he drives off in the direction that James (Rendon) ran to find him and to murder him if he can find him."

About seven minutes later, McCorkle found Rendon in a residential neighborhood and fired a single shot from his car that struck Rendon in the leg, Beyal said. Police found that shell casing inside the car, she said.

McCorkle then exited his car and fired a second fatal gunshot into Rendon's back, Beyal told jurors. The second bullet casing was found at the scene.

Police arrested McCorkle the following day in possession of the handgun used to kill Rendon, she said.