Jurors deliberate in retrial of veteran's 2016 killing
May 3—Jurors began deliberating Friday in the retrial of a man previously convicted in the 2016 shooting death of an Army veteran during an Albuquerque ATM robbery.
Matthew Chavez, 34, was convicted in 2018 of second-degree murder and attempted armed robbery and sentenced to 23 1/2 years in prison for the shooting death of 24-year-old Tyler Lackey.
In October 2021, the New Mexico Court of Appeals ruled that the district judge was wrong to reject Chavez's request for an instruction that would have allowed the jury to consider a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.
Then-New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas filed a petition asking the New Mexico Supreme Court to review the decision. The state's highest court rejected the petition in 2023, clearing the way for a retrial.Chavez's retrial in 2nd Judicial District Court on charges of second-degree murder and tampering with evidence began Monday before Judge Cindy Leos.
Prosecutors argued on Friday that Chavez fired the fatal shots in an attempt to escape capture after Lackey drew a gun and confronted Chavez during the attempted robbery.
Assistant Attorney General John Duran told jurors that Chavez realized he was "busted" and attempted to get away, first by pleading with Lackey, then by shooting him.
The three gunshots Chavez fired at Lackey were intended as a "means of escape" after Lackey cornered Chavez in his car, Duran told jurors.
"I would submit to you that Tyler (Lackey) shot his gun nearly simultaneously" when Chavez fired, Duran said. Lackey's gunshot may have been a "reflexive" action when Chavez opened fire, he said.
Chavez then sped out of the parking lot of a pizza restaurant at Gibson and Yale SE and later set fire to the vehicle in an alley, Duran said.
Chavez's attorney, Maxwell Pines, argued that Lackey became the aggressor when he drew a handgun, followed Chavez to his car and pointed his weapon at Chavez and his girlfriend.
Lackey "lost his cool" after Chavez approached him from behind at the ATM and demanded money, Pines told jurors.
Lackey was killed on Feb. 5, 2016, after making a cash withdrawal from an ATM on Gibson Boulevard.
Prosecutors allege that Chavez initiated the deadly confrontation by attempting to rob Lackey, who had a concealed-carry permit and drew a handgun to defend himself.
Chavez's attorneys argued that Lackey escalated the conflict by pointing a gun at Chavez and his girlfriend.
Lackey's response "went way beyond a reasonable response," Pines told jurors. "It developed into an out-of-control situation. Mr. Chavez is petrified and trapped."
He cited testimony during the weeklong trial that he said indicated that Lackey fired the first gunshot, which struck the steering wheel of Chavez's car.
"Shooting a gun into a car occupied by two people is not a justified response" to an attempted robbery, Pines told jurors. Chavez then returned fire in self-defense, he said.
Chavez "is not guilty because he reasonably acted in self-defense in this case," Pines said.
Assistant Attorney General Jennifyr Vickery told jurors that Chavez's actions after the killing indicate that Chavez was aware of his guilt. Those actions included disposing of his gun and cellphones, burning his car and fleeing New Mexico.
"If (Chavez) believed that he had acted in self-defense, as the defense is trying to say, would he have burned the car immediately following the shooting?" Vickery asked jurors.
