Jury convicts ex-cop Lunsford in fatal shooting

A jury found former Las Cruces Police Officer Brad Lunsford guilty of voluntary manslaughter after three hours of deliberation on Feb. 12. 

The jury’s decision follows eight days of exhaustive testimony from four experts, several witnesses, and Lunsford himself, who said he feared Eze was reaching for another officer’s gun, which inspired him to place his pistol against Eze’s head and shoot him dead on Aug. 2, 2022. 

The New Mexico Department of Justice oversaw the prosecution. Two of their prosecutors, John Duran and Greer Staley, argued to the jury that Lunsford had many options when Eze and Lunsford’s partner, Keegan Arbogast, were pressed on the pavement outside the former Chevron on Valley Drive. 

“In this case, the defendant used his last resort first,” Staley said. 

Body camera and witness video displayed at the trial showed Lunsford and Arbogast pulling Eze out of his car after the officers had been called to investigate shoplifting committed by Eze. No one disputed that Eze, after being denied the opportunity to buy cigarettes from Chevron, stole a beer from the store. 

As the two officers pulled Eze from the car, Eze tried to flee. Arbogast then wanted to bring him to the ground, crashing his own head against the pavement. 

Who had control as the three men tussled on the floor was a significant disagreement between the prosecutors and the defense. Arbogast was on the bottom, with Eze above him. Lunsford was atop both men. 

They struggled for about 20 seconds, video shows before Lunsford pulled out his pistol. He pressed the gun to the side of Eze’s head so that the bullet would not go down into Arbogast. Eze died instantly.

Afterward, Arbogast told Lunsford he was healthy enough to continue securing the scene. Later, Arbogast said he was confused and concussed in the fight’s aftermath. 

Prosecutors opposed that point. They called Arbogast an unreliable witness and suggested he exaggerated his testimony to protect his friend. 

But Lunsford’s lawyer, Jose Coronado, said Arbogast and Lunsford should be fully believed and be the best experts in their own situation. Moreover, Coronado argued that the evidence showed Eze was attacking Arbogast, while Lunsford testified that he saw Eze reaching for Arbogast’s gun. 

Eze also had gotten ahold of one of the officer’s tasers, something prosecutors said was not significant since Eze would not have known how to use it, but Coronado said it was proof of Eze's intentions to hurt the officers. 

“This guy wanted to do some serious harm,” Coronado said. 

In the end, the jury sided with the prosecution.

Still outstanding is the civil matter. Eze’s family is suing the city and police department in federal court, claiming they violated his civil rights by killing him. There’s a high threshold to clear in federal court when it comes to police killings, and there’s no accompanying state lawsuit, where police settlements are more common. 

It’s unclear how the verdict will affect that case. 

Lunsford could face up to six years in prison for the charge. He could face an additional three years as part of firearm enhancement. He was taken to the Luna County jail following the conviction.

After this article published, the New Mexico Department of Justice released a statement.

“Today’s verdict reaffirms a fundamental principle: no one is above the law—not even those sworn to uphold it. Officer Lunsford’s actions were not just a tragic lapse in judgment; they were an egregious abuse of power that cost Presley Eze his life," said Attorney General Raúl Torrez in the statement. "The jury’s swift decision underscores the gravity of this case and sends a clear message that excessive force will not be tolerated in New Mexico. Our office will continue to hold law enforcement officers accountable when they violate the public trust and betray the communities they are meant to protect.”