LCPD officer charged in 2020 killing receives $225k settlement

The city of Las Cruces agreed to pay $225,000 to Christopher Smelser, a former Las Cruces police officer who killed Antonio “Tony” Valenzuela during a chase in 2020, to settle a tort claim Smelser filed after he was fired from the department.

Smelser was charged with murder after New Mexico State Police found he used a controversial grapple technique on Valenzuela that led to Valenzuela’s death. The murder charges were dismissed in the middle of the trial in 2022.

Smelser claimed that his firing violated terms of police officer’s collective bargaining agreement with the city. According to documents obtained by the Las Cruces Bulletin, Smelser and the city agreed to a $225,000 settlement on Aug. 2, 2024. He was also reinstated as a police officer, allowed to resign and guaranteed neutral employment references from the city.

“The settlement amount was agreed to after several intense rounds of negotiations between legal counsel for Mr. Smelser and the City of Las Cruces,” Brad Douglas, the city attorney, wrote in an email to the Bulletin.

It’s the second settlement the city has paid out in relation to the incident. The city also paid Valenzuela’s family $6.5 million to settle claims that Smelser and LCPD violated Valenzuela’s civil rights when they killed him. That settlement also included a provision that the city would re-evaluate some of its policing polices.

Smelser and another LCPD officer chased Valenzuela after he ran from a traffic stop on Feb. 29, 2020. Smelser eventually caught up to Valenzuela and placed him in a grapple called a vascular neck restraint, a technique that LCPD no longer teaches its officers.

Smelser’s initial charge of voluntary manslaughter was later upgraded to second-degree murder. During a trial in July 2022, 3rd Judicial District Judge Douglas Driggers dismissed the case via directed verdict. The ruling came mid-trial after Driggers found that prosecutors failed to prove that a crime had been committed.

When asked if the settlement sent any kind of message to the public, police or other groups, Douglas reaffirmed that the city was committed to due process for all its employees.

“Any time there is an allegation that we have fallen short of the mark, it represents an opportunity to re-examine our own internal processes and make improvements, if necessary,” Douglas wrote. 

The Bulletin reached out to attorneys for Smelser. The office told the Bulletin they would be unable to respond by the Bulletin's deadline. 

“I think it’s important to note that the alleged action in this case took place over four years ago,” Douglas continued. “Since then, LCPD has re-affirmed its commitment to adhering to its internal personnel policies, along with any relevant federal, state, or local laws pertaining to employment. Again, due process is paramount and the police department takes these obligations very seriously.”