Some details revealed in fatal shooting outside Chili's

Despite repeated requests from a Las Cruces police officer on scene, a man who was later identified as Philip Mullin, 50, was shot by the officer and killed in the parking lot outside Chili’s Grill and Bar on the 400 block of S. Telshor after refusing to comply.

According to new details provided by Las Cruces Police Chief Jeremy Story Tuesday, Mullin threatened multiple customers inside the restaurant with a knife and a claw hammer during an angry exchange. The incident took place inside a crowded restaurant just after 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 9.

After he went outside, police video from a lapel camera shows Mullin walking continuously towards the officer with the hammer at his side as the officer repeatedly instructs him to stop.

Mullin never spoke as he closed the space between himself and the officer, who was slowly backing away. As he got closer, the officer, who is unidentified at the present time, fired three shots at close range, each bullet striking Mullin in the chest.

As seen on the video footage, the officer immediately administered medical attention to Mullin, but he could not revive him.

As he laid out the details the investigation has uncovered thus far, Story reported that Mullin was seen at a local gun shop seeking the “cheapest weapon available” Thursday morning. Following an exchange with the clerk, he left the shop without making a purchase.

Five hours later, at about 4:15 p.m., emergency dispatch received a call reporting a man vandalizing vehicles in his neighborhood with what was described as a machete or large knife. By the time police arrived on the scene, the man was no longer there. Neighbors said Mullin had damaged two cars. Photographs presented by LCPD showed two cars with holes in the windshields and side windows.

The escalation continued at 6:03 p.m., when dispatchers began receiving frantic calls from Chili's about an aggressive man in the bar area confronting customers with a knife and a hammer. One caller, who seemed to be a Chili’s employee, reported that Mullin had been in each of the past five days. During that call, it was reported that he had left the restaurant and was sitting outside in a silver Honda SUV. As the conversation continued, he reportedly returned to the bar area of the establishment.

Story related that Mullin threatened two people who were checking on his well-being when they saw blood on his person, likely from the incident in which he damaged the vehicles.

"They saw some blood, likely from the vehicle damage and the glass,” Story recounted. “He begins yelling at those patrons. That argument ends, he goes to his vehicle, retrieves the hammer and the machete or the knife, goes back inside the restaurant and the altercation continues, where at least two people were victims of an aggravated assault." 

Officers were dispatched to the restaurant, fully aware of the link between the neighborhood incident and the current encounter. When they arrived at 6:03 p.m., the first officer saw Mullin sitting inside his car and ordered him to step out. Thirty seconds later, after Mullin failed to comply with the officer’s commands, the fatal shots were fired. 

The officer was immediately placed on standard administrative leave as a multi-agency officer-involved shooting task force gathers information and presents it to the District Attorney's Office. 

Story noted that police had prior encounters with Mullin, but nothing that required an arrest. The chief did not give a timeline for concluding the investigation.