On the morning of May 31, 2016, Tomas Ornelas, a 49-year-old man, was senselessly killed in Mesa, Arizona, after he stopped to offer help at the scene of a car crash. Ornelas, a construction worker originally from Chihuahua, Mexico, was on his way to work in the early hours, around 3:30 a.m., when he came upon the single-vehicle accident on a freeway interchange. His act of kindness turned tragic when he was shot multiple times by the driver of the crashed vehicle.
Despite being rushed to a nearby hospital, Ornelas succumbed to his injuries.
The incident began as a violent domestic dispute between Christopher Wright, a 38-year-old former Phoenix police officer, and his 41-year-old wife, Nasbah Wright. In an attempt to kill her, Wright intentionally crashed their SUV at high speed. After the crash, Nasbah Wright managed to exit the vehicle and sought help from Ornelas, who had pulled over in his pickup truck. As she approached his vehicle, Christopher Wright emerged with an AR-15 assault rifle and opened fire, killing both his wife at the scene and the innocent bystander who had stopped to assist.
Christopher Wright was arrested at the scene. He was reportedly under the influence of cocaine at the time of the murders. During his arrest, law enforcement had to use a Taser and pepper spray to subdue him. He was subsequently charged with two counts of first-degree murder. Wright had a history of domestic violence and had resigned from the Phoenix Police Department for personal reasons years prior to the incident. He later admitted to investigators his intent to harm his wife, expressing no remorse for his actions and stating she deserved to die. Tomas Ornelas, a father and grandfather remembered for his sense of humor, was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, a true Good Samaritan whose compassion cost him his life.
