On March 11, 2017, Police Officer Houston James Largo, a 27-year-old decorated officer of the Navajo Nation Police Department, responded to a domestic violence call in a remote area near Prewitt, New Mexico. This call would ultimately lead to his tragic death. Officer Largo was shot while on duty along County Road 19, a dark and isolated road in western New Mexico, which is part of the vast jurisdiction of the Navajo Nation that spans across New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.
The suspect
identified in Officer Largo's shooting death was Kirby Cleveland, a 37-year-old man. On the night of the incident, Cleveland had been drinking and became angry while watching television with his wife and children. His wife, concerned for the safety of their family, called authorities and had him driven to a friend's house. However, Cleveland was later driven back home by a friend, and it was during this return that Officer Largo stopped the vehicle. Shortly after the stop, shots rang out, and Officer Largo was fatally wounded by a. 22-caliber rifle fired by Cleveland.
Cleveland's actions were motivated by a mistaken identity; he had been attacked by a group of individuals armed with bats a few days prior to the incident and mistakenly believed Officer Largo was another assailant. After shooting the officer, Cleveland walked home and informed his wife about the incident, telling her, 'I shot that police officer, you need to go help him.'.
Officer Largo was found lying face down and bleeding on the road by a woman from the rural community who saw the flashing police lights. She used the radio in Largo's patrol vehicle to call for help. Despite immediate medical attention, Officer Largo succumbed to his gunshot wounds the next day, March 12, 2017, at an Albuquerque hospital.
Kirby Cleveland was subsequently found hiding in the hills more than a mile away from the scene of the crime. He was arrested and later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in December 2019. Cleveland also pleaded guilty to violating the conditions of his supervised release from a previous case in which he had forced his way into a home on the Navajo Nation armed with a baseball bat and assaulted a woman in 2012.
On June 30, 2021, Cleveland was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for the murder of Officer Largo. His sentence also included four years of supervised release after his prison term. The sentencing highlighted the dangers faced by tribal police officers, who often patrol vast and isolated areas alone, and it sparked discussions among Navajo leaders and community members about the issues of alcohol abuse and domestic violence on the reservation.
