On February 20, 2016, Edgar Camacho-Alvarado, a 23-year-old resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was fatally shot by Deputy United States Marshal Paul Hernandez. The incident occurred during a pursuit in a trailer park where Camacho-Alvarado and his mother resided.
According to the deposition of Deputy Hernandez, the events unfolded as follows: Hernandez observed Camacho-Alvarado attempting to pull his hand out of his hoodie pocket and saw that he was holding a gun.
Hernandez immediately yelled, “Police Don't move!” and drew his own firearm. Camacho-Alvarado successfully drew the gun from his right hoodie pocket and ignored Hernandez's command, turning and running north into the trailer park with the weapon in hand. Hernandez pursued him, repeatedly yelling “Police!” during the chase, which lasted approximately 8 seconds. During this pursuit, Hernandez could see the firearm in Camacho-Alvarado's hand.
As the chase continued, Camacho-Alvarado turned left by trailer 26, where he and his mother lived, and Hernandez briefly lost sight of him. After a brief moment, Hernandez observed movement to his left and saw Camacho-Alvarado moving northward from his left to his right, with his firearm pointed at Hernandez. In response, Hernandez discharged his duty-issued weapon, a Glock 23 Gen 4 40 Caliber handgun, four times in quick succession until he lost sight of Camacho-Alvarado. The fatal bullet entered Camacho-Alvarado's right lateral chest near the armpit, crossed through his body, and came to rest in the tissues of his left mid-back.
Immediately after the shooting, Hernandez, along with Deputies Malone and Hoyle, approached the front door of trailer 26, where they found Camacho-Alvarado fallen in the doorway. The upper part of his body was inside the threshold of the trailer, and the lower part was on the front steps. A gun was observed near Camacho-Alvarado's body by Hernandez and Malone, although Hoyle acknowledged some uncertainty about the exact location of the gun.
The incident has been the subject of legal disputes, with Camacho-Alvarado's mother, Hermelinda Alvarado-Escobedo, contesting the circumstances of the shooting. She argued that Hernandez might have mistakenly identified her son or used unreasonable force. However, the court ultimately affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant, concluding that the evidence did not support the plaintiffs' claims of mistaken identity or unreasonable use of force.
There were no arrests or additional suspects involved in this case, as the shooting was attributed solely to the actions of Deputy Paul Hernandez. The legal proceedings focused on whether Hernandez's use of force was justified, with the court ultimately ruling in his favor.
