LAS CRUCES, NEW MEXICO — A former Las Cruces police officer was found guilty of murder Thursday in the 2023 shooting death of a woman after she hit him with her open car door as she backed up and tried to leave.
Jurors deliberated for a few hours before returning a verdict in the case of Felipe Hernandez, who was fired from the Las Cruces Police Department in 2024 after charges were filed in the death of 45-year-old Teresa Gomez.
Prosecutors asked jurors to convict Hernandez of second-degree murder, saying the evidence showed the shooting was unjustified. Prosecutor Fernando Macias said in a statement that he firmly believes that prosecutors presented evidence supporting this charge but that he respects the deliberative process and the results.
It is not clear whether defense attorney Jeff Lahan plans to appeal. He did not respond to phone and email messages seeking comment Thursday.
Jurors heard and watched testimony from police officers and experts Body camera footage Hernandez approached Gomez and a man while they were in a parked car.
Hernandez told jurors he feared for his safety and believed he had no choice but to use deadly force. His lawyer described the situation as chaotic and dangerous.
The footage shows the officer had finished writing down Gomez’s information and was talking to a man in the passenger seat about a previous trespassing case when the woman asked if she could sit in the car.
Hernandez agrees and asks the passenger his date of birth. While Hernandez was using his radio to call dispatch, the woman started the car, looked at him, pressed the gas, and the open door struck the officer as she reversed the car. She then drives forward past him and while he shouts at her to stop, he fires his gun as the car drives away.
In closing arguments, prosecutors said the case involved an officer who escalated a confrontation that ended in a woman’s death. They presented evidence during the four-day trial that Hernandez had cursed at Gomez earlier in their encounter, did not try to defuse the situation and did not offer assistance after the shooting.
While on the stand, Hernandez told jurors about his time in the military as well as his use of force and firearms training, his annual qualifications and scenario-based training. He also said he helped launch bicycle patrols, and that he met regularly with staff at the public housing complex where the shooting occurred to discuss reports and enforce rules.
According to testimony on the morning of the shooting, Hernandez said he was patrolling on his bike before dawn when he spotted a car in the apartment complex that he did not recognize. He said Gomez refused to comply when he ordered her out of the car, and the female passenger appeared to be carrying a weapon, later found to be a paintball gun.
During his testimony, Hernandez admitted that there were no reports of disturbances or threats regarding the people in the car before he approached them.
The judge ordered Hernandez detained pending sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled.
The city arrived in 2024 $20 million settlement With the woman’s family.