Las Cruces agrees to settle case involving high school intern sexually assaulted by officer

The City of Las Cruces announced Wednesday that it has agreed, in principal, to settle a federal civil suit filed in 2014 by a young woman who was sexually assaulted by a police detective during a ride-along five years ago.

It stated City Council is expected to meet March 28 to finalize the agreement.

Former detective Michael Garcia, who was fired from the Las Cruces Police Department the week following his arrest, was charged on Aug. 23, 2013, with one count of criminal sexual penetration of a minor and one count of criminal sexual contact of a minor. Garcia was subsequently convicted in 2014 and sentenced to nine years in federal prison.

“I am proud and appreciate that our employees will not put up with this behavior and took steps immediately to investigate this crime and arrest former detective Michael Garcia,” said Chief Jaime Montoya.

“Nothing upsets us more than a bad cop as it makes all of us look bad. Sexual harassment in any form and mistreatment of the public is not acceptable and will not be tolerated. I am confident that what we are doing in our training and mentoring of our employees is a step in the right direction, and is in line with the core values of our department.

“It is my hope that this settlement will give closure to the victim and our department, and allow all parties to move on.”

Garcia was a 15-year veteran of the Las Cruces Police Department and was arrested Aug. 23, 2013, following a week-long investigation into the allegations. The investigation and arrest were both conducted by Las Cruces Police Department detectives.

The victim, a high school student at the time, was part of a semester-long Excel program in 2011 that allows participating students to learn about various aspects of government.

It’s ordinarily ABC-7’s policy not to report the name of rape victims, but in this instance, the victim came forward in 2014 because she wanted to share her story about the obstacles she’s overcome.

Diana Guerrero told ABC-7 she was 13-years-old when she began an internship at the Las Cruces Police Department. She dreamt of one day joining the force.

“I was ready to become a police officer. I was ready to heal the world. I thought I was a superhero,” Guerrero said.

That all changed in May 2011.

When Guerrero was a 17-year old Mayfield High School student, she went on a “ride-along” with former detective Michael Garcia, to a crime scene.

Garcia was supposed to take Guerrero back to school in his unmarked car. Instead, he took her to a secluded area and raped her. Diana told a judge she learned Garcia is HIV positive. According to a report by KOB-TV, Diana was tested and tested negative.

Guerrero didn’t say a word about the attack and never went on a “ride-along” ever again. She said she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety.

“I could not comprehend. Why me? What did I do so wrong? I did everything right. I had good grades, I was a good kid, all I wanted to do was help people. I knew one day I was going to do it. All of a sudden it happened to me,” Guerrero said.

In 2013, Guerrero ran into a detective she had interned with. The detective asked why Guerrero had stopped interning.

“I just blurted it out and once I blurted it out, I literally felt like I was going to throw up. I could not catch my breath, I could not realize what I just said. I did not want to go through with it,” Guerrero said.

A swift criminal investigation immediately followed. Michael Garcia admitted to the allegations, was arrested and charged with criminal sexual penetration and criminal sexual contact.

LCPD has since updated its policy concerning student interns to require more supervision within the program and more accountability from employees. The student intern program now provides more control over the officers and the interns. Each intern now meets with the Chief of Police who explains their rights and all aspects of the student intern program.

Under the New Mexico Tort Claims Act, a government entity such as the City of Las Cruces is required to pay all damages caused by its employee even through the City was not responsible for the incident. In this case, it was clear that this act warranted payment to the victim.

After two mediations before a federal magistrate judge, the City and the victim agreed to a settlement of $3 million. The victim agreed to dismiss all claims against the City as part of the settlement. The City did not admit to any liability on its part.