Martin family: Tai Chan to be tried a 3rd time

A former Santa Fe sheriff’s deputy accused of killing his partner while in Las Cruces will face a jury for the third time. Different jurors have declared a mistrial twice in the case.

Chan admitted to shooting fellow deputy Jeremy Martin in the back as he ran away after a violent fight inside their room at the Hotel Encanto in 2014. Chan said he shot in self defense after Martin tried to kill him. The two had been drinking before the fight. They were spending the night in Las Cruces after transporting a prisoner to Arizona.

Here’s the statement from the Martin family sent to ABC-7’s Jamie Warren:

“We are hopeful we will get a guilty verdict in the retrial of Tai Chan for shooting Jeremy in the back while he ran for his life. Tai’s testimony at the last trial included his admission to shooting Jeremy in the back while he ran, knowing Jeremy was not armed. And the new physical evidence presented at the trial makes what happened that evening a lot more clear. We are hopeful a new pool of jurors will invest the time and energy required and not give up after only a couple of hours. Jeremy deserves justice and Tai ought not to be free to kill again — and of course, the people of New Mexico deserve clarity on when it is appropriate for a highly trained cop to kill an unarmed man.

As for the venue, because of the amount of false and misleading statements made by the defense to the media, we have not felt that Jeremy could get justice in Las Cruces. However, we ultimately trust the leadership of the District Attorney, and we are grateful for their work and dedication in fighting for Jeremy, his family, and the citizens of their community.

The Martin Family
June 6, 2017″