City Of Las Cruces And Its Police Force Cleared In Wrongful Death

In a unanimous decision, a 12 member jury Tuesday afternoon found the City of Las Cruces and the Las Cruces Police Department not liable in the death of 68-year-old Alvin Moore.

Moore was in a crosswalk at the corner of El Paseo Road and Main Street the morning of July 25, 2005 when he was struck and killed by a man involved in a pursuit with Las Cruces police after allegedly robbing a middle aged woman and stealing her sport utility vehicle (SUV).

“This unanimous verdict proves that the City of Las Cruces has an extremely qualified and highly trained police department, with officers who work well under pressure and who are capable of making proper split second decisions,” said City Manager Robert Garza .

“It sends a message to the public that we trust our police officers and are proud of the work they do,” Garza said.

Garza adds that the City’s outside legal counsel, Damien Martinez with the Las Cruces law firm of Holt, Babbington, Mynatt and Martinez, proved to the jury that the police officers involved in the incident acted within the scope of their duties, and were in full compliance of police procedures and the law.

“This was an extremely long and complicated trial,” Garza said. “But it was very important that we – the City of Las Cruces – saw it through to the end to demonstrate that we stand behind and support our police officers.

The six and a half day civil trial held in Third Judicial District Court in Las Cruces began January 24th before State District Court Judge Michael Murphy.