Police Identify Lawyer Who Shot, Killed Alleged Car Burglar

A local attorney pulled the trigger in the deadly shooting of an alleged burglar in the middle of the day in downtown El Paso, police said.

Matthew DeKoatz, 53, is a criminal defense attorney some might recognize by his name; he’s the defense attorney for David Marmolejo.

Marmolejo was convicted earlier this year in the high-profile case of killing his mother.

During a visit Monday to DeKoatz’s office, which is a couple of blocks away from where the shooting took place, the board-certified criminal defense attorney said he couldn’t talk.

“He is a humble, good man,” said Dolph Quijano, DeKoatz attorney.

Quijano said his client is devastated.

“I think that’s something very difficult to live with and a cross he’s going to have to bear. “

Quijano says Dekoatz used deadly force Saturday afternoon in Downtown El Paso because he wasn’t alone.

“He was shopping with his wife at JC Penney,” Quijano said.

According to police, Dekoatz confronted 32-year-old Ben Josef Miller while he was allegedly burglarizing his SUV. That’s when police said Dekoatz shot and killed Miller.

State law says he would have been justified doing so at night, but not in the middle of the day. Quijano says that won’t matter.

“It doesn’t matter what time of day it is. If you believe that there’s apparent danger and if you believe that someone’s going to use deadly force against you, then the law allows you to use deadly force to protect yourself or the life of a third person, which in this case would’ve been his wife.”

No charges have been filed. Police say they’re still investigating and interviewing witnesses.

Miller is from Oklahoma and police are calling him a suspect and not a victim.