Family remembers Desirae Martin, asks for help bringing her home after deadly Las Cruces shooting

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico (KVIA) – The family of Desirae Martin is remembering her as a compassionate young woman who loved helping others and is asking the community for donations to help bring her home to Utah after she was killed in a shooting last week in Las Cruces.

“This is not how any parent expects to lose their child,”Desirae’s father,  Johnny Martin said. “I just want to bring my baby home and put her to rest.”

Las Cruces Police said Martin, 29, was the victim of a shooting reported around 4:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 19, at a home near the 1100 block of Berkshire Court. 

According to police, a 38-year-old man barricaded himself inside the residence following the shooting. 

SWAT and K-9 teams attempted to negotiate with him for several hours before entering the home around 7:30 p.m. and finding him dead from what police believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

LCPD confirmed to ABC-7 Tuesday that a surveillance camera inside the home captured the shooting. A spokesperson also confirmed that Martin was a caretaker working in the home, and that an older woman inside the home was the one who called police.

Johnny Martin said the family became alarmed when they were unable to reach Desirae and learned she had missed plans to travel for the holidays.

“She was supposed to come see us, and then everybody started saying she was missing,” Martin said. “That’s when we knew something was wrong.”

He said a detective later informed the family of her death.

“When they asked us to sit down, we knew,” he said. “That moment never leaves you.”

Martin described his daughter as kind-hearted and driven, saying she studied criminal justice and mental health and dreamed of helping people in need.

“She cared about everybody,” Martin said. “She would help anyone, people, animals, it didn’t matter.”

The family has launched an online fundraiser to help cover funeral expenses and the cost of transporting Martin’s body back to Utah. 

Additional expenses include moving her belongings and caring for her pets.

“It’s just expense after expense,” Martin said. “We’re overwhelmed, but we’re grateful for every bit of help.”

You can support Desirae’s family by donating to the GoFundMe page linked here.