The Kennedy Law Firm has sued the City of Española for the unlawful police shooting of Jeffrey Martinez. Officer Anthony Martinez killed Jeffrey Martinez after Anthony Martinez knowingly and unnecessarily placed himself in harm’s way. The officer violated clear principles of police work. He attempted a dynamic stop of a suspected stolen car on his own, and he leapt from his car into an open door and shot Jeffery Martinez. [redacted video below][contains potentially triggering images]

On June 9, 2024, Española Police Department Officer Anthony Martinez received a “Flock” notification – a license plate reading software that cross-references photos of license plates with the National Crime Information Center –  on his department-issued laptop, informing him of a stolen Black Jeep Compass vehicle. The software alerted Officer Martinez to the location, date, and time of the most recent traffic camera recording of the Jeep Compass.

Officer Martinez drove to the intersection where the Jeep was last recorded and observed that there was a black Jeep compass parked in a Walgreens parking lot, adjacent to the intersection. The Jeep was backed into a parking space and Jeffrey Martinez was sitting behind the wheel. Officer Martinez, without waiting for backup and before confirming that the license plate matched that of the stolen Jeep, drove into the Walgreens parking lot and placed his car directly in front of the Jeep. A passenger exited the Jeep and left the passenger door open.

Officer Martinez exited his patrol unit and ran toward the passenger door that was left open. He placed himself into the opening of the door with his pistol drawn and proceeded to fire it multiple times. Jeffrey Martinez did not display a weapon, nor was one visible on the body-worn camera footage.

Jeffrey Martinez was transported to the hospital and later pronounced dead. This use of excessive and unnecessary deadly force is in clear violation of established rights under New Mexico law. The City of Española, through its police department, failed to adequately train and supervise its officers, which directly led to the unjustified killing of Jeffrey Martinez.

The matter is legally like the facts recited in the recent United States Supreme Court case of Barnes v. Felix, 145 S. Ct. 1353, 1354 (2025), which rejected the Fifth Circuit’s moment of threat rule. Under the moment of threat rule, “a court looks only to the circumstances existing at the precise time an officer perceived the threat inducing him to shoot.” The Supreme Court rejected that analysis. Id. at 1356. The Court held that the lower courts must consider the “totality of the circumstances” leading to the decision to take a human life. Id.

In Barnes v. Felix, a Texas law enforcement officer shot and called a driver after he attempted to pull away from a traffic stop for a toll violation. The officer jumped onto the doorsill of the open door on the driver’s side and shot at the driver. The officer actively placed himself in danger and then escaped the danger by using lethal force. Id. The Fifth Circuit limited its review to the moment of the shooting and determined that the shooting was reasonable. The Supreme Court held that the analysis was incorrect and that the court must weigh the totality of circumstances and that the analysis has no time limit. The Court did not consider the “danger creation” theory of the plaintiff. In other words, the Court has yet to answer the question of whether an officer’s unnecessary placement of himself in a life-threatening situation is unreasonable from a Fourth Amendment perspective. Id. at 1360.