Road rage turned deadly.

[ClearSightTactical]

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S1245486.shtml
Officers say a National Guardsman shot a Las Vegas man three times after the two got in a fight on the road.

Police say National Guardsman Richard Baca, 21, was stopped at a light Monday night in Las Vegas, N.M.

Court documents indicate that Benito Lemos, 22, thought Baca nearly hit the car he was riding in with his family. Lemos got out and approached Baca's car at the traffic light. Baca told police Lemos started punching him in the face.

According to court documents, Baca told Lemos he had a gun and ended up firing shots.

A friend of Lemos' heard the shots. He says he walked over and saw Baca arguing with a woman described as either Lemos' wife or fiancée.

"He still had the gun out and he insisted, he kept telling her, 'Yea, I shot him. I shot him. What the (expletive) is your problem letting him get out of the car,'" the witness said.

When officers arrived, Baca was giving CPR to Lemos.

Witnesses who knew Lemos paint a different picture of the altercation. They say they never saw Lemos punch Baca. And after the shooting, they say Baca started cussing and yelling at the victim's wife with the couple's two young children watching from Lemos' car.

They also say Baca didn't start performing CPR on Lemos until police arrived. Lemos' friend, Julian Gallegos, calls the killing cold-blooded murder.

"Even if he is trying to say it was self-defense or whatever, my friend Benito didn't even have shoes and socks on. He was out here taking his family out to get some dinner," Gallegos said.

Witness Mark Durant watched Lemos die.

"We just stood there over Benito--he wasn't even breathing. We saw him take his two last breaths and it was horrible," Durant said. "It was like a nightmare."

Baca is in New Mexico on leave from Iraq. He is part of the 720th Transportation Company.

His aunt in Los Lunas said he was visiting his grandparents and dad in Las Vegas. She says Baca is not the kind of person would start a confrontation. She wonders why Lemos would get out of the car and not just let it go.

The Las Vegas police chief says that it will be up to the district attorney to decide whether this is a case of self-defense. Right now, he faces an open count of murder.

[astute]

Unless Lemos had a weapon, Baca should have Rolled up his windows and drove away. There all idoits.

[ClearSightTactical]

We don't know all the circumstances. He was at a stoplight- was there a car in front of him blocking his path? How about traffic? He should have driven through a red light and been T-Boned by an oncoming car. What about kids in the cross walk?

I'd like to see anyone be able to roll up their window when being pummeled by punches. Maybe he tried, and Lemos held the window down (power windows/roll up windows aren't that strong).

I'm not saying any of the above are factual, I'm just saying I think we owe the benefit of the doubt to this soldier to reserve judgment until the facts are released. Also, a weapon is not required to be justified in the use of deadly force (controversial, but my opinion..)

[AZSATT]

Guarantee there's way more to this story than shared in the article... and I'd bet it's all equally and tragically preventable.

[HK4U]

"Even if he is trying to say it was self-defense or whatever, my friend Benito didn't even have shoes and socks on.

What?

[NCjones]

"my friend Benito didn't even have shoes and socks on."


So what? Since when are shoes and socks a prerequisite to self defense?








.

[HK4U]

His statement about the shoes and socks is the perfect illustration of the old saying "It is better to keep your mouth shut and be thought of as a fool then open it and remove all doubt".

[ClearSightTactical]

Originally Posted by AZSATT

Guarantee there's way more to this story than shared in the article... and I'd bet it's all equally and tragically preventable.

Agreed.

[ClearSightTactical]

One thing about NM that many of you may not know:
People are Stupid!

This is the only state in the country that I know of where "lookin' at someone the wrong way" will get you killed. Its like watching animal planet sometimes. You goto the mall with your wife and you see people just staring eachother down. It reminds me of how dogs compete over dominance. I can find multiple stories of people being shot, killed, beaten because of "madd dogging". Many a times, i've been confronted with "WTF Are you looking at" for a brief glance at someone...

Road rage is insane here, at least in Albuquerque. About 1 of 3 cars are presumed armed and not legally either. It is a dangerous place (IMO) now that you know a bit about the Land of Enchantment, this story might make more sense.

[JJFlash]

Originally Posted by ClearSightTactical

One thing about NM that many of you may not know:
People are Stupid!

This is the only state in the country that I know of where "lookin' at someone the wrong way" will get you killed. Its like watching animal planet sometimes. You goto the mall with your wife and you see people just staring eachother down. It reminds me of how dogs compete over dominance. I can find multiple stories of people being shot, killed, beaten because of "madd dogging". Many a times, i've been confronted with "WTF Are you looking at" for a brief glance at someone...

Road rage is insane here, at least in Albuquerque. About 1 of 3 cars are presumed armed and not legally either. It is a dangerous place (IMO) now that you know a bit about the Land of Enchantment, this story might make more sense.

Yikes...this does not sound good at all. May I ask this politically-incorrect question: Is this basically how most people act or is it primarily attributable to a specific race? Is this a Latino phenomena, a "machismo" kind of thing, for example? Is this gang-related?

We have some minor road rage here (doesn't everyone?) but nothing like what you are describing. Dang, ClearSightTactical, I'd be looking to move.