New Mexico man charged with attempted murder in shooting at protest over Spanish conquistador statue.
A New Mexico man was charged Friday with attempted murder in a shooting that wounded one person at a protest over plans to install a statue of a Spanish conquistador outside government offices in the city of Española.
Defendant Ryan David Martinez, from Sandia Park, was read the felony charges of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon at his first appearance in municipal court. No plea was entered.
A temporary public defender assigned to Martinez could not be reached immediately by phone and didn’t respond to voice messages. An apparent relative of the defendant answered the phone but declined to comment or confirm her family relation.
Martinez was arrested Thursday after chaos erupted and a shot was fired during protests in Española about plans to install a bronze likeness of conquistador Juan de Oñate, who is both revered and reviled for his role in establishing early settlements along the Upper Rio Grande starting in 1598.
Installation of the statue was planned for Thursday but was canceled by county officials amid security concerns. The statue of Oñate in armor on horseback was commissioned in the 1990s and installed near Española amid fanfare and resentment. The statute was taken down in 2020 during a national movement for racial justice that sought to topple countless monuments.
The victim of Thursday’s shooting, a 42-year-old man, was flown to an Albuquerque hospital for treatment of a wound to the abdomen. His condition was not immediately available from state police overseeing the shooting investigation.
A warrant for Martinez’s arrest includes testimony from witnesses who described an otherwise peaceful protest Thursday and the arrival of several men in “MAGA” hats. One witness told state police that protesters’ children were gathered together near a makeshift shrine at the pedestal intended for the Oñate statue, amid misgivings about safety, and that “peacekeepers” blocked Martinez’s way from entering the area.
Police reviewed video of the confrontation as recordings circulated on social media.
“Ryan is seen attempting to rush the shrine and being stopped by a group of men,” Officer Shane Faulkner says in the narrative. “As Ryan (retreated) back over the short wall, a man can be heard saying, ‘Let him go.’ The group of men do not try to pursue Ryan, and Ryan pulled his handgun from his waistband and shoots.”
“…witnesses who described an otherwise peaceful protest Thursday and the arrival of several men in “MAGA” hats.”
What a POS write-up, attempting to tie the Trump supporters to the shooting. The implication is that it was a peaceful protest, until the MAGA crowds showed up, and the shooting started. The communists in the press never stop.
Yeah, Not much to garner from that story…. Fkucing crazy people!
FJB
“…the arrival of several men in “MAGA” hats…”
…from the Albuquerque field office. In khakis and red polo shirts, no doubt.
GMAFB
…they’re fighting over shit that happened in 1598.
…anyone ELSE see why identity politics can lead to nothing but destruction?
“…the arrival of several paid protesters in “MAGA” hats…”
FIFY
Conquistador Lives Matter
Conflicting identity politics. The Hispanics vs the Native Americans. Let the games begin!
I’m surprised the cops didn’t slap a MAGA hat on the shooter when they took his mugshot.
I’m surprised we haven’t been treated to stories of Russian soldiers wearing MAGA hats roasting babies alive on the news yet.
Conquistadores are the founding fathers (literally) of all New World Hispanic peoples.
Looks to me as if a bunch of leftist beaners decided they didn’t like the guy wearing a MAGA hat in their presence and decided to teach him a lesson by taking his hat and beating his ass. If that’s what happened, I can’t say I blame the shooter. New Mexico is a virtual third world country. Their governor is a dictator.
Its a bad shoot. The lefties threw him over the wall, ending the threat. They weren’t beating him, just shoving him.
I was sexually assaulted a decade and a half ago by a guy wearing a MAGA condom.