On Nov. 5, multiple officers were called to a Downtown parking lot on the corner of Central and Third for reports of a fight. When they arrived they found Noah Rodriguez, 21, and Darien Earl, 25, both had guns and open containers of alcohol in their cars, according to an incident report.

Both young men were arrested. Rodriguez was charged with negligent use of a deadly weapon. Earl was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. 

It was exactly the kind of scenario—guns, alcohol and fighting in a parking lot—that city leaders had said they wanted to address through federal prosecutions that bar firearms from within 1,000 feet of a school.

Almost eight months later no one has been charged federally under this initiative. And in Rodriguez and Earl’s case, three weeks after they were arrested they fought again; but this time Earl was killed and Rodriguez ended up getting charged with murder.

The Albuquerque Police Department began speaking with the U.S. Attorney’s Office about federal prosecution on Nov. 27, three weeks after the two were arrested Downtown, according to an APD spokeswoman. Two days later, police say Rodriguez shot and killed Earl during a fight at Rodriguez’s mother’s west side home. According to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court, Earl had accused Rodriguez of hooking up with his girlfriend.

Rodriguez’s mother declined to comment and his attorney did not respond to a message left at his firm.

In May, Mayor Tim Keller, flanked by U.S. Attorney for New Mexico Alex Uballez and Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina, announced that most of Downtown’s Central corridor falls within 1,000 feet of one of six schools, meaning suspects could be prosecuted under federal law. (One of those schools, the  Albuquerque Sign Language Academy, has moved). They put up signs in the area designating it a Downtown Gun Free Safety Zone. 

Keller, Medina and Uballez, had touted federal prosecution as a way to increase penalties for those who bring firearms Downtown, saying it would deter gun violence and increase safety in the area. 

“If you choose to bring violence to our city, you will be met with this united front of federal, state and local law enforcement prosecution,” Uballez said. “We stand here united to protect this community—that means federal court and federal time far out of state.”

Since that press conference, APD has notified the U.S. Attorney’s Office of five cases—including Rodriguez’s—that might have violated the Downtown Gun Free Safety Zone, said Franchesca Purdue, an APD spokeswoman. She said they are all still being reviewed and none of them have been accepted for federal charges.

“APD is currently working with the US Attorney’s Office to formalize a process for referring cases and for better tracking of those cases,” Purdue said.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office did not respond to questions about why the cases have not been federally prosecuted or if they will be. 

“Unfortunately, DOJ policy does not allow us to discuss our internal deliberative process regarding the charging of specific cases,” Tessa DuBerry, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s office wrote in an email. 

In state court, negligent use of a deadly weapon is a petty misdemeanor. In Federal Court bringing a gun within 1,000 feet of a school is punishable with up to five years in prison.

The other difference lies in pretrial detention. In state court, a defendant would most likely be released pending trial. DuBerry said in such cases federal prosecutors would request detention but whether it was granted depends on the defendant’s criminal history.

The other cases include:

  • On Sept. 17, around 2 a.m. an APD officer saw a man who was wearing a red puffy jacket and yelling at another man pull a gun out of his bag near Central Ave. and Third St., according to an incident report. The officers said he ordered the suspect to show his hands but instead he ran away. The red jacket and a gun—which later was determined to have been reported stolen—was found in another parking lot nearby. The man was arrested and charged with negligent use of a deadly weapon and resisting arrest—both misdemeanors— and receiving stolen property—a 4th degree felony.
  • On Nov. 3, an employee from the restaurant Bourbon & Boots told officers that a man carrying a knife and a gun began fighting other patrons inside the bar, according to an incident report. Officers talked to the man, who they said had a gun in his pocket and smelled of alcohol, and then arrested him. The gun had been reported stolen from Kansas. He was charged with negligent use of a deadly weapon, concealing identity, unlawful carrying of a deadly weapon—all misdemeanors—and receiving stolen property—a 4th degree felony.
  • On Dec. 19, police say 16-year-old Louis Mugishawimana got into a fight with another patron at Knockouts Gentlemen’s Club and shot and killed the man. He had entered the club with a fake ID. Mugishawimana is charged with murder.
  • On Dec. 23, officers were called to the area near Silver Ave. and Fourth St. for reports of a battery. The victim said he was walking when a vehicle accelerated toward him and a man got out and struck him on the hand with a gun, according to an incident report. The gun was never fired, but it caused a cut on the victim’s hand. As officers were taking the report, a call came in from Presbyterian Rust Hospital that a man had come in with a gunshot wound in his buttocks. The man and his car matched the description of the offender and was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.