Ahead of his murder trial next year, the family of a woman who was shot dead by a former New Mexico police officer has negotiated a $20 million deal with the city where he worked.
The city claimed in a statement on Monday that Felipe Hernandez, a Las Cruces police officer, killed 45-year-old Teresa Gomez last year, saying that his acts “on the morning of Oct. 3, 2023, were so severe that charges were brought against Hernandez.”
Hernandez was dismissed from the police department after being charged with second-degree murder in January. His trial is set on June 2, 2025, and he has entered a not guilty plea.
The incident, which was caught on body camera, occurred after Hernandez witnessed Gomez and a passenger sitting in a parked car in what he called “public housing” and asked them about trespassing. Hernandez rode up to the car on a bicycle and ordered Gomez to exit her car.
He tells her once, “You’re going to get tazed.” The three engage in conversation for a few minutes until Gomez finally exits the car to talk to the police.
Hernandez identified the car’s occupant as someone who was supposedly the target of many trespassing warrants. Hernandez then instructs Gomez to exit the car and informs her that she must abide by certain regulations.
He replied, “I will really, really make your life a living hell,” as the video shows.
Hernandez shoots the car at least three times as Gomez tries to leave the area after getting back into it. At a nearby hospital, she was subsequently declared dead.
The city of Las Cruces stated in a statement on Monday that it will respect the criminal justice system and that the settlement should not be interpreted as Hernandez’s criminal guilt.
“This settlement should be understood as a statement of the City s profound feeling of loss for the death of Gomez and of the City s condolences to her family,” it stated.
In a statement to the Las Cruces Sun-News, Shannon Kennedy, the Gomez family’s lawyer, claimed that Gomez’s parents, siblings, and kids are still in mourning over her passing.
“They are grateful to the City of Las Cruces for recognizing the injustice of Teresa s death,” Kennedy stated. “They trust that the city will redouble efforts to make sure no other family suffers the tragedy of losing a loved one to abusive police conduct.”
Overnight, NBC News reached out to Hernandez’s lawyer for comment; as of publication, they had not heard back.
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