A 16-year-old boy in the US state of New Mexico was in custody Sunday after an alleged quadruple homicide of his family members, police and officials said.
The Valencia County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 emergency call before dawn on Saturday from a male minor “who told the dispatcher he had killed his family,” New Mexico State Police said in a statement.
When deputies arrived at the home, located in the city of Belen, the 16-year-old “walked out of the residence with his hands in the air and was extremely intoxicated,” according to the statement.
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“Deputies entered the residence to find Leonardo Leyva, 42, Adriana Bencomo, 35, Adrian Leyva, 16, and Alexander Leyva, 14, all deceased from suspected gunshot wounds. A handgun was located on the kitchen table,” state police added.
A Belen official told AFP that the victims are the suspect’s parents and two brothers.
The teen suspect has been charged on suspicion of four counts of first-degree murder, police said.
Fatal shootings are tragically common occurences in the United States, where gun laws are relatively lax and firearms outnumber people.
This year, there have been at least 484 mass shootings — defined as a shooting involving at least four victims, dead or wounded — across the United States, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
The New Mexico Public Education Department is facing a $35 million deficit, which it attributes to overpayments made to Gallup-McKinley County Schools, a claim the district disputes, arguing they are being wrongly blamed for the state’s funding mismanagement.
The governor sets the agenda for the session, including for the budget, so here is what they are looking at so far.
SANTA FE, N.M. — As the regular session of the New Mexico Legislature is set to begin Jan. 20, lawmakers have already filed dozens of bills.
Bills include prohibiting book bans at public libraries and protections against AI, specifically the distribution of sensitive and “Deepfake” images
Juvenile justice reform is, again, a hot topic. House Bill 25 would allow access to someone’s juvenile records during a background check if they’re trying to buy a gun.
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Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham sets the agenda and puts forth the proposed budget lawmakers will address during the session. The governor is calling for lawmakers to take up an $11.3 billion budget for the 2027 fiscal year, which is up 4.6% from current spending levels.
Where would that money go? More than $600 million would go to universal free child care. Meanwhile, more than $200 million would go to health care and to protect against federal funding cuts.
There is also $65 million for statewide affordable housing initiatives and $19 million for public safety.
