EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against the Board of County Commissioners for Doña Ana County following the fatal shooting of man by a Sheriff’s deputy last year in Chaparral, the law firm Huffman, Wallace & Monagle said in a news release.
The lawsuit stems from the fatal shooting of Jose Guzman by Deputy Cory Ruiz on April 29, 2024, the lawsuit said.
The law firm said the lawsuit alleges violations of the New Mexico Civil Rights Act and the New Mexico Tort Claims Act.
The complaint details how Guzman — a man with diminished cognitive capacity and well-known in the Chaparral community — was shot multiple times by Ruiz during what began as a minor trespassing investigation, according to the news release.
According to the lawsuit, Ruiz was familiar with Guzman from previous encounters and was aware of his mental health challenges, yet “failed to follow departmental policies regarding interactions with mentally ill individuals and use of force protocols.”
“This case represents a profound failure of community policing,” attorney Jason T. Wallace said. “Mr. Guzman was a vulnerable individual with well-known cognitive challenges who posed no serious threat to anyone. The deputy’s decision to escalate a minor misdemeanor warrant into a deadly confrontation was unnecessary and preventable.”
“The Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office has clear policies in place for interacting with mentally ill individuals and for de-escalation, but those policies were ignored in this case. Our law enforcement agencies must do better to protect our most vulnerable citizens rather than endangering them,” Wallace added.
As we previously reported, Guzman, 37, was shot and killed in Chaparral, in April of last year in what the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office called an officer-involved shooting.
The incident happened when a 911 call was placed about a suspicious person and a possible burglary in progress, Doña Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart said at the time.
Stewart said a deputy made contact with Guzman on the 300 block of Prescott Anthony Drive and discovered that Guzman had a no-bond arrest warrant for disorderly conduct out of DASO.
Stewart said the deputy attempted to arrest Guzman and a short pursuit ensued.
Stewart said that at one point, the deputy struggled with Guzman for several minutes after activating his taser. The taser was then placed on the ground, which Guzman took and held it in a manner in which “he could deploy it” at the deputy.
The deputy, later identified as Cory Ruiz in the lawsuit, then shot and killed Guzman.
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