Jan. 26 hearing set for defendant in attempted officer shooting case

Juan David Gonzalez, 30, who was arraigned Dec. 6 on misdemeanor and felony charges for the alleged attempted shooting of two New Mexico State Police officers, is set to appear for a preliminary hearing Jan. 26 in Taos County Magistrate Court.

During the hearing, presiding Chief Judge Ernest Ortega will hear full arguments from the state prosecution and the defense.

The court will then determine whether there is sufficient evidence for Gonzalez to stand trial at a later date.

The court proceedings follow a Dec. 5 incident in which Gonzalez and two accomplices, Jenna Trujillo, 32, and Diana Castro, 35, allegedly fled two New Mexico State Police officers who were attempting to serve a warrant for Gonzalez’s arrest in the parking lot of the Ranchos de Taos post office.

A car chase ensued, during which Gonzalez allegedly aimed an assault rifle out of the passenger-side window of the vehicle, driven by Trujillo, and fired two shots at the pursuing officers, striking their patrol vehicle in the windshield and front bumper. The officers were not hit.

After reaching a dead end in a Ranchos de Taos residential area, police say the suspects fled the vehicle on foot, precipitating a lockdown of the area. New Mexico State Police deployed a tactical team and state helicopter to assist in a nightlong search that concluded in the nonviolent arrest of all three suspects.

Castro was subsequently charged with resisting, evading and obstructing law enforcement.

Trujillo was charged with conspiracy to commit assault with intent to commit a violent felony on a peace officer, aggravated fleeing of a law enforcement officer and harboring or aiding a felon.

Gonzalez faces two counts of assault with intent to commit a violent felony on a peace officer, a second-degree felony; possession of a firearm or destructive device by a felon, a fourth-degree felony; tampering with evidence, a fourth-degree felony; and resisting, evading or obstructing an officer, a misdemeanor.

Court records show that Gonzalez had been a fugitive wanted on multiple cases prior to the arrest, including federal cases for which he failed to appear.

“Many of the defendants we get in court have prior charges, but most of them don’t have federal charges,” Ortega said during a phone interview this week. Despite the prior convictions, the state charges will be processed first, he added.

As for what he anticipates going into next week’s hearing, Ortega said, “From the court’s view, Gonzalez has criminal history and that adds weight to the court’s finding that he is an extreme danger to the community and a flight risk.”

Gonzalez continues to be held at the Taos County Adult Detention Center on a $400,000 cash-only bond.

The defendant has also been identified as a person of interest in an unspecified death, which is being handled by state police as a separate investigation.

The preliminary hearing will take place at 9:30 a.m. in Courtroom A.