Family of slain Mora man concerned about shooter's ties to judges, ask AG to step in

Oct. 31—The family of a Mora man fatally shot in September alongside the road leading to Morphy Lake has asked the state Attorney General's Office to take over the case, citing concerns the shooter is receiving preferential treatment because he is related to two area judges.

David Griego, 70, called 911 after he'd shot John Serna and reported he'd done so in self-defense, according to a recording of the call obtained by The New Mexican.

During the call, Griego described driving his cows to national forest property when Serna arrived in a backhoe and followed him. He also told the operator Serna had attacked him in the past.

"I looked back, and he was about to attack me, so I pulled out my pistol and I shot him," Griego said on the call.

Griego stayed on the line with an emergency operator and applied pressure to a gunshot wound on Serna's chest until someone came along to assist, according to the recording.

Serna, 66, died at the scene, according to a news release from state police.

Despite knowing Griego's identity, state police didn't connect him by name to the case, writing in a news release at the time only that "agents learned there was an altercation between Serna and another male subject. ... Serna was shot by the male subject."

Officers detained and interviewed Griego following the shooting, but he wasn't arrested.

More than a month later, neither Griego nor anyone else has been charged in Serna's death, and his family wants to know why.

"We are wanting the process to be a little bit more timely," Serna's daughter, Sahra Martinez, said in a phone interview Thursday. "We're wanting a closer look and for more attention to be focused on this so we can get some answers."

Todd Coberly, the family's attorney, wrote to the Attorney General's Office last week, detailing a loss of confidence in 4th Judicial District Attorney Thomas Clayton.

"Mr. Clayton's failure/refusal to properly proceed in this matter is clear at this point," Coberly wrote in his email to the Attorney General's Office. "Mr. Griego has not been charged even though he shot Mr. Serna in the chest, and then again in the head from a short distance with a .38 caliber handgun. Mr. Serna had no weapon so any claim of Mr. Griego to self defense is utterly baseless. Notwithstanding numerous entreaties, Mr. Clayton has refused to communicate with me, as legal representative of the victims, since September 28, 2021."

Griego is the uncle of Judges Abigail Aragon and Michael Aragon, siblings who serve in the 4th Judicial District Court in Las Vegas, N.M.

Fourth Judicial District Court Executive Officer Brenden Murphy declined on behalf of both judges to comment Thursday.

Coberly wrote Serna's family is concerned Griego is "being given preferential treatment given his relationship to the Aragons."

"At this point, I am requesting that your office immediately take over the investigation and eventual prosecution of Mr. Griego," Coberly wrote.

In an email sent through a spokeswoman, Balderas said he was aware of Coberly's request but hadn't received a "declination request" from the District Attorney's Office.

Asked whether Clayton needed to decline to prosecute before the attorney general could take over, the spokeswoman wrote in an email, "it's more appropriate for declination so that there is not a conflict among prosecuting agencies."

In the email, Balderas wrote, "we will provide support to the family and the prosecution team in this tragic matter."

A state police spokesman said the investigation into the shooting remains active.

Clayton, the district attorney whose territory encompasses Mora, San Miguel and Guadalupe counties, said in a phone interview that Griego's relationship to the judges doesn't have any bearing on the case and that the investigation into Serna's death is ongoing.

"Many factors come into play as to what charges will be filed," Clayton said. "Sometimes it takes a period of time."

Clayton said he couldn't estimate how much longer it might take for his office to act but said he would update Coberly on the status of the case.

"I will call him myself and have a conversation with him," Clayton said.

Attempts to reach Griego were unsuccessful.

Griego told the 911 operator he fired three shots at Serna but said he believed only one of the bullets had struck him, in the chest.

But Coberly said initial information from the state Office of the Medical Investigator revealed Griego also suffered a gunshot wound to the head. Griego didn't mention that wound in the call.

Serna's backhoe was found parked on the road, but his body was located on a slope a short distance off the road, Coberly said.

Statements Griego made to the 911 operator indicate a long-standing animosity between him and Serna.

"This has been an ongoing thing," Griego said on the 911 call. "He attacked me in 2012, and he's assaulted me several times since and before then."

Court records confirm the two men — who were neighbors in a small Mora County settlement called Ledoux — had been feuding for decades.

In 2005, Serna sued Griego, alleging "interference with bomb or fire control," and the court ordered Griego to pay Serna $300.

In 2016, Serna faced a felony charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon after he was accused of striking Griego with a "stick or flashlight" in a dispute over Griego's cows being on Serna's land.

Serna pleaded no contest in January 2019 to a petty misdemeanor battery in the case and was sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation.

Griego filed a lawsuit against Serna in 2019 seeking to collect damages for the assault, but District Judge Flora Gallegos dismissed the claim on the grounds Griego never had Serna properly served in the case. Griego asked her to reconsider twice before he appealed her ruling to the state Court of Appeals in March, where it is still pending.

A lawyer by the name of Michael Aragon represented Griego in a civil case as recently as March 2020. District Judge Michael Aragon was appointed in May 2021.

It appears the lawyer and judge named Michael Aragon are the same person, but Murphy declined to confirm or deny that Friday.

Judge Michael Aragon did not respond to a message seeking comment.

In that case, Griego was sued by another landowner, Arnold Trujillo, who sought $2,937 in damages after claiming Griego lost control of his cattle and allowed them to wander onto Trujillo's property. Trujillo contended Griego cut the fence to retrieve them and didn't repair it.

Court records indicate Trujillo had intended to call Serna as a witness in the case.

Mora County Magistrate John L. Sanchez decided the case in favor of Trujillo, ordering Griego to pay about $1,000 in damages.

But Griego, represented by Michael Aragon, appealed the lowercourt's ruling to the District Court.

Court records indicate Judge Michael Aragon recused himself from hearing the case in June 2021, writing in his recusal he had previously represented one of the parties.

District Judge Gallegos recused herself from the case in September, writing "due to parties and witnesses relations to court employees it is best to withdraw to avoid any appearance of impropriety or bias."

Judge Abigail Aragon recused herself from the case about a week later, saying she was related to one of the parties.

Coberly said the family doesn't want to create tension with area officials but has serious concerns about the handling of the case involving Serna's death.

"The fact that Mr. Serna was shot at close range in the head doesn't add up to any claim of self-defense," Coberly said Friday. "The family is deeply troubled he hasn't been charged and very much wants to see Mr. Griego brought to justice."