‘Reminded me of Rodney King.’ Las Cruces man shot 12 times by LCPD suing city, alleges racist discrimination

Editors note: This story was updated at 5 p.m. on Feb. 8, 2023, with a response from the City of Las Cruces' lawyer.

LAS CRUCES – A black man shot by police a dozen times in 2021 at the outset of a brief chase announced Wednesday that he was suing the City of Las Cruces in federal court for excessive force and violating his civil rights.

During a press conference outside the federal courthouse in Las Cruces, California-based attorneys representing Jonathan Strickland said Las Cruces police relied on false information and unleashed a barrage of gunfire against an unarmed Strickland.

“(This shooting) reminded me of Rodney King, and I do not say that lightly,” said Civil Rights attorney John Burris, who represented King in the 1990s.

The lawsuit initiates a legal process that will likely take several months before the parties reach a resolution. The civil case also marks the city’s second pending high-profile federal lawsuit involving LCPD.

The first involves Amelia Baca, a 75-year-old woman with dementia killed by an LCPD officer in 2022. Baca’s family sued the city in federal court after the city settled a state lawsuit last year.

What happened on Campo Street?

The incident that led to the lawsuit began on March 11, 2021, at LCPD’s headquarters.

According to an affidavit filed by police, Strickland’s then-wife drove herself to police headquarters to tell police Strickland abused her. Police said in the affidavit that Strickland’s wife alleged Strickland acted violently toward her and threatened her with a gun.

That day, Strickland followed his wife to the police station because he wanted to clear his name, according to his lawyers, and knew his wife planned to make false allegations. However, once he arrived at the police station, Strickland contemplated the consequence of going inside and decided to leave, the lawyers said.

As he left, LCPD officers chased Strickland across downtown Las Cruces. According to the lawsuit, the officers did not attempt to issue commands to Strickland to pull over.

After flipping and wrecking Strickland's truck near the Campo Street and Lohman Avenue intersection, the five officers opened fire on Strickland.

Strickland’s lawsuit alleges - and names as part of the suit - that Officers Joshua Savage, Manuel Frias, Nathan Krause, Daniel Benoit and Anthony Lucero fired 90 times at Strickland. Additionally, the lawsuit states that other officers were involved, but their names were not yet known to Strickland's lawyers. The names would be added once they were revealed.

Criminal charges were filed against Strickland, and a judge ordered him jailed without an opportunity for a bond. Months later, prosecutors dropped the case.

Ultimately, police found Strickland had no weapon. His wife later signed an affidavit saying the abuse allegations made against him were false.

More:Why is Black History Month in February? How do you celebrate? Everything you need to know.

Rodney King, Jacob Blake, Fred Hampton and Jonathan Strickland

On Wednesday, Strickland’s attorneys hosted a news conference outside Las Cruces federal courthouses – just a few dozen feet from where police shot Strickland. His attorneys used the opportunity to announce the civil lawsuit and to link Strickland’s experience with the experience of other Black men in the U.S.

“Black people and brown people should not have to live in fear,” said Dwitt Lacy, another of Strickland’s attorneys.

Lacy pointed out that New Mexico ranks at or near the top of fatal police shootings yearly. Black people are also six times more likely to be killed by police in New Mexico than their white counterparts.

Fred Hampton Jr. – president and chairman of the Prisoners of Conscience Committee and the Black Panther Party Cub and son of slain civil rights leader Fred Hampton – said during the news conference that little had changed since his father was gunned down by Chicago police in 1969.

“The reality is we are still subjected to police terrorism,” Hampton said.

Hampton connected Strickland’s experience to that of Jacob Blake Jr., who was paralyzed after a police shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Aug. 23, 2020.

Jacob Blake Sr. also spoke at the news conference. Blake said Strickland’s experience mirrored his son’s and described the police who shot Strickland as a "murderous mob."

“Wrong is wrong. No matter how you sugarcoat it,” Blake said. “The template has been set in Memphis.”

And, like the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols in Memphis on Jan. 27, Blake and Strickland’s attorneys called on District Attorney Gerald Byers and U.S. attorneys to criminally charge the officers who shot Strickland.

More:When the officers are Black: Tyre Nichols' death raises tough questions about race in policing

“Hopefully, criminal prosecution will occur on the part of the local district attorney or the federal U.S. Attorney's Office (in Las Cruces),” Burris said.

Living in fear of LCPD

In addition to his attorneys and other prominent Black voices, Strickland addressed the gathered media outside the courthouse.

Using the aid of a cane and reading from a handwritten letter, Strickland described his experience on the day of the shooting and his life since.

“I just remember the burning,” Strickland said. “It literally feels like your flesh is sizzling.”

He added that his life was changed forever that day and described the years since as a living nightmare.

“Because of what they did to me, I don’t feel safe here,” Strickland said.

The last speaker of the news conference was Dr. Bobbie Green, president of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Green did not mince words Wednesday and condemned the department for shooting Strickland.

“He's going to live in pain,” Green said of Strickland. “And the citizens of Las Cruces are going to pay the bill for the legal action that has been brought up against the Las Cruces Police Department. We continue to have to pay the bill over and over and over again.”

City's attorney responds

Five hours after the news conference, an attorney representing the City of Las Cruces responded to the allegations contained in the lawsuit.

"(Strickland's attorneys) injected race and ethnicity into a case where it doesn't belong," said Luis Robles, an Albuquerque-based attorney representing the City of Las Cruces.

Robles, who is representing the city in a federal lawsuit involving Amelia Baca's family, pushed back on the allegation that there was a culture of brutality within LCPD. Instead, Robles argued that Strickland's actions during the chase and immediately after led the officers to believe that Strickland had a gun and planned to use it.

In the aftermath of the shooting, Strickland told police that he waved his hand as though he had a gun, according to Robles.

"It's not that the officers didn't wait (to issue commands to surrender)," Robles said. "It's that Mr. Strickland didn't give them a chance."

Justin Garcia covers crime, courts and public safety. He can be reached via email at JEGarcia@lcsun-news.com.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Attorneys invoke Rodney King as Las Cruces man sues police department