Supreme Court upholds conviction in JB White's killing

Olivier Uyttebrouck, Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
·2 min read

Dec. 11—The conviction of a man in the shooting death of high school basketball standout Fedonta "JB" White at a 2020 house party was upheld Monday by the New Mexico Supreme Court.

Estevan Montoya, 20, was convicted of first-degree murder by a Santa Fe jury in May 2022 and sentenced to life in prison, which requires him to serve at least 30 years in prison before he becomes eligible for parole.

White, 18, was a nationally ranked basketball player at Santa Fe High School who was heavily recruited by Division 1 programs. He graduated early to join the University of New Mexico Lobos and was only days from moving to Albuquerque to practice with the team when he was fatally shot on Aug. 1, 2020.

Montoya was tried as an adult, even though he was 16 at the time of the fatal shooting at a house party in Chupadero, a rural community about 15 miles north of Santa Fe.

Jurors apparently rejected Montoya's self-defense narrative in favor of the prosecution's argument that he "lured" White into a fistfight before pulling a handgun and firing a single shot into White's chest.

In a unanimous opinion issued Monday, the five-member Supreme Court rejected Montoya's argument that the 1st Judicial District Court judge erred by refusing to instruct jurors on self-defense and voluntary manslaughter based on provocation.

Justices found that prosecutors presented enough evidence to allow jurors to find that Montoya had deliberately intended to kill White. The opinion noted several specifics to support the conclusion, including:

—Jurors viewed cellphone video made shortly before the shooting showing Montoya playing with a laser sight attached to the weapon used to kill White.

—Evidence showing Montoya's "fixation on the gun before, during, and after his stay at the party."

—Montoya lifted his shirt and displayed the weapon to a fellow gang member prior to White's killing.

—Montoya used "fighting words," including "Let's get it" and "You don't want this smoke" to escalate the conflict and instigate a fight with White.

—Evidence showed that Montoya had readied the weapon for firing prior to the shooting.

—Montoya fled from the party and fired a shot into the air as he ran away. He later lied to police, denying he shot White, suggesting a "consciousness of guilt" that supports a deliberate intent to kill White.