RETRIAL SET
Date may be moved to early next year
The retrial of a former Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputy accused of killing a fellow deputy in 2014 has been scheduled for Nov. 28
LAS CRUCES — The retrial of a former Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputy accused of killing a fellow deputy in 2014 has been scheduled for Nov. 28.
Last week, jurors told a Las Cruces judge that they couldn’t reach a decision in the Tai Chan case after nearly 14 hours of deliberations. Chan had been charged with first-degree murder in fellow deputy Jeremy Martin’s death.
The judge scheduled the November trial on Tuesday, but Chan’s defense attorney John Day said prosecutors have indicated they are working to push the trail to early next year, The Las Cruces Sun-News reported.
Day said he would not be opposed to moving the trial to after the holiday season and that it makes sense to not have witnesses traveling during the holidays.
Prosecutors with the District Attorney’s Office did not confirm that they are seeking to delay the trial, instead saying in a statement that both the defense and the prosecution have agreed to address their concerns about starting the 10-day trial the Monday after Thanksgiving.
Chan and Martin had dropped off prisoners in Arizona and were staying the night at a Las Cruces hotel in October 2014 when shots were fired, killing Martin.
Prosecutors said Chan deliberately shot multiple times at Martin as Martin tried to escape down a hotel hallway.
Chan’s lawyers argued that Martin had been the aggressor in the argument leading up to the shooting and Chan opened fire in self-defense.
Day said regardless of any decision to delay the trial, he will be ready for Nov. 28.
“We believe we still have a strong case for self-defense,” he said, “the facts of the case remain the same. The facts don’t change.”
The District Attorney’s Office declined Wednesday to comment on how prosecutors would present their case.