State to prosecute ex-deputy for third time
Jurors deadlocked twice before in murder trials of man accused of killing fellow officer
LAS CRUCES — State prosecutors intend to try ex-Santa Fe sheriff’s deputy Tai Chan on murder charges for the third time after two previous efforts ended in mistrial.
A spokesman for the 3rd Judicial District Attorney’s office said prosecutors filed their notice of intent Friday.
Chan is accused of first-degree murder in the killing of his law enforcement partner Jeremy Martin in 2014, who was shot five times in the back. Chan claims he acted in self-defense.
The first Chan trial ended in June 2016 with a hung jury, after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict despite more than 14 hours of deliberation. A second trial in May resulted in a mistrial as well. Jurors deliberated three hours before declaring they could not reach a verdict on first-degree murder or any lesser murder charge.
“The fact the jury split the way it did last time, shows reasonable people can disagree,” said John Day, Chan’s defense attorney. “The famous definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over again and expecting a different result each time. But we’ll be ready.”
The jury in the second trial took at least two passes counting votes for convictions, including first-degree murder, second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter.
In a first pass, three jurors voted for first-degree murder, according to 3rd Judicial District Attorney Mark D’Antonio’s office, but a second pass drew no votes for that charge. On the second pass, Day said that six of the jurors voted Chan was not guilty by reason of self-defense.
D’Antonio said after the latest trial that he would consult with Martin’s family before deciding whether to pursue a third trial.
In a statement Tuesday explaining his decision to pursue a third trial, D’Antonio said, “We feel this is what justice demands — for Deputy Martin and the family he left behind. While there are a few important matters that still must be addressed, we are fully committed to moving forward with this case.”
“Important matters” could include a possible change in court venue. The Martin family suggested in the wake of the most recent trial that they didn’t believe they could find justice in a Las Cruces court.
The Chan trial generated wall-to-wall coverage during the first trial, with at least one Albuquerque TV station live-streaming the entire two-week event. News outlets from El Paso to Santa Fe covered both trials extensively.
James Martin, brother of Jeremy Martin, said in a statement posted online Tuesday that his family is “hopeful a new pool of jurors will invest the time and energy required and not give up after only a couple of hours.”
“We have not felt that Jeremy could get justice in Las Cruces,” Martin said in the statement. “However, we ultimately trust the leadership of the District Attorney.”