Ortiz guilty of murders at 2nd trial

Pickax was used to kill three El Rancho family members

SANTA FE — Emotions ran high on both sides of the courtroom Friday afternoon when District Judge Francis Mathew read a jury’s verdict that Nicholas Ortiz was guilty of murdering three members of an El Rancho family in the middle of the night on Father’s Day five years ago.

This was the second trial for 22-year-old Nicholas Ortiz, who was accused of killing Lloyd Ortiz, 55, Dixie Ortiz, 53, and their 21-year-old son, Steven Ortiz, at their home north of Santa Fe in the early morning of June 19, 2011, by bludgeoning them with a pickax.

Relatives of the murdered family let out cries of relief and emotion as Mathew read Friday’s verdict. “Oh, thank God,” some of them exclaimed.

But Nicholas Ortiz’s family was visibly upset and his younger sisters were crying heavily. Some family members shouted that he was innocent.

Mathew let Nicholas say a few words to his family after the verdict was announced. “I love you guys,” he said as he was taken out of the courtroom by Santa Fe County deputies.

“I hope you’re proud of yourself, you little (expletive),” Nicholas Ortiz’s mother yelled at prosecutor Jason Lidyard as he left the courtroom. “And you too, you little (expletive),” she yelled at Deputy District Attorney Susan Stinson.

Nicholas Ortiz, 16 at the time of the killings, isn’t related to the victims, but had previously stayed with Lloyd and Dixie’s adult daughter next door. The first trial was in May and that jury took 3½ days to tell Mathew that it couldn’t come to a unanimous verdict on any of the counts against Ortiz.

The new trial began Nov. 29 and ended with closing arguments Wednesday. The jury came back around 2 p.m. Friday to announce it had found Ortiz guilty of three counts of first-degree murder, and one count each of aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon. Sentencing will take place at a future hearing.

Nicholas Ortiz was accused of conspiring with first cousins Ashley Roybal and Jose Roybal, who have testified as prosecution witnesses, to steal money and medical marijuana from the Ortiz house.