Board revokes 1 officer’s credentials, suspends another’s
Suspended officer will face a jury April 15
LAS CRUCES — A former Las Cruces police officer who was arrested in 2019 on drunk driving charges and then fired from the department, accepted a 36-month suspension of her law enforcement credentials last week.
In 2019, Stephanie Carabajal, then 26, was charged with one count of aggravated driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs and one count of blocking traffic after she fell asleep at the wheel of her personal vehicle while it was still running on Highway 70 near the Mesa Grande Drive exit.
Carabajal refused a breathalyzer test and was arrested that night. She was later placed on a lengthy administrative leave before being terminated from the force.
Her initial charges were dismissed to allow prosecutors time to collect evidence in the case against her; in February, they were re-issued. Carabajal is scheduled to face a jury April 15, according to the New Mexico court system database.
Tai Chan, who was once accused of a homicide at Hotel Encanto, voluntarily relinquished his.
Both actions were taken by the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy Board, as first reported by the Northern New Mexico Independent.
In 2007, Tai Chan, a former Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputy, was charged with one count of first-degree murder after he killed his partner, Jeremy Martin, at Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces.
The two had been drinking and Chan claimed self-defense in the incident.
The case dragged on for years. On Aug. 8, 2018, it was dismissed by the prosecutor following two mistrials. Later that year, in October, the Third Judicial District Attorney’s office filed a new charge against Chan — voluntary manslaughter. That case was also dismissed.
In 2019, prosecutors again charged Chan with voluntary manslaughter, but that case was dismissed on Aug. 3, 2020, due to a speedy trial violation. After the latest dismissal, the DA’s Office stated they’re not expecting to challenge the judge’s decision on the matter.