Ex-Officer Convicted in 2022 Killing of Black Man at New Mexico Gas Station

Brad Lunsford was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter for fatally shooting Presley Eze, with prosecutors highlighting systemic issues in police use of force.

• A New Mexico jury convicted former police officer Brad Lunsford of voluntary manslaughter in the 2022 shooting of Presley Eze, a Black man, during a confrontation at a gas station.
• The incident began with a 911 call reporting Eze for allegedly stealing beer, escalating into a physical scuffle where Eze reportedly touched another officer's stun gun before being fatally shot at point-blank range.
• Prosecutors argued that Lunsford's immediate use of deadly force, shooting Eze in the back of the head, was unreasonable and constituted an abuse of power.
• Attorney General Raúl Torrez called the case an example of poor police tactics and systemic issues in law enforcement's treatment of Black individuals, drawing parallels to other high-profile cases of police violence.
• Lunsford faces up to nine years in prison, with evidence including police body-camera footage playing a key role in the jury's decision.

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