Another delay in case of stabbing suspect who faces first-degree murder charge
Nefi Ezequiel Armijo Hernandez, who faces a first-degree murder charge as an adult, is seeking to be tried as a juvenile
A scheduled hearing next month to determine whether stabbing suspect Nefi Ezequiel Armijo Hernandez will be tried as an adult has been delayed even further.
Armijo Hernandez, 16, faces a first-degree murder charge, along with a host of other offenses, stemming from an altercation in a Gypsum park on April 24. Jackson Davis, 14, an Eagle Valley High School freshman, died from injuries sustained in the altercation.
At a status hearing Wednesday in district court to check in with attorneys about being prepared for a three-day reverse transfer order hearing slated to start Feb. 25, Armijo Hernandez’s attorney asked Judge Rachel J. Olguin-Fresquez for additional time.
Olguin-Fresquez granted the motion, setting a new status hearing for March 12 to determine when the reverse transfer hearing will take place.
Armijo Hernandez is being tried as an adult and is seeking to be tried in juvenile court. That would require the court to grant a reverse transfer, a procedure that would take into consideration the opinion of a forensic evaluator who would analyze factors like potential risk to the community and the maturity and character of Armijo Hernandez.
Support Local Journalism
Armijo Hernandez’s lawyer Angela Campbell, speaking virtually on Webex on Wednesday, told the court that the delays continue to stem from that evaluation process.
“We were able to have an expert sit down with Nefi over multiple days for in excess of 8-9 and do assessments along those lines, and we’re in the process of evaluating all of that and where we go from all of that,” Campbell said.
Armijo Hernandez is a native Spanish speaker and previous delays in the case stemmed from the evaluator the defense sought not being available to render an opinion until after the close of the fall semester in late December.
A translator was present for Wednesday’s status hearing, but Armijo Hernandez addressed the court, via Webex, in English and told the judge he was fine not using the translator. His lawyer added that the translator was for Armijo Hernandez’s father, who wasn’t present.
Armijo Hernandez’s preliminary hearing on his charges 鈥� which include a first-degree murder charge, a second-degree murder charge, two charges of a violent crime involving death, and a charge of conspiracy to commit assault with a deadly weapon 鈥� will also occur at the reverse transfer hearing, whenever it is scheduled.
