Shooting at New Mexico Conquistador Statue Protest

In Española, New Mexico, things got pretty wild. People were all worked up because they wanted to put up a statue of a Spanish dude named Juan de Oñate. But then, a guy got shot, and it turned into a big mess.

Arrested Suspect

The police grabbed a guy they think did the shooting. This dude, Robert Benjamin Nelson, already had some trouble with the law. He's the same guy who shot at a cop in 2020. And guess what? He's going to spend 30 years behind bars for that.

Serious Charges

The top law person in New Mexico, Alexander Uballez, said that Nelson tried to kill a federal task force officer and fired a gun during a bad crime. Nelson admitted to doing these bad things in March, but they couldn't figure it out back in January, so there was a big mess with the trial.

Big Win for Law People

Uballez didn't hold back in saying how proud he was of his law friends. He said, "Today, bravery beat fear, and truth beat crazy hate." The cops work hard to keep us safe, so when someone goes after them, they'll get some tough punishment.

The Crazy Day

The Department of Justice says this all happened on September 12, 2020. A cop, Sharron Duran, pulled over Nelson because he was driving too close to another car. When she walked up to his truck, he shot at her three times! The first shot broke the window and hurt her face. She tried to protect herself, but he hit her in the hands and one of her eyes.

The Chase

Even though she was hurt, Duran didn't give up. She got back in her car and chased Nelson down. He tried to grab a rifle, but she waited for her friends to help. They got him without more trouble.

FBI Gets Involved

The FBI says this kind of thing is super dangerous and a big problem. They're not playing around when it comes to people hurting law officers. Today, Nelson is paying the price for his bad choices.