Bishop Henderson III is a free man. On Monday, August 22, after a trial that lasted nearly three weeks, Henderson was found not guilty by a Lea County jury on three counts of First Degree Murder and on four counts of Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon.
The three-victim mass shooting, known as the “Hobbs Party Shooting”, took place at a crowded house party in Hobbs on August 25, 2019. Henderson was the party’s DJ (Disc Jockey). At the time Henderson was 19.
The three people killed during the incident were Khalil Carter, 18, and Kristal Avena, 24, both of Hobbs and Lamar Lee Kane Jr., of Washington D. C. Four others were injured by gunshot wounds.
When Hobbs Police Department (HPD) officers arrived at the party for the second time around 12:30 am, on August 25, 2019, a witness told them “…that the DJ at the party, later identified as Henderson, opened fire in the backyard,” states an article posted at ABQJournal.com.
Finally in January of 2020 after months of investigation and interviews, HPD detectives had gathered the evidence necessary for probable cause to charge Henderson with three counts of First Degree Murder and four counts of Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon.
The Trial
After approximately three years of being locked away at the Lea County Detention Center, numerous continuances and representation from four different attorneys, Henderson, now 22, received his “day in court” earlier this month.
Henderson’s defense team was headed by Sandra Gallagher of Portals and Mickie Patterson of Clovis. Fifth Judicial District Attorney Dianna Luce led the prosecution.
The 19-day trial proved complex and challenging for both the defense and prosecution from evidence that bullet fragments recovered during victims’ autopsies could not have been fired by Henderson’s weapon to accusations that HPD Detective Sergeant Ahmaad White lied to Henderson to force his confession.
In the end the jury reached its not guilty verdict on all seven counts approximately two hours after it was sequestered for deliberation.
Social Media Comments – The Case and Its Verdict
Social media is abuzz. Negative posts about the HPD’s handling of the case and the injustice Henderson has suffered are numerous. HPD Chief August Fons has written a memorandum in response to the negativity.
Chief Fons states, “We [HPD officers and staff] are transparent in our efforts, we maintain a current and highly visible social media presence and we consistently provide timely and updated information to the public in all areas of public safety from major accidents/traffic blockages to homicide scenes.”
Chief Fons goes on to say, “Unfortunately, very recently there have been a number of negative and derogatory social media posts regarding law enforcement which, in my opinion, has a very detrimental effect and capacity for severely undermining positive community relationship between the City of Hobbs, Lea County, the Hobbs Police Department and you – the people we serve.”
Chief Fons points out that it is his responsibility to ensure accountability. He references the investigative efforts of the members of his police force as commendable, “regardless of the outcome of trials”. He states, “…these officers, detectives, crime scene-techs, evidence techs and numerous others did nothing wrong and in fact, put forth so very many unrecognized hours to determine the truth, make lawful arrests based on legitimate probable cause and refer those facts to the district attorney’s office for prosecution.”
Lea County Sheriff Corey Helton quickly came to Chief Fons’s defense. Chief Helton states, “The Lea County Sheriff’s Office has always and will continue to support the Hobbs Police Department as well as our other law enforcement partners in Lea County.”
Many Lea County citizens have also spoken out with support for Chief Fons and his department.
Still, the controversy continues. The simple truth is that the victims’ families have received no closure. An innocent man was incarcerated at the taxpayers’ expense for nearly three years. Questions linger as to what actually happened at the August 2019 backyard bash. Who is/are responsible for three murders and serious injuries to four individuals?
Lovington resident Janine Schoolcraft has posted a thought-provoking comment on the HPD Facebook page. She says that what was done to Henderson cannot be ignored. “He was in jail because there was faulty work. That’s a fact. To deny that fact means nothing will change.”
Photo by of Tingey Injury Law Firm // Unsplash
