Attacked!

I did not move my family to Columbus until early 1989 when I found a piece of property for sell that suited the needs of my large family. As it was I did not place all of my hopes in the Chief job, because I knew how fickle small town politics can be. I always tried to have an escape route ready in case the job back fired and we needed to leave.

We had just gotten situated in the new abode when one night I received a radio call from my wife. I placed an FM band police radio in my home for emergency situations and had instructed my wife that if she needed me in an emergency to call me on the radio. She said that someone had shot several times into our home with a gun of some kind and the rounds did not strike anyone, but the culprits were stopped on the roadway in front of the house as we spoke.

I was just a few blocks away from her when I received the call and so I blasted back home as soon as possible hoping to catch whomever had fired at my family. By the time I arrived back home they were leaving the area, but I was able to get a description of the car they left in. I screeched to a halt in my driveway and went into the house to check on my family. There was no harm done to anyone and so I hurried back to my car after leaving terse orders to lock the doors, stay concealed in a safe area and keep their guns close at hand.

I returned to my car and followed in the direction I had seen the vehicle leave and a short distance away from my home I saw the taillights of the car I had seen at my home parked in front of my police office. While I watched I saw a man leave the vehicle and shoot a round into the electric meter situated on the front of the building. I caught up with the vehicle and began to follow it. The occupants were soon aware that a police vehicle was following them and thus began a short but quick pursuit south bound to a group of home situated on the southern limits of the Village of Columbus.

When the vehicle came to a halt near one of the homes in the group, the driver of the car exited his vehicle and began shouting towards the houses in a loud voice. By the time I exited my vehicle fully fifty men and females of all age groups from young adults to the elderly, came rushing out of the group of homes and began screaming insults in Spanish at me and advancing on my position. I had never dealt with a situation like this before, but enraged that anyone would have the audacity to attack my home I retrieved a 12 gauge shotgun from my car fully intent on using it if necessary.

The driver of the car I had chased to this location was a large, brash, bully of a man who seemed to have no fear of the law, and with this large extended group of people behind him he was very combative, mouthy and arrogant. When he saw I was hesitant to move towards him as the group of people behind him grew closer, he attacked me empty handed. I fired a load of 12 gauge buckshot into an area between he and the group of advancing people that caused he and the group to stop. I told the members of the advancing group that if they did not back off many people would get hurt and that the driver of the car was the only one I wanted. Suddenly from behind me I heard the engines of racing cars coming towards me and turning briefly to look I saw the Cavalry arriving. Two U.S. Border Patrol Agents and a Sheriff's Lieutenant friend of mine had heard the shotgun round go off from a distance and fearing it might be me in trouble had responded towards the direction of the sound.

They saw my emergency lights and drove directly towards them. Now this group was facing four armed law enforcement officials instead of just me and much of their zeal to have at me was reduced. The big brash blow hard was still cussing me and my heritage in Spanish, but I took a moment to update the new arrivals about what had transpired. I asked them to keep the family off of my back while I dealt with the loud mouth. I approached him and told him he was under arrest for attacking my home and pointing the shotgun directly at him ordered him to his knees.

When he complied, I then slung the safe shotgun and tried to cuff him, but he began to resisit and then he grabbed me around the knees trying to force me off of my feet onto the ground. I retrieved the shotgun which had a steel skeleton type stock and struck him on the head several time knocking him unconscious. I then drug him to my car and shoved him into the back seat while the three other men kept the family away. We then retreated to the relative safety of my office and assessed the situation.

We removed my arrestee who was still unconscious from my car and taking him inside placed him in a holding cell. I then attended to the wounds of his head and found that it would take numerous stitches to close the gashes in his head from the blow and so I made the decision to take him to the hospital in Deming to have them treated before taking him to jail. My friend the Sheriff's Lieutenant and the Border Patrolmen, decided to go back to the scene of the brawl and try to find out what had caused all of this to happen by speaking with the family.

I called my wife to let her know that I had one of the culprits involved in attacking our home in custody and that I was taking him to jail in Deming. She was much relieved and was able to get the children back to bed along with herself. Border Patrol Agents in marked units parked in front of my home for the next few nights, bless their hearts; I can't say enough about the relief that gave me knowing that they were there to protect my family.

My prisoner was treated at the hospital, he received many stitches to close the wounds I gave him, and then he was booked into the Luna County Jail. As soon as I had him booked I found that my Lieutenant friend had traveled to Deming after his investigation and so we met at a diner to talk. He told me that when they had returned to the scene of the altercation they found an elderly man who was willing to talk to them and the man explained that the entire family had recently moved to Columbus from the interior of Mexico. He said that their family import/export business had prospered to the point that they had enough money to emigrate legally into the U.S.

He further explained that in Mexico the police are weak and easily overcome with threats, or bought off with money. It seems that I had arrested one of the younger sons of the clan for DUI and had taken him to jail and so the family had reasoned that if they intimidated me by attacking my family I would cave in and let the boy off of the hook. He further stated that the entire family was surprised at my reaction and he guessed that the police in the U.S. were different than the police in Mexico.

I traveled back home that night much fatigued from the exertions of the night. I slept about four hours and then returned to Deming to retrieve my prisoner to be taken befor the Columbus Municipal Judge that morning. When I picked him up he looked terrible, but he had a much more humble attitude than he had the night before. He surprised me when he went before the judge, and he plead guilty to the charges of disorderly conduct, discharging a firearm within the city limits and the Judge charged him to pay restitution for the power meter that was shot out at my jail. He apologized profusely to me for the trouble he had caused.

You are probably asking yourself why I didn't throw the book at him and charge him with multiple felony charges which I could have done. The reason is I was trying to make a friend of he and and his family and not make an enemy. Hate the sin, but not the sinner. Some of his family showed up for court and immediately paid his fines. I took the time and using an interpreter so I would not be misunderstood(my Spanish is not good at times) I patiently explained to he and his family members present that things in the U.S. are handled differently than they are in Mexico. The law is here to protect them and I assured them that they could still call at any time and I would come to help them.

I also told them that I would not seek prosecution of the others involved, it would stop with Mr. Big Mouth who by the way was the essential leader of the group; if they agreed to not attack me or my family in the future. I received a solemn promise it would never happen again. My ex-prisoner and the family there in attendance almost wrung my arm off at the shoulder, thanking me profusely for being lenient on them and walked from the Municipal Court with big grins on their faces swearing that they would always support me. From that day until I left Columbus they were my loyal friends and I even enjoyed a meal or two with them in friendship.