An Arizona judge has dismissed murder charges against an elderly rancher accused of shooting dead an illegal immigrant who trespassed on his property.
The ruling is a win for Americans protecting their land and their families from the lawless invasion that President Biden has unleashed, and which Donald Trump has campaigned vigorously against.
The case against 75-year-old George Alan Kelly put a spotlight on the southern border crisis that has many Americans angry and in fear for their safety.
Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Thomas Fink dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning it cannot be filed again after the first trial ended in a mistrial.
The judge said that Kelly should not face trial again because of his advanced age and health issues and too much time had passed since the last trial.
“A re-filing of these charges at a future date would place the defense at a significant disadvantage,” Fink said.
The judge also said that the prosecution's decision not to immediately retry the case was made to give the state a "greater tactical advantage at some future date."
The case ended in a mistrial in April when the jury voted 7-1 to acquit.
“The more logical … reason for the jurors’ 7-1 vote for acquittal is that the State simply failed to persuade the jurors of the Defendant’s guilt,” the judge wrote in the order. “The evidence simply was not there.”
Prosecutors had accused Kelly of fatally shooting a Mexican man, Gabriel Cuen Buitimea, who crossed Kelly's property while fleeing Border Patrol agents in January 2023. Another man who survived, Daniel Ramirez, was the prosecution's key witness.
The prosecutors had a glaring hole in their narrative, notably, they didn't have the bullet that killed Buitimea. There was also no evidence of the time of death.
The trial highlighted fears over a massive influx of illegal migrants through the southern border, which has particularly impacted communities in states like Arizona.
Kelly had reason to fear for his and his family's safety because of an uptick in drug smuggling activity in the area where they lived, his lawyers said. His lawyers said he fired warning shots at a group of men whom he believed were armed.
“This is what’s going on in Mr. Kelly’s life during the lead-up to this incident on January 30th,” defense lawyer Brenna Larkin said.
