On April 5, 2023, 52-year-old Robert Dotson of Farmington, New Mexico, was shot and killed after three Farmington police officers mistakenly knocked on his door at 5305 instead of the intended address, 5308. Officers Daniel Estrada, Dylan Goodluck, and Waylon Wasson arrived about 11:30 p.m.; Dotson answered armed with a handgun he had taken from the top of his refrigerator. The officers opened fire, striking Dotson 12 times. Dotson’s wife, Kimberly, who did not know who had shot her husband, returned fire from the doorway; officers then fired an additional 19 rounds and missed her.

The New Mexico Department of Justice investigated the shooting. On January 26, 2024, Deputy Attorney General Greer E. Staley announced the three officers would not face criminal charges, citing an expert report that concluded the officers did not use excessive force because both Dotson and his wife were armed. In September 2023, Dotson’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Farmington and the officers, alleging failures in training and excessive, unnecessary force and asserting deprivation of state constitutional rights.

The case has prompted calls for police reform in New Mexico, with the ACLU of New Mexico urging statewide changes to use of force standards and de-escalation training. Does anyone have additional information about the response in Farmington or about the civil lawsuit’s progress?