ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A jury could not reach a verdict in the trial of a teen charged with murder. Noah Duran was 17 when prosecutors say he and Jaden Sandoval shot and killed Elijah Mirabal during a drug deal-turned-robbery.
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However, Duran’s attorney’s claims Duran shot in self-defense. He says a car at the scene that night would have proven that he was already shot and wounded on the ground but APD did not preserve the car as evidence.
After several days, the jury deadlocked, prompting the judge to declare a mistrial. “It sounds like it wasn’t just one holdout. It sounds like a few of you really firmly disagreed with each other,” said Judge Bruce Fox. “I was a little concerned when you said voiced started to get a little raised, too, so I certainly didn’t want it to get to that point.”
News 13 reached out to the District Attorney’s office to see if they would re-try the case. They said they would get back to us on that.
