ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Two students accused of bringing guns to West Mesa High School in Albuquerque on Oct. 5 will remain in custody until trial.
Police arrested 18-year-old Omar Martinez and an unnamed 17-year-old after the guns were found. The school went into a brief shelter-in-place in the morning, according to West Mesa’s website.
Prosecutors filed a motion to keep Martinez in custody, saying when officers confronted Martinez in class, he reportedly had a loaded gun in his waistband and a magazine in his backpack. Martinez’s attorney, Adam Oakey, didn’t disagree with those details but argued Martinez is a young kid who made a mistake.
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On Wednesday, Judge Lucy Solimon sided with prosecutors and ordered that Martinez remain in custody. “Potentially, if he makes another decision that he made like this, I’m putting people in danger. If you have kids, you do not want Mr. Martinez sitting with a glock next to your child in the classroom,” said Solimon.
Prosecutors secured pretrial detention against the 17-year-old on Tuesday. Albuquerque Public Schools expelled both students for at least one year.
