An Arizona judge declared a mistrial on Monday in the case of 75-year-old rancher George Alan Kelly, who was accused of fatally shooting an illegal Mexican immigrant on his property near the southern border. Kelly faced a charge of second-degree murder in connection with the shooting, but after two full days of deliberation, a deadlocked jury was unable to return a unanimous verdict, leaving it unclear if prosecutors will attempt a second trial.
The case against Kelly centered around the death of Mexican national Gabriel Cuen-Buitimea, who was found dead from a gunshot wound on Kelly’s 170-acre cattle ranch near Keno Springs outside Nogales, Arizona, on Jan. 30, 2023. Cuen-Buitimea had previously entered the US illegally multiple times and had last been deported in 2016.
On the night of the incident, the deceased and a group of other suspected illegal immigrants were trespassing on Kelly’s land when the rancher fired nine shots toward them with an AK-47 from roughly 115 yards away. Cuen-Buitimea’s body was later found on the property, but the fatal bullet that took his life was never recovered.
Kelly’s defense argued that he had only fired warning shots at the trespassers in self-defense, never intending to hit any of them from that distance. According to testimony from Wanda Kelly, the defendant’s wife, the 75-year-old had called their Border Patrol ranch liaison earlier in the day after spotting several men dressed in camouflage and carrying AR-style rifles just outside their home. Law enforcement responded to the scene prior to the run-in with the second group, and hours passed before Kelly called again to report the discovery of Cuen-Buitimea’s body.
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Santa Cruz County prosecutor Mike Jette accused Kelly of escalating the situation, claiming that he did “not have the right to use deadly physical force to protect a person who didn’t need protecting.”
“You don’t have the right to use deadly force when there is no threat to home or yard, and you don’t have the right to initiate, instigate or escalate with deadly force,” he continued.
Kelly’s attorneys countered by suggesting that the victim’s death may have been linked to cartel activity in the area, pointing the finger at “rip crews” known to rob and kill border crossers.
The defense was complicated by Kelly’s inconsistent statements during the initial investigation, including failing to tell police that he had ever fired his weapon and changing his timeline about the alleged encounter with armed individuals before the shooting.
The prosecution also attempted to bring lesser assault charges on behalf of Daniel Ramirez, another Mexican national allegedly present at the time. However, the defense presented evidence that Ramirez, who admitted to smuggling drugs across the border, was not actually with Cuen-Buitimea that day, and therefore did not witness the events in question.
According to Kelly’s attorneys, seven of the eight jurors had returned a verdict of “not guilty” after deliberations began on Thursday, with only one holdout responsible for the mistrial.
George Alan Kelly’s defense attorney Kathy Lowthorp says the mistrial was caused by one holdout juror who believed Kelly to be guilty. She says the other 7 wanted to vote for acquittal. pic.twitter.com/BvS88AupcX
— Adam Klepp (@AdamKleppAZ) April 23, 2024
Following the mistrial ruling, Kelly briefly spoke to reporters outside the court, saying: “Let me go home, okay? That alright with y’all? It is what it is and it will be what it will be. I will keep fighting forever. I won’t stop.”
The Mexican consulate has called for a new trial so that “justice can be served” for the victim’s two adult daughters back in Mexico. Prosecutors have scheduled a status hearing for April 29 to determine whether the case will be retried.
Connor Walcott is a staff writer for Valuetainment.com. Follow Connor on X and look for him on VT’s “The Unusual Suspects.”
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