Was the gun used in the Albuquerque school shooter used by his father in another crime?

As you’ll recall, this past Friday, 13-year-old Juan Saucedo shot and killed 13-year-old Bennie Hargrove at Washington Middle School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Hargrove was trying to get Saucedo to stop bullying his friends when Saucedo pulled the gun from his waistband and shot Hargrove six times.

As I mentioned in my previous post on the shooting, Saucedo took the gun from home. The gun belonged to Saucedo’s father, who didn’t notice it was missing until it was too late. At the time of my original post, I wondered if the gun was secured in the home, but if history is any indicator, it probably wasn’t.

The local news in Albuquerque has been reporting on a 2018 incident that involved Saucedo’s father, a school, and a gun. In 2018, outside of Highland High School, Saucedo’s father is said to have gotten into it with another parent waiting to pick up their kid. It’s alleged that Juan Saucedo Sr. threw the first punch with the other parent retaliating with a baseball bat, before it was all over. Saucedo Sr. shot the man in the hand and thigh. There’s even news video of the altercation.

As the video stated, no one was ever charged in the incident.

It’s not known for a fact that the gun used by Saucedo Sr. was the gun used in Friday’s shooting.

And speaking of no charges being filed, Saucedo Sr. might not face any charges because it’s currently not against the law in New Mexico to leave your gun unsecured. There’s been a bill introduced in the state senate to make securing a gun a requirement, but as you can expect the bill has gone nowhere, and it had no teeth to begin with. If the bill were passed into law, it would only be a misdemeanor to leave a firearm unsecured when not in use.

So, even if the bill was made into law, Saucedo Sr. would only be facing a misdemeanor for allegedly allowing his gun to be used in a school shooting that left Bennie Hargrove dead. As it stands right now, he may not face any charges at all.

That’s not justice, that’s sacrificing our children at the bloody altar of the gun.

• (Sources)
• Father of middle school murder suspect has history of shooting near a school
• Old state Senate bill gets revival and could be renamed ‘Bennie’s Law’