ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – He’s accused of murder, but for the last year and a half, a judge has allowed him to live at home with his grandma. Now that suspect is accused of driving drunk.
The murder victim’s family is upset as they said the suspect shouldn’t have been allowed to put other people’s lives in danger. “He loved to make friends and meet new people. He was just really a good guy,” said Tom Vencill, brother of William Vencill.
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Tom Vencill remembers his late brother William, who was shot to death almost two years ago in the parking lot of his northeast Albuquerque apartment complex.
“Course I knew something was wrong—so, it was disbelief and trying to understand what may have happened,” said Tom Vencill.
The man charged in the killing is Emery Gallegos. He is accused of shooting Vencill after a fight over a parking space at the Mission Hill apartments on east Menaul.
Now, Gallegos is facing new charges after being arrested early Saturday morning at Coors and Coors Bypass accused of DWI. “It all goes back to the lack of oversight and the justice system putting trust in these individuals who have committed violent crimes,” said Vencill.
Vencill is speaking out about Gallegos’ latest arrest as he said Gallegos should have been behind bars this whole time. “Someone who is 19 and committed something this serious, should warrant more alarm bells. And more concerns about the safety of the public,” said Vencill.
But after his 2022 arrest, Gallegos was let out of jail. Judge Stan Whitaker opted to let the murder suspect live at home with his grandma awaiting trial.
Vencill said that decision left him with a sense of injustice for his brother. “The person who committed this murder has been with their family celebrating holidays and working and kind of living their life,” said Vencill.
Citing Gallegos’ latest DWI arrest, Vencill said the initial jail release put other lives in danger. “It seems like there should just be some accountability for judges that make the decision to release people who have committed violent offenses,” said Vencill.
Gallegos remains in jail Thursday night awaiting another hearing where a different judge is expected to review any potential changes to his conditions of release.
