Episode 324

22:49Well, as much as they can, that is. Would you be okay to give us a statement? I wasn't even home. Okay, so you just got here just now or did you just get here after you see it? Yeah, I was at work when my son called me about it happening. Did your son tell you anything like that? He just said that there was a girl that was shot and he didn't know what to do. Did he say who shot the girl? You can't go there. Did he say we shot the girl? He said a black SUV. No, I'm trying to get to my family. A black SUV? Yeah. That's all he said? Well, he referred to it as, he said it was a black SUV is all he said.

23:34I don't know, was it a Yukon? I can't remember because we referred to it as another girl's car, Delilah's name, that her family drives that car. But it wasn't that vehicle. It's just the way we, because that's what he told me. He said it was a car that looked like Delilah's. And did it look like Delilah's? Yeah. Look, that's another girl that lives in town. She has nothing to do with it. But it's, what's Delilah's car? Her mom's. A Denali. Yukon. Yukon. An older one. But did you see who shot him? No. No, he never said, he just told me the vehicle. He didn't tell you who it was? And I, he told me that that happened.

24:06I was at work and I just left. and then everything else was done with plus the PDF. So there was nothing else that he told me other than, you know, we've been cooperating the whole time till now. Appreciate it. Because this guy asked us to take off his pants and stuff and we put him in a bag there on the counter for you. He was basically watching to the window. Yeah. He's actually insinuating that one of the officers was creeping through the window enjoying the view of Porfirio removing his bloody pants and putting them in an evidence bag. Also, ain't it weird that the guy who keeps asking the same questions over and over again, just like his son, by the way, questions which have been answered, mind you, was content with his son only giving him vague details about the dead girl on his property.

24:56Weird, right? So, Mr. Brown, this is who I am. I'm Jim Falker. I'm with New Mexico State Police. I'm the case agent for this case. okay I know you said that your son had already spoken to a lawyer so then we'll get a hold to him and see what he wants to do all I can tell you is that this is all brand new to us we just showed up I understand your frustrations but let us do our jobs I can promise you all I'm here for is the truth so right right this second he's just being detained I'm gonna get a hold of mr. Gower so why is being detained i mean obviously because of preliminary information preliminary information that we've received has given us the right to detain him for right now i can't i can't there's a lot of there's a lot of stuff that i can't tell you i'll tell you as much as i can i'll be as straight up with you as i as i can but there's just information that i don't share and that just just to protect the integrity of the investigation i'm the case agent the buck stops with me okay So if you have any questions, by all means, call me.

26:06But right now we just have a lot, a lot of other stuff to do that's all preliminary. So we don't have a lot of information either. But the initial stuff that we do have gives us the right to detain your son. William has already noticed something strange, though. His son Porfirio seems to be the odd one out in his group of friends. And when are the other ones going to be picked up? as soon as I get as soon as I get to that point bottom line I can't give you a time frame do you know where they're at they let them leave I have no idea okay oh yes they don't say anything to nobody we're not saying anything to anybody the attorneys already said I just want to explain something to her okay I'm You can listen nationally, but you don't speak until the attorney speaks.

26:59I'm not going to ask her any questions. I'm just telling you. Mr. Brown, I understand your frustration, but let us work. I am. I'm not saying. I just said the attorney's going to speak to you. And I appreciate that, but that's where we're at, okay? If this family of Karens is so insufferable with a dead girl on their porch, can you imagine what the local Walmart supervisor has had to put up with over the years? Everything happened so fast, just like the shooting. But before police gave William this vague explanation, they'd already spoken to Frankie and Kiana. While the kids waited to give their official statements, one officer happened to be standing near a car.

27:41The door was open. Kiana was talking to her mom, and what she said to her changed everything. This is going to be a little bit hard to hear, but we're going to play it anyway. I think this is a fine girl, sitting in this kitchen, listening to music, having fun. And that's when people start playing. And it starts warning you. And as a reaction, as a reaction, of course, you're going to go, like, try to move their hands and shit. And she did that. And the rest is for sake. And look, I see a little flash. It's fun. Hey, can you touch it? And the fucking dumbass operators being so stupid. of course i'm be fucking freaking out and she's like shut the fuck up shut up just fucking listen the hardest you can i don't know what the fuck to tell you and then she tries to tell me if you have an e-former id nigga i'm fucking 14 if i tell you i'm i was born in 2009 the fuck does that hello this dumb bitch's friend just murdered someone but she's mad at 9-1-1 instead yeah There's a lot of that going around.

28:53Anyway, in the beginning of this clip, if you listen real close, you can hear what she told her mom. She said everything was perfectly fine. We were all sitting in his kitchen listening to music. And that's when he pulls out the gun and starts pointing it. Will you look at that? Turns out New Mexico State Police had a really good reason to detain Porfirio Brown. Okay, so go ahead and tell me what exactly what happened from the moment before she was shot. Okay, what were you guys doing before she was shot?

29:49it's a revolver the one that has like a spinning barrel okay he pulls out one of those it was a handgun yeah he pulls that out so just to just to get it straight you guys are you guys are in the back of the house right you're hanging out playing at first we were perfectly fine just chilling nothing wrong and then we ended up going inside and then that that's the when he pulls out that good and i was like dog don't even be doing that because i could be loaded he was also and then he ends up pointing it at her and she went and she wants to go like like take it away from her face right all of a sudden you just hear a boom i look and i see her fall to the crowd so he shot her in the face with the handgun yeah where where where were you guys when he shot her with the handgun um i think uh the kitchen you guys were inside the house when it happened yeah Were they joking around?

30:42Was he mad at her? What was the reason for him to pull the gun out? I don't know. Everything was perfectly fine. Everyone was joking, laughing. And he pulls it out. I don't even know where he got it from. And then he goes, because how it was, there's a table against the wall, and I was standing against the window, and she was standing right there in the middle. And he points that at her, and so she went to go, move it. and that's when you just hear the loud bang and a little bit of a light and then she drops and next you know she just starts to bleed okay okay next thing you know when like she does fall we all look and then that's when she's to freak out and he's like let's take her to the back and then he's all like we'll call 911 and I was like panicking so it took me a minute to get my phone out of my pocket and just to dial in general okay and finally we were able or well he was able to get her out, and then me and Frankie were standing out there with her while the poor went somewhere.

31:43I don't know where. He just took it out back into the house? Yeah, I think so. I'm not sure. Guys, guys, guys, before you get outraged, remember, it's the gun's fault. The inanimate object murdered this girl, not the ignorant brown kid growing up in gangsta culture, with the approval of his ignorant brown gun-owning parents who weren't even home at the time. Remember to assign your blame in a proper woke fashion, everyone. Good. Now that all the idiots have left and stopped listening, let's continue. While all this was happening, a detective pulls out his radio and quietly cancels the BOLO alert.

32:23Hey, what's going on? Hey, can you do me a favor and cancel that BOLO for that black SUV? Yeah, we kind of already did. Okay, perfect. Okay, any other updates or nothing? So for right now, state police is on scene. Their IV guys are out here. Their crime scene guys are out here. So it looks like they'll probably end up taking this one over from us. But we do have possible suspect in custody. And we're going to be turning them over to state police. Okay. And so, yeah, I don't think we have anybody, any other suspects outstanding. It isn't until much later during a follow-up interview that Kiana explains why she didn't tell the truth from the beginning.

33:12So there was a story of a vehicle driving by. Yeah, he made that story of whenever he shot her and took her outside. What did he tell you about that? He tried to make up the story that a drive-by happened right next to that dumpster in front of his, on the road. He tried to see that a drive-by happened right there, and that her brother went to his house, freaking out about it, and they ended up dragging her over there. But that's not even close. Yeah. Okay. So was he telling you guys to say that? I think he wanted us to. He was just saying that version? Was he on the phone at that time or something?

33:59Yeah, I think he was. Who do you know who he was on the phone with by chance? It might have been one of his parents. I'm not sure though. So he made sure that you heard him talking on the phone when he gave that word? Yeah, because he walked around me and her when I was still next to her on the floor. And he ended up saying, like I heard him on the phone and it was all, it was a drive-by, all of a sudden some car passed by and they shot her. Did he ever ask you to move her down to the game where's? He did ask us to help him pick her up, but no one else helped, because that's fucked up. And what did he want to do?

34:38I don't know if he wanted to take her outside and hide the whole fact that he shot her. Well, I mean, if it's talking about a drive-by, that makes sense. because later on, like, when he was on the phone with his dad, he even told him that he didn't shoot her. Assigning blame to a random third party? Weird. That's not at all what criminals do. I guess now would be a good time to play the beginning of that 911 call for you. What's the location of your emergency? What the fucking location? Hello? Oh, my shot. Give me the address. Charlie, please. Give me the address. What's the address? Guys are yelling and I can't understand.

35:25Thank you. What happened? My girlfriend got shot. Your girlfriend? Yes. Where did she get shot? In her nose. By her nose? Okay. Okay, what's your name? My name is Kiana. Okay. Amber.

35:51Is she alert? Is your girlfriend alert? Oh, she's fucking unconscious right now. Please, fucking hurry. Okay, we're going to get somebody out there right now. Stay on the line with me. Don't hang up. Hurry up, please. Don't hang up. Oh, my God. We're getting somebody out there, but don't hang up on me, okay? Oh, my God. Please, no, come on. Hello? Oh, fuck. Just keep her comfortable, okay?

36:23Sir? Yeah. Is she still unconscious? She's breathing.

36:33Sir, is the person that shot her still there? Yeah. Wait, no. They drove by. It was a drive-by? Do you know who they were? No, I wasn't even really around. I was up in the field. Okay, do you have an idea of what kind of vehicle, maybe? No, ma 'am. Okay. I'm not sure, though. I'm not sure. Yeah. Let me ask you something. And I want you to rub those two brain cells together real hard and see if you can come up with an answer. If you had just watched someone murder someone else, would your first instinct be to cover for them? If so, kindly fuck off and unsubscribe now. Now, let's hear what Frankie says when he's confronted with these inconsistencies.

37:40Okay, but you and Kiana and Porf, all three, talked about a vehicle driving by. About Amber being shot from a vehicle that drove by. I don't know about DJ, but I don't remember me seeing a vehicle. And I know Porf did. Yeah, he did. I know he did. So what did you hear? Did he tell you that story? I kept hearing him saying, like, help me, help me. Because he was going to, like, his dad was going to, like... And he was on the phone when he was saying, help me? No. Or who was he talking to? Just to, like, trying to tell us to, like, help him. Okay. All right. And what did Horf do with the gun? I have no idea.

38:25That's one thing I don't know what he did with it after the fact. Do you know what Russian roulette is? Yeah. Okay. Was he playing that? No. That you're positive? Yeah, I'm positive. Kids can be pretty stupid. as evidenced by this detective's question about Russian roulette. If the false story about a drive-by came from Porfirio, it might seem strange that Frankie and Kiana went along with it. But these four kids were close. Frankie and Porfirio were best friends. His best friend had just shot his sister. And in that moment, Frankie wasn't thinking about justice. He was thinking about damage control.

39:06He didn't know exactly what had happened, but he knew one thing for sure. It had to be an accident, didn't it?

39:29Most people don't actually need more caffeine. They need their energy to last. That's why I want to tell you about Strong Coffee Company. Strong Coffee is premium instant coffee built for focus and endurance, not spikes and crashes. Their black blend tastes like real coffee, but each serving includes 15 grams of protein, MCTs for sustained energy, and adaptogens like ashwagandha and L-theanine that help keep you calm and mentally clear. What that means in real life is simple. You feel alert, steady, and focused for hours. Without the jitters, without the drop-off. It's coffee that actually works with your brain instead of pushing it too hard.

40:19They also make lattes if you want something creamier, with added protein and healthy fats, but everything they do is built around the same idea. Clean energy, mental clarity, and productivity that lasts. If you're tired of coffee that burns out halfway through the day, this is a smarter alternative. I've arranged the highest discount they offer, 20 % off. Go to strongcoffeecompany.com and use promo code SWORD at checkout. Some people still want to drink at the end of the day, but just not the alcohol part. That's where Good Feels fits in. Good Feels makes THC-infused cannabis seltzers designed to be light, consistent, and easy to enjoy.

41:12No hangover, no heaviness, just a calm, lifted feeling that doesn't take over your night. They're made with natural ingredients and formulated to feel balanced, whether you're relaxing at home or out with friends. It's a simple alternative if alcohol isn't doing you any favors anymore. And right now, you can get 20 % off at shop.getgoodfeels.com with promo code SWORD. 21 and over only, please. That's shop.getgoodfeels.com and use promo code SWORD for 20 % off.

42:00The story Frankie, Kiana, and Porfirio gave to the police has completely fallen apart. The black SUV simply didn't exist, and the real shooter is now sitting in the back of a patrol car. Porfirio Brown is 14 years old, and he had access to at least one gun. For some reason, he pointed it at a 13-year-old named Amber Archuleta in the face and pulled the trigger. I made a start to beat, huh? And they're 14 years old at that. All of them know they're all classmates, all of them. Well, that was my daughter's girlfriend. So I had to have that happen. These were classmates. They lived in the same neighborhood.

42:48They were childhood friends. Porfirio's father worked for the Taos County Jail. In the past, he was even a guide for the hunter's safety course. The family should have known gun safety like the back of their hand. It should have been second nature to them. because in many ways it was their job so when he pointed it at her um about how far away was about probably about like this so did she approach him to get a hold of the gun well she was like this and i don't know if they went closer or what then like they started struggling like this and then like in time down here or up here yes and what was he doing with the other guns you said i'm not sure if he was just pulling them out to show them off to see if he was cool or what but he just pulled him out and he didn't do nothing with them but then he ended up doing I think he put him on the counter or something I don't even know because I thought like generally he was a really chill guy like we always used to hang out and chill have a good time he was like always the homie never really thought anything bad about him thought he'd do anything bad like I always knew like he always like like to like beat people up if they like disrespect him or whatever but i didn't like to fight yeah but i didn't i grew up in espion that's not that big of a deal but i didn't think he'd ever like pull a gun out on someone like actually shoot them and he never and he was never mad about anything everyone was laughing having a good time but he was just having a good time do you feel like he meant to do this i don't know because if i think about it he didn't seem mad or anything but then why would he have his finger on the trigger and just do that so i don't really know did he ever do you ever know of him to pull guns out on somebody else and other people i've heard about it but i wasn't sure if it's true you've heard about it but you've never seen it yeah was he is he known to carry a gun i'm not sure about like all the time but sometimes yeah sometimes like what kind of gun well even before whenever like everything happened when they were shot in the car he pulls out like maybe a glock i don't know but it's like mini handgun black and then he also had i think a rifle in the car but and do you know does he hunt stuff like that i think he does yeah does he talk about that a lot yeah sometimes has he ever talked about hurting anybody else like shooting anybody else i mean well he's talked about beating people's what asked before, but other than that, not like gun violence.

45:26What 14-year-old needs to be carrying around a pistol? And why didn't anyone teach them the rule that every gun owner knows? You never point a gun at a target that you don't intend to shoot. You know, and I'm really upset because he's, you know, I know him. You know, I know him and the wife and everything. And, you know, I never knew that he was a guide, but you would think he would have known better being a guide in the hunter safety forces and stuff like that. Well, he's got several guns in that house. I'm sure you've seen a lot of guns in that house. Yeah. Like lots of guns. They're just a patriotic, gun-loving family, right?

46:05But after the shot was fired and Amber collapsed, Porfirio didn't run for help. He didn't call 911. He started cleaning up and staging the scene. and he just had her by her arms and no one was helping him. And he just started dragging her. What do you mean he wanted you guys to help? Did he say something? Whenever he first grabbed her under her arms, he was all, help me, help me. We just looked at him. I guess maybe still in shock or something because no one helped him. And then, so he takes her to the porch, or did he take her all the way to where she was? He took her, he stopped her at the porch.

46:49That's why there was some blood there. Right. And then he drove her off for there. And he got on the phone right away. And I know this is tough, but do you remember a lot of blood being in the house? You said he cleaned up. I'm not sure how much, but probably a decent amount of it. And you could tell that he cleaned because there was a mop bucket and there was a little streak of blood next to the mop bucket. But you can tell he tried to hide something. But one thing is, whenever I did end up going back to talk, whenever they moved me from the cop car, it did seem like he changed his clothes. Okay.

47:31So a second ago you said you didn't know if he hit or did something with the guns. Yeah. Like multiple guns. Yeah. So what do you mean by multiple guns? Because even at first, before everything happened, and he even pulled out like an AK and, or it seemed like an AK, it looked like it, and then some sort of other gun, I don't know my guns, but it was like about, I would say maybe about this, maybe a little bit bigger, it was camouflage and they were full rounds, like the clip was full, but I don't know if there was one in the chamber, he ended up putting those away and then that's when he pulls out the revolver.

48:07Did he threaten you guys at all? Were you scared of him? In that point of moment, I didn't know what could have happened. He probably could have if he really wanted to. That's the question, isn't it? Did he really want to hurt Amber? Or was he just a dumb kid trying to look cool in front of his friends? Here's Frankie again. Do you know Porf to carry again? Sometimes. I mean, besides a rifle. Once in a while. Once in a while. You know, it's coming out a lot that he's actually been pointing that gun at a lot of other kids in the community. And I'm curious about that as well. And you know, some other people said that only the kids knew, but last weekend at the farmers market, you know, there's a little program for the kids to live there.

48:52But I guess it only went around the kids. But he had the gun in his thing the whole time here at the farmers market. But nobody knew except the... Have you seen him point a gun at somebody else? No? Are you sure?

49:07This is all starting to paint a clear picture. None of the adults knew it at the time, but Porfirio had apparently brought a gun to work at the local farmer's market. He'd been known to show off his guns, pull them out and even point them at other kids. And now a girl was dead. The escalation couldn't have been more obvious. To anyone that was paying attention, that is. But as far as evidence, I feel very strong for our case. I can't tell you exactly what he'll be charged. I mean, I can tell you exactly what he's been charged. It's called an open counter murder. That is a, you know, that's kind of an all-encompassing charge.

49:55Now Porfirio has to face the full weight of the law. His dad might see him as just a kid. But when you kill someone, the law doesn't always agree. Oh, and the dead girl and the dead girl's family don't care how old he is. The word of the day on certain scale here is irrelevant. Say it with me. Irrelevant. William Brown was focused on his son's legal battle. What he didn't know was that he was about to become the first person charged under the new state statute. By the end of the day, both father and son would be in handcuffs. The law is called Benny's Law, and it took effect in June of 2023, less than a month before Amber's murder.

50:45It's been nearly two years since tragedy hit Washington Middle School in Albuquerque and just rippled throughout our community. What should have been a harmless schoolyard argument turned deadly when 13-year-old Benny Hargrove was shot and killed by a classmate. Witnesses say Benny was just standing up to a bully. And police say that teen was able to bring the gun to school because it wasn't stored properly at home. This year, state lawmakers passed the Benny Hargrove bill in an effort to prevent another similar tragedy. And today, that new law officially is going into effect. Democratic Representative Pamela Herndon spearheaded this bill as one of the sponsors.

51:22What we are expecting as a result of any Hartgrove bill going into place is that parents or adults who have responsibility for firearms will absolutely restore those, will store them safely so that children or minors do not have access to them at all. House Bill 9 acts as a gun safety bill. If a kid gets a hold of their parent or guardian's gun and commits a crime, that caretaker can be charged with a misdemeanor. The purpose was not necessarily to punish adults, but the purpose was to make sure that they are thinking about what they're doing. Gun fanatics, and by gun fanatics I mean those nutty Democrats that want to take away everyone's constitutional right to self-defense, will never admit that conservative gun right activists are more critical on gun safety than anyone else.

52:13If you have a kid, especially a teenage boy, and you're not locking up your guns properly, then you deserve everything that's coming to you. Unless William had his eyes glued to the news, he probably had no idea that unsecured firearms could now land him in jail. You see, he wasn't paying attention. But whether he knew it or not, William Brown had just become a test case. And the thing is, the guns were all over his house. Big Macho Grande. In that one? There's probably like seven or eight in that one too. I'm good. We're good. We're good with this side. Alright. So, I have here a return of inventory.

53:00I'll have you signed. We have secured a bunch of firearms, okay? We didn't take any firearms, but we secured a bunch of firearms because there was a bunch just laying around. And with that new law in place, they can't just be, like, I guess, unsecured. Loaded, unlocked, and accessible. As you just heard, there weren't just one or two guns lying around. Deputies found at least seven firearms in a single bedroom. When they locate William Brown to explain the situation, he stands stiff, his arms crossed, wearing the blank, defiant stare of a toddler who knows they're in trouble, but doesn't think it's fair.

53:47So here's the thing, okay? I need you to understand that we're doing our jobs. We're going to do our jobs to the best of our ability. We've got information about what all took place. And as far as a black SUV, that's not coming out. Does that make sense? If you're saying, I can't tell you because I was at one. Okay, and I get that. But another thing that you need to understand is there's a lot of guns in that house, right? And none of them are secured? Most of them are secured. I have a few that are out. You have a few that are out. Okay, with that right there. Have your hands, put your hands on your back.

54:30Thank you. I don't understand. I think we need to explain it to you. Point one is that maybe then making a firearm accessible to a minor, resulting in great body harm or death. So this is a third degree map. Yes. But it was a live on earth. We have enough follow-up custody to actually... To arrest you under that statue. That it was under your guns. The bottom line is that it was normal for the Brown family to give their kids unfettered and unsupervised access to deadly weapons. It was your firearm. That line hits hard, but was William thinking about the girl his son killed? or was he already thinking about how to protect himself and his son Porfirio?

55:22Before the ink could dry on his charging documents, William started spinning his own version of events, one where he was the victim. Not the dead girl, him. Within minutes of his arrest, the whole group was on speakerphone with his employer at the Taos County Jail. Hey, I don't know what you call Danny and see, They're arresting me because there was a shooting at my house. And they're saying, yeah, for negligent of the lad of firearm unsecure. I don't know. The state police had me in cuffs already, so he's holding the phone now, and I'm just calling you to... They said maybe if I see a judge, if you can call the judges, maybe I can get out tonight.

56:07Oh, okay. So what are his charges then? So like he explained, he had a weapon that was not secure. His son had access to that weapon, and a 14-year-old girl was shot and killed.

56:30While he waited for his first court appearance, something must have gotten lost in communication because Taos County had placed him on leave, but he showed up to work anyway. During the time he was there, he had a lot to say about his case. We were still getting the letter. I was trying to find a way to put him on administrative leave without pay. I don't want him sitting out there. We're doing our own internal investigation for policy violations. We're procuring Universal to do the investigation. I don't know if he's been assigned yet. We're going to look at our own policy violations outside of what you guys are doing.

57:17And then the other thing that just struck me, and so I just told Jason, is you may have to interview the shift this morning, because I don't know what was relayed to the other folks on duty, because of the miscommunication he had just today. He showed up to work this morning. And then they pulled him aside and had him sit in the office. When Jason handed him the letter that he was on paid administrative leave is when he mentioned, anyways, I'm going to be back to work next week because there's no gun. They're going to drop all the charges and I'll be back to work. And then when HR conveyed to him, hey, this isn't about your case.

57:54This is about policy infractions. He was like, oh. and but I was thinking about it now he disclosed that the NRA is going to pay for his legal defense and he's not worried about it and I thought to me you need to hold your cards close and just these little things I know they're not lengthy conversations but it's just interesting just interesting William William didn't seem to be worried at all. He was convinced for some reason that they'd never find the gun, that the NRA would foot the bill for his defense, and that he'd be free of this whole inconvenient ordeal sooner rather than later. William Brown would be the first person in New Mexico tried under Benny's law.

58:48This added a political layer to the case. Even so, he was sure he'd walk. that it's not about a firearm. It's not about any firearm. It's about the firearm used in the killing of Ms. Amber Archuleta. Brown testified in his own defense today, claiming none of his guns were missing after the deadly shooting. Prosecutors tried to poke holes in Brown's testimony by showing him a picture of a gun that was in his home that he didn't testify about. They reiterated investigators found unsecured guns around his home. What do we know? Well, we do know that we had a house. It was the Brown residence owned by the Browns and that the guns in there belong to Mr.

59:31Brown. So we've got photos of the house and of the weapons and how they were secured. Jurors took just two hours to deliberate the first of its kind case. We, the jury, find the defendant, William Brown, not guilty of negligent making a firearm accessible to a minor as charged in count one of the gun jury indictment for criminal information. William walked out of the courtroom a free man. A real travesty of justice, if you ask me. But sometimes juries are full of idiots. So's Earth, so it tracks. Had he been found guilty, he would have been facing up to 18 months in prison. which still seems to me a bit of a walk in the park for something so serious.

1:00:20For Amber Archuleta's family, it felt like a second blow. The man who owned the gun, who should have known better than to leave it available for his teenager to use, to flash around and brag about, had walked away. A free man. But William wasn't the only one they wanted held accountable. William's son, Porfirio, the boy who pulled the trigger, was still facing murder charges. But I know the DA's office is going to try and have him charged as an adult. I would love that. But there's no guarantee because of his age. I understand that, but I would truly want him charged as an adult. Just for the fact that he tried covering it up and he drug her out and threw her off.

1:01:11that porch like a dog. So I definitely want him to be punished to the fullest extent. And I'm doing everything I can. You know, at first I was on the fence about it because they were friends, you know, that she was there because she trusted him, you know. But after him, what I seen her in, you know, in the condition, I want him to, you know, to the fullest extent. Porfirio's first trial began in February of 2024, just a few months before his father's not guilty verdict. Porfirio was 15 by this point and was charged as a youthful offender. It sounds counterintuitive, but this meant that he could be tried and sentenced as an adult.

1:01:55At trial, he faced charges of second-degree murder, tampering with evidence and attempted assault of a peace officer. Porfirio Brown. He went on trial for second-degree murder last week, but jurors couldn't make a unanimous decision. I think there was a lot of emotion from myself, my client. It's just you put in so much effort for these trials. You really believe in your defense. When a jury can't come to a conclusion, it can feel a little invalidating almost. Bunker says the jury had questions about several pieces of evidence. First, the initial 911 call. The story has been that my kid wanted to create this drive-by story.

1:02:32But if you listen to the evidence on the 911 call, it's actually the brother who first tells 911 that his sister was shot in a drive-by. We'll let you decide the likelihood of Frankie coming up with a story on his own versus the story coming from Porphyria, who didn't even think to call 911 and was instead busy cleaning up what he had done. Bunker says jurors also asked about a hug between the brother and Brown. On body camera, while the girl is laying there dying, the brother actually comes up to my client and gives my client a huge hug. And so to me, that was very inconsistent because why are you hugging my client if he just shot your sister?

1:03:10Blood on the brother's arms also came into question. He has perfect circular spots of blood on his arm. He's got blood on the back of his elbow. He has a watch on and then he goes home. So he and the other juvenile witness, they leave the scene and they're together at another location for over an hour. Eight jurors found Brown not guilty. Four thought he was guilty. But Bunker says they all agreed on one thing. Even the four that thought he was guilty said that they thought this was an accident. And so what they're trying to charge him with is intentional murder. And all the jurors unanimously agreed that whoever the shooter was, this was an accident.

1:03:45District Attorney Marcus Montoya says it's likely his office will retry the case. Guns and gun violence and gun control are very serious issues. And this was unnecessary and very traumatic loss of a young life. And we can never say that often enough or loud enough. Montoya might also have a personnel issue to address connected to the case. Bunker says the lead prosecutor wasn't there for closing arguments. We were told she went to the hospital. The judge indicated he may have smelled alcohol on her breath. So not entirely sure what happened there. There may be rumors about that. Nothing certainly that I can verify.

1:04:24And even if, you know, we conduct an investigation to find that anything like that was a potentiality, that would be an internal and personal issue for me to deal with. Bunger. What an unfortunate name. Then again, who am I to judge? Bidet. Anyway, rather than face a second trial, Porfirio accepted a plea deal in August of 2024. He pleaded guilty to one single count of tampering with evidence. In exchange for accepting the deal, the remaining charges, including second-degree murder, were dropped. He was expected to serve a year of probation, and by the time this episode airs, his punishment will be over.

1:05:08His victim will still be dead. In the end, the courtroom decisions can't change what happened. Amber Archuleta is gone forever. She was outgoing. She had no fear. If there was a hill, she'd climb it. You know, her and her brother, you know, riding their bikes, she was the one popping the wheelies and ramping and stuff like that. I just want them to remember her for the sweet little thing that she was. You know, like I say, she touched a lot of people, and I just want them to have those good memories of her. Amber took her last breaths in the dry New Mexico dirt that afternoon. She was only 13 years old, full of creativity, making her way through adolescence and surrounded by kids who were supposed to be her friends.

1:05:58This story isn't about a teenager making a horrible mistake. It's about the environment that allowed it to happen. Adults who never want to take accountability and leave weapons out within reach, laws that arrive too late, and the culture that trusts children around firearms more than the car keys or voting ballots. Oh, and also really fucking dumb juries. Because who the hell wants to get out of work to go do that shit? Especially if you have a good job and like it. Imagine that. Well, we're all taught in rural areas like this, gun safety. Yeah, that's what we all know. Gun safety. And that's part of our culture.

1:06:44That's how we're brought up. I grew up in Española and Chamita, and it was no different. I knew how to handle a gun from an early age, and I knew that you don't point a gun at something that you're not willing to shoot. But knowing the rules doesn't mean everyone follows them. You see, being an adult, not to mention being a parent, requires that you get off your ass and actually do things that are inconvenient from time to time, Like, oh, I don't know. Getting a gun safe? Actually using it? And actually teaching your dumb kids about gun safety? And about what not to do with a deadly weapon? But who has the time?

1:07:31When you're busy yelling at the Walmart manager and asking repeatedly why the Rutabagas aren't on sale. They were last week, so why aren't they this week? Are you starting to see how that works?

1:08:09Well that does it for another episode of What the Fuck Is That Guy's Problem Anyway? or as I like to call it, Sword and Scale. Thanks for joining us. If you like the show, you can get a video version of it. We call it Sword and Scale Television or just Sword and Scale, really. But it's available, 20 episodes of it, right now at swordandscale.com. You can get it on tier two or tier three of our Plus subscription platform. It's a great way to support the show. Another great way to support the show is to buy a t-shirt or a baseball cap or a pair of boxer shorts or a pair of socks from our store at store.swordandscale.com.

1:08:49But before I forget, before I forget, this is news you want to hear. This is good news. First of all, we're going to be gone for a little bit, but then we're going to be back. And then next year, we're going to have season three of something we like to call Sword and Scale Nightmares.

1:09:20Thank you.

1:09:51Thank you.

1:10:14Thank you.

1:10:46You