LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico city has agreed to pay a family more than $6 million in a wrongful death lawsuit stemming from the choking death of a Latino man in February.
The Las Cruces Sun News reported Wednesday that the city of Las Cruces reached the agreement July 17 and would pay the family of Antonio Valenzuela, who died at the hands of a former police officer.
Police say then-Officer Christopher Smelser applied the chokehold after Valenzuela fled during a traffic stop. Smelser was later fired and faces a murder charge. His attorney Amy L. Orlando previously said the charge was a political move meant to grab headlines.