SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Supreme Court has ruled that defendants who cause deadly crashes while fleeing police can face felony murder charges under certain circumstances.
The court's decision was announced Monday. It came in a case in which two people were accused of stealing a van in 2017 and fleeing police at high speeds through residential neighborhoods. The driver crashed into another vehicle, killing a mother and her teenage daughter.
The court said aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer can serve as the underlying offense for felony murder. The case will be reevaluated by a state district court judge.