New Mexico woman whose son was fatally struck by vehicles on I

The mother of a New Mexico man who was killed a year-and-a-half ago on Interstate 30 in Saline County filed a lawsuit Thursday alleging that her son's civil rights were violated by the deputies who detained him minutes before he was fatally struck by passing vehicles.

In her lawsuit, Maria Elena Barajas alleges that deputies used excessive force against her son, Daniel Barajas, which caused him to "stagger" onto the highway during that cold, dark and rainy morning, where he was "struck by multiple vehicles and killed."

She also accused two employees of the county's coroner's office of conspiring to deprive the victim of his constitutional rights.

Daniel Barajas, 38, died about 6 a.m. on Jan. 15, 2022, roughly six minutes after deputies left the scene where they had detained him for almost 90 minutes, according to the lawsuit.

Barajas' body was so badly mangled that a toxicology report and autopsy were not performed, at least that's the reason the authorities gave, said Michael Laux, an attorney representing Maria Elena Barajas.

Among the defendants named in the lawsuit is Saline County Sheriff Rodney Wright, along with two of his captains, one lieutenant, one sergeant and three deputies.

The League of United Latin American Citizens held a news conference Thursday afternoon in Albuquerque, N.M., which is also where the lawsuit was filed in federal court, to announce the legal action against the defendants.

"They tried to brush Daniel off as a ne'er-do-well," Laux said during the news conference, which was streamed live on Facebook.

Shortly after saying that, Laux described the deputies named in the lawsuit as "thugs who just so happened to be wearing law enforcement uniforms."

The lawsuit names Wright, Deputies Hunter Thompson, Sullivan Sulzberger and Jake Scoggins, Sgt. Christy Biddle, Lt. Kate Hawthorn, Capt. Harley Sowell and Capt. Joey Shamlin as defendants. Also named as defendants are Saline County Coroner Kevin Cleghorn and Allyn West, his former chief deputy.

Attempts to reach the sheriff and coroner by phone on Thursday were unsuccessful.

Laux said law enforcement continued to portray Barajas as a drug criminal even after his death.

Barajas' sister, Xexila Barajas, recalled a phone conversation with a Dallas-area police officer who was the first law enforcement officer to call her to let her know that her brother had died. He offered no condolences, only news of his death and accusations, she said.

"He said, 'Well, we thought he was a drug runner,'" the victim's sister told reporters.

The Saline County sheriff's office said they saw Daniel Barajas about 4:35 a.m. sleeping inside his Nissan SUV on the on-ramp at Exit 106 in Benton. Deputies said they woke him up and ordered him out of the vehicle, at which time he appeared disoriented and incoherent.

Suspecting that Barajas was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, deputies asked for emergency medical technicians and a K-9 unit to be called to the scene, authorities said.

The EMTs cleared Barajas, and the K-9 discovered no drugs or other contraband in his possession, but he was advised not to drive because of his perceived mental state, the reports stated.

Laux said Barajas' keys, phone, wallet and money box were never found. Additionally, no body camera or dashboard camera videos of the hourlong interaction that law enforcement had with Barajas appear to exist and many of the photographs taken of the scene were lost by the coroner's office, according to the lawsuit.

The complaint also states that the Turtle Creek Fire Department responded about 10 minutes after the crash and started "power washing the potential crime scene," effectively washing away evidence.

The complaint identified the first driver who struck Barajas as Regis Crenshaw. He was heading east on I-30 in his Kia sedan near the 106 exit when he saw a man entering the roadway from his right wearing a blanket, the complaint stated.

He applied the brakes, but still struck the man, who tumbled over his hood and landed on the interstate. Crenshaw pulled over, parked his car, headed toward the man in the road and watched in horror as he was struck by an 18-wheeler, according to the lawsuit.

Sometime later, an Arkansas State Police investigator or sheriff's deputy at the scene told Crenshaw "that he should not feel bad about striking Daniel because [he] was a homeless drug addict," the lawsuit stated. Later on, another deputy or state police investigator told Crenshaw that Barajas was a suspected "drug trafficker," according to the lawsuit.

Barajas was gainfully employed as a welder, wasn't homeless, had no criminal record and had no history of drug activity, Laux said.

Barajas' home was in Albuquerque. He was traveling to Texas from Kentucky to see his newborn niece and nephew, his relatives said.

The lawsuit alleges that a single debit card transaction proves that Barajas' card was used by somebody at a seafood restaurant hours after his death. It also alleges that vital evidence was destroyed, lost or not collected during the investigation.

Thompson and Sulzberger are specifically accused of racial profiling. They are alleged to have discriminated against Barajas for his Latino heritage, restraining him and ordering him not to drive in spite of him violating no laws and being cleared by EMTs. They're also accused of taking possession of his car keys, committing excessive force against him and failing to protect him.

The plaintiff is seeking compensatory damages, costs, attorney's fees and punitive damages.

Barajas' mother also spoke during Thursday's news conference, which was held on what would have been her son's 40th birthday, she said.

"This is the most difficult thing for a mom to go through," Maria Elena Barajas said while wiping away tears. "He was just everything to us. We knew him inside and out, and we know he never did what they said he did."

Print Headline: Death on I-30 prompts suit by N.M. mom

This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc.

Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2023, Associated Press and may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use. The AP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing. All rights reserved.