Indianapolis, April 17, 2025 — The National Police Association (NPA) today announced that it has formally requested the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) open a federal civil rights investigation into New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez over his politically charged prosecution of Las Cruces Police Officer Brad Lunsford. In a detailed letter submitted to U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi, the NPA outlines serious constitutional violations and potential civil rights abuses resulting from the indictment of Officer Lunsford for a lawful use of force that was in full compliance with department policy.
On August 2, 2022, Officer Lunsford responded to a theft in progress. The suspect, Presley Eze, violently resisted arrest, knocked Officer Lunsford’s partner to the ground, and seized his department-issued Taser. Faced with the threat of serious harm or death to himself and others, Officer Lunsford discharged his firearm to neutralize the danger. Investigations concluded that Lunsford acted appropriately and within department guidelines.
Despite these findings, AG Torrez chose to indict Lunsford for voluntary manslaughter. This prosecution was not rooted in evidence or law, but rather in a political campaign to vilify law enforcement and appease anti-police activists. “This is not justice—it is persecution,” said NPA spokesperson Sgt. Betsy Brantner Smith (Ret.) “Officer Lunsford followed his training, protected his partner, and survived a life-threatening encounter. Now, he faces prison not because he broke the law, but because he wore a badge.”
The NPA’s letter to the DOJ details how the prosecution violates Lunsford’s constitutional rights under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, including substantive and procedural due process, and raises grave concerns about selective prosecution based on political bias against law enforcement officers.
This prosecution exemplifies a growing national crisis: the erosion of the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of Fair Notice. George Soros backed prosecutors across the country, such as AG Torrez, are now criminally charging police officers for conduct that their own departments explicitly authorized. Officers are being blindsided—told they acted appropriately under policy and training, only to be prosecuted later for those very actions. This weaponization of prosecutorial discretion not only violates constitutional rights, but it also undermines the foundational trust that law enforcement must have in the rules they are trained to follow.
“This case goes beyond one man,” Smith added. “It sends a chilling message to every officer in America: even if you follow department policy, even if you act to save a life, you may be sacrificed to score political points. If this continues unchecked, the thin blue line will crumble under fear and hesitation.”
The NPA is calling on the Department of Justice to intervene to ensure that constitutional rights are not trampled in the name of ideological activism. The request urges the DOJ to investigate AG Torrez’s conduct for violations of federal civil rights laws and to reaffirm that justice must be blind to politics.
“The United States is a nation of laws—not of mobs, not of headlines, not of political agendas,” Smith concluded. “If we abandon that principle for our police officers, we abandon it for everyone.”
The NPA’s request for investigation can be read here.
About the National Police Association: The National Police Association (NPA) is a nonprofit organization supporting law enforcement through advocacy, education, and law. For more information, visit NationalPolice.org.
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