New Mexico police said that their initial investigation found that a man was justified in shooting and killing a 14-year-old during an altercation.
Police said that the incident began outside of the Sandia Vista apartments when some residents and some teenagers got into a fight, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
The teens then chased the residents into an upstairs apartment. The newspaper stated that it is unknown if the man who fired the gun was involved in the initial fight.
The man who shot the 14-year-old said the group of teens were attempting to force their way into his apartment and that he warned them he had a gun. During this altercation, someone threw a rock from outside through the apartment window, and the man fired, hitting the 14-year-old. The Journal reported that it was not clear if the 14-year-old who was shot was the same person who threw the rock.
The 14-year-old died at the scene, KRQE-13 reported. The man who fired the gun also told police that he had children in the apartment he was trying to protect as the teens attempted to force their way in. The station reported that police believe the incident to be self-defense but are continuing to investigate.
