SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO
Gustavo Dominguez sentenced to life over Young Park shooting
Second of four convicted of 'depraved mind' murder
The second of four young men convicted of murder in the 2025 Young Park shooting in Las Cruces was sentenced to life in prison Friday, with a minimum of 90 years to serve.
Gustavo Dominguez, 18, was convicted by a jury in July on three counts of first-degree murder in the March 21, 2025, shooting in a crowded city park that became a flashpoint for debates about youth gun violence in New Mexico鈥檚 second most populous city. Dominguez was 17 at the time of the shooting.
State District Judge Douglas Driggers sentenced Dominguez to three consecutive life terms, with a minimum of 30 years to serve on each count before he could be considered for parole, with no time deducted for good behavior in confinement. Driggers suspended $45,000 in fines.
Dominguez was accused of firing into a crowd of up to 200 people who had gathered in a parking lot for an informal car meet, watching vehicles spin in circles and grind tires into smoke as children and adults cheered and filmed the spectacle.
In a hail of gunfire involving multiple shooters, 19-year-old Dominick Estrada, an alleged target in a planned attack, was killed along with bystands Andrew 鈥淎J鈥 Madrid, 16, and Jason Gomez, 17. Fourteen additional people were wounded, some sustaining multiple gunshot wounds.
Convicted in separate trials were brothers Tomas and Nathan Rivas, 22 and 18; and Josiah Ontiveros, 17. Prosecutors presented evidence that the four arrived at the park together with a plan they vocalized in statements such as, 鈥淕et Dom.鈥
Police did not recover a firearm tied to Dominguez, but mobile phone footage and a diagram of bullet casings linked by prosecutors to Dominguez鈥檚 location were used to persuade the jury he was guilty of first-degree 鈥渄epraved mind鈥 murder.
The statute allows for a conviction even if a defendant did not kill the victim if they engaged in 鈥渙utrageously reckless conduct鈥 while participating in or encouraging the murder. Other states have such 鈥渄epraved mind鈥 murder statutes, but not typically as a first-degree or capital felony as in New Mexico.
Dominguez鈥檚 attorney, Herman Ortiz, argued at trial that prosecutors had not overcome reasonable doubt and relied heavily on opinion and conjecture beyond the evidence. Ortiz argued the gunfire erupted after a member of Estrada鈥檚 family escalated a confrontation involving the four defendants.
Dominguez has stated he would appeal his conviction.
Tomas Rivas received a similar sentence in July, after an unsuccessful bid to have his conviction overturned. Rivas is appealing his conviction.
Ontiveros and Nathan Rivas are scheduled for sentencing hearings over the next four weeks.
Algernon 顿鈥橝尘尘补蝉蝉补 is the Journal鈥檚 southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com.
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