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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 06, 2016 

NAVAJO TIMES

Carrillo gets 26 ½ years in deaths of Diné men
BY COLLEEN KEANE
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

ALBUQUERQUE — Nathaniel
Carrillo, 18, was sentenced
Tuesday to 26 ½ years in prison
for the part he played in the
brutal beating deaths of Navajo
tribal members Allison Gorman and Kee Thompson
Carrillo is the second-oldest of
three youth convicted of beating
Gorman and Thompson with
boards, sticks, and heavy stones
while they slept in an empty lot
on the west side of town.
Alex Rios, then 18, was sentenced to 67 ½ years in February by Second Judicial District
Judge Briana Zamora, the same
judge who sentenced Carrillo.
Gilbert Tafoya, the youngest
youth charged in the murders, then 15, pled guilty in
her courtroom last year in
exchange for an amenability
hearing. The amenability hearing will determine if he will be
tried as an adult or a juvenile.
It’s yet to happen.
As part of his plea deal,
Tafoya agreed to testify against
Rios and Carrillo.
During Rios’s trial last
December, Tafoya stated that
the three youth came across
Gorman and Thompson on
their way back from a party in
the early morning hours of July

19, 2014, and decided to rob and
beat them.
Then, according to court
testimony, they went back to
Tafoya’s nearby home, found a
knife, returned to the empty lot
and stabbed
them.
Later that
morning,
Albuquerque police
followed
footprints
from the
crime scene
to Tafoya’s
near-by home
where they
Nathaniel Carrillo
discovered
bloody clothes and Gorman’s
identification and EBT card.
“Those men were absolutely
defenseless. They never had a
chance to defend themselves,”
state prosecutor Vincent Martinez told Zamora before she
announced Carrillo’s sentence.
During the presentencing
hearing on July 20 when Carrillo
pleaded no contest, Martinez and
Stephen Taylor, Carrillo’s public
defender, presented Zamora with
the 26 ½ year plea deal.
It was down 22 years from the
maximum sentence of 48 years
for the three major crimes
Carrillo was originally charged
with — 1st degree felony mur-

SPECIAL TO THE TIMES   COLLEEN KEANE

A correction officer stands guard over Nathaniel Carrillo moments before Judge Brianna Zamora sentences him
to 26 ½ years in prison for the part he played in the brutal murders of Kee Thompson and Allison Gorman.
der; 2nd degree felony murder;
and aggravated battery with a
deadly weapon.
Twenty-four lesser charges
were dropped.
Under the deal, 18 ½ years
were suspended and three
years for the aggravated assault
charge are to be served concurrently with the other sentence.
Carrillo also faces five years’
probation after he gets out.
When the plea deal was first
presented at the July 20 presentencing hearing, it was unsettling for some family members.
Veda Yazzie, Thompson’s sister
and others, felt it wasn’t just,
considering Carrillo will be
around 44 years old when he gets
out of lock-up, if he serves the
full sentence — about the same
age Thompson and Gorman were
when they lost their lives.
Prior to Zamora’s ruling, Gorman’s and Allison’s family members pleaded for a just sentence
to the full extent of the law.
While they spoke, Carrillo,
wearing an orange jumpsuit,
sat motionless.
“Your honor, I loved my
brother very much, and I will
never see him again. I hope
and pray you give a sentence of
justice,” implored Veda Yazzie,

as she broke down in tears.
Composing herself, she continued, “Kee Thompson was a
very humble human being. He
was outgoing. He never gave
anyone any trouble. If he was
hungry, he would give you his
food. He knew the traditional
values,” she stated referring to
k’e and hózho.
“How can someone with his
qualities be hurt this way?” she
asked the judge.
Also, addressing Zamora,
Faith Tolena, Thompson’s
niece, testified that her uncle
did not deserve the unspeakable torture he endured at the
hands of his killers.
“Please remember my uncle.
Sentence him to the fullest
capability,” she pleaded.
Remembering her younger brother, Allison Gorman,
Alberta Gorman-Yazzie spoke
of him as a thoughtful and considerate son who took the best
care of his parents, cooking for
them, working the family farm
and taking them to medical
appointments.
“They lost their son, caregiver and provider. They mourn
him. We try to console them,
but they are in tremendous
pain and feel helpless,” she said

holding back tears.
“This has left a void in all
of our hearts. My brother was
a big strong man, with a big
strong heart,” she added, telling the judge he was skilled in
horsemanship and athletics.
In a statement to the court on
behalf of the Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission, Commissioner Jennifer Denetdale
advised Zamora that the commission stands by the families.
“Their relatives came out
to Albuquerque in the hope of
bettering their lives. Their lives
were valuable and this individual (and the other two youth)
preyed upon them. We grieve
with Thompson and Gorman’s
families and support their
statements,” she told Zamora.
During the hearing, Zamora
also listened to testimony from
counseling and education staff
who have been working with
Carrillo while he waited for his
sentence to come down. They
reported that he’s been a good
student, is helpful to others and
has participated in counseling.
After the sentencing hearing,
family members expressed that
justice would have been better
served with a longer sentence, but
they understood that legal cir-

cumstances had to be considered.
“I think this is not really
justice. It’s not near what we
would have wanted,” said Amos
Yazzie, Gorman’s brother-inlaw, who spoke on behalf of
family members.
He explained that because
Carrillo was under 18 at the time
of the murders, there was a possibility that he could have been
granted an amenability hearing.
If that turned in his favor, he
could be out of prison when he is
21, three years from now.
Yazzie said there was also the
possibility of a long, drawn-out
appeals process.
“We didn’t want to risk that.
Now, at least we know he will
be locked up for a very long
time,” he said.
Veda Yazzie agreed.
“I wish we could have gotten
more, but I’m OK with the sentence,” she said.
Since the trials and hearings
began, many family members
sent Zamora letters and photographs of Gorman and Thompson showing how much they
were loved by their families.
“They were not homeless,”
said Alberta Gorman.
During the sentencing hearing, Zamora acknowledged that
she received and read the correspondence and thanked family
members for their statements.
“I am so sorry for your loss and
your suffering,” she told them.
“She really did feel our
sorrow. I think she understands what we’ve been going
through,” said Amos Yazzie.
Veda Yazzie said it’s not over
yet, though.
Tafoya’s amenability hearing
is scheduled for Nov. 18. But
there’s a good possibility that it
may re-scheduled.
Both Thompson’s and Gorman’s family members expressed
appreciation to the Navajo
Nation Human Rights Commission for standing by them during
the last two years, which they
described as a living nightmare.
“They have been there for us,
guiding us and helping us when
we had questions. They were
wonderful,” said one family
member.
Added Veda Yazzie, “I’m very
grateful they were here and
supporting us.”